Bank of Sonoma County v. Dorries

Opinion

WHITE, P. J.

Respondent, Bank of Sonoma County (Bank), sued appellant Norman Dorries for the balance due on a purchase money security agreement. The trial court granted the Bank’s motion for summary judgment. Appellant filed a timely notice of appeal.

Statement of Facts

On November 18, 1980, appellant purchased a mobilehome pursuant to a security agreement. The security agreement was subsequently assigned to respondent Bank. The agreement called for installment payments, secured by the mobilehome. The agreement provided that in the event of a default by appellant, the Bank could either obtain a judgment for the balance owed, or repossess and sell the mobilehome.

When appellant stopped making the payments as they became due, the Bank sued appellant for the balance owing; $32,560.57. Based upon the absence of any effort by the Bank to foreclose on the security, appellant raised as an affirmative defense the mobilehome antideficiency statute, section 2983.8 of the California Civil Code.

The trial court rejected appellant’s defense, and granted the Bank’s motion for summary judgment.

[1293]

Discussion

The sole issue which faces this court in the present case is this; Does the antideficiency statute (Civ. Code, § 2983.8) bar a money judgment under a mobilehome purchase money agreement? We find that it does and therefore reverse the trial court judgment.

Civil Code section 2983.8 provides in pertinent part: “Notwithstanding Section 2983.2 or any other provision of law, no deficiency judgment shall lie in any event in any of the following instances:

“(a) After any sale of any mobilehome [sic] ... for failure of the purchaser to complete his conditional sale contract given to the seller to secure payment of the balance of the purchase price of such mobilehome [sic].”

This section appears to have been patterned after section 580b of the Code of Civil Procedure which provides in pertinent part: “No deficiency judgment shall lie in any event after any sale of real property for failure of the purchaser to complete his contract of sale . . . given to the vendor to secure payment of the balance of the purchase price of real property. ...”