Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

You did not foreclose on a property; the bank foreclosed on it. You were the one foreclosed on. You also refer to it as "a property," not "my house," or "my home." That suggests it was not your primary residence. The purchase money loan anti-deficiency protections in the Civil Code only apply to your primary residence. So if the "property" was not your principal residence, you are still liable for the loan. If it was your primary personal residence, then you are not liable for it. It is, however, an unpaid debt. Therefore it is correctly carried that way on your credit reports.

I agree with the first two (2) sentences of Mr. McCormick's response. I disagree with the rest.

Property does not have to be your primary residence to fall within the ambit of the purchase money anti-deficiency protection of Code of Civil Procedure section 580b. Mr. McCormick refers to only one small clause, which applies to third party financing used to fund the purchase of property to be occupied by the borrower.

Property doesn't lose its purchase money protection just because the owner later moves and rents it. Simply stated, purchase money protection does not have anything to do with the laws regarding homestead exemptions.

With that said, the fact that it was reported on your credit is not the same as violating the purchase money anti-deficiency protection of Code of Civil Procedure section 580b. Anti deficiency protection means the the lender cannot sue you for a deficiency on the note. It does not mean that it cannot be reported on your credit report.

Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, negative information can be carried on your credit reports for seven (7) years. I see some issues with respect to the dates that you have provided, because if the foreclosure was in 2009, the negative information can be carried on your credit reports up to 2016, not 2015.