Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

Conceivably, but usually a judgment creditor will record the judgment with the county recorder, and could be first in line to receive money when it's sold or refinanced.

Yes, foreclosure is one way to enforce a money judgment when an abstract of judgment has been recorded in a county where the judgment debtor has real property. Judgments earn 10% interest, and creditors are often willing to wait and let that interest accrue -- 10% isn't bad on an investment secured by real estate! They know they will be paid from the proceeds of sale or incident to a refinancing when that eventually happens. The creditor's main risk is that the property will (or has) decline in value so there is insufficient equity to pay the judgment after paying senior liens.

Mr. Whipple is right. It would be formally known as an execution sale of real property. It could take place, depending on any other liens and encumbrances, and your automatic homestead exemption. The execution lien literally is similar to foreclosure of a deed of trust, in that you lose the property when it occurs. The other method is an attachment lien, which is what Mr. Cohen was referring to. That gets paid when you sell the house through an escrow. Depending on the amount of the judgment, I advise clients to borrow money at a low fixed rate of interest, to pay off the judgment lien, and pay back the borrowed money over time. This avoids the 10% interest on the judgment.