Veninga v. Valley State Bank of Rock Valley

443 N.W.2d 721, 1989 Iowa Sup. LEXIS 206, 1989 WL 79625
CourtSupreme Court of Iowa
DecidedJuly 19, 1989
DocketNo. 88-1331
StatusPublished

This text of 443 N.W.2d 721 (Veninga v. Valley State Bank of Rock Valley) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Iowa primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Veninga v. Valley State Bank of Rock Valley, 443 N.W.2d 721, 1989 Iowa Sup. LEXIS 206, 1989 WL 79625 (iowa 1989).

Opinion

LAVORATO, Justice.

This appeal presents the following question: Is a judgment creditor who follows the statutory redemption provisions entitled to redeem homestead property? We think so and affirm the district court’s summary judgment ruling in a quiet title action brought by William Veninga, the owner of the property, against the Valley State Bank of Rock Valley, Iowa, the judgment creditor.

On March 13, 1985, Valley sued Louis and William Veninga, seeking a judgment on a promissory note. Valley also sought foreclosure of a deed of trust on 320 acres of farmland owned by the Veningas as tenants in common.

Several months later, the Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States started a foreclosure action in which it named Louis Veninga, William Veninga, and Valley as defendants. The Veningas were named because they had executed a mortgage with Equitable on substantially the same real estate covered by Valley’s deed of trust. Valley was named as a party because its deed of trust created a lien in favor of Valley that was junior to Equitable’s mortgage lien.

Equitable’s foreclosure action went to judgment in September 1985. On November 14 the Veningas’ interest in the real estate was sold to Equitable at a sheriff's sale. Equitable bid the property in for $306,669.56.

The following April, Valley’s foreclosure action was tried. In June the district court entered its decree, finding that: (1) Louis and William Veninga were jointly and severally liable, as partners, on the note to Valley in the amount of $365,942.75, together with interest and costs; (2) the 320 acres were not partnership property; and (3) Louis had signed William’s name to Valley’s deed of trust without William’s authorization.

The court ordered that: (1) the deed of trust be foreclosed against Louis, (2) a special execution be issued against his interest so that it could be sold to satisfy the judgment, and (3) a general execution be issued by the clerk against the undivided interest of William in the real estate.

Pursuant to the court’s decree, the clerk did issue a general execution against William’s interest in the real estate. The sheriff levied upon William’s interest and scheduled a sheriff's sale for August 11, 1986. The sheriff then filed a petition for intervention, asking the court for relief from the scheduled sale because the property had already been sold to Equitable at the sheriff's sale on November 14, 1985.

On August 12,1986, Valley redeemed the property from Equitable, paying the sum of $330,488.96. The figure represented the amount of Equitable's judgment plus $23,-819.40 in accrued interest. In addition, Valley bid in an extra $200,000 for the property. The $200,000 was credited against Valley’s judgment in its own foreclosure action, leaving a deficiency on the judgment of $165,942.75 plus costs, attorney’s fees, and additional interest. Valley filed a lienholder’s affidavit pursuant to Iowa Code sections 628.18 and 628.19 setting out these facts.

On January 8,1987, the clerk of court, in an instrument entitled “assignment,” confirmed that Valley had redeemed the property. In addition, the instrument provided that

[a]s a result of this redemption, the sheriff’s certificate of purchase is hereby assigned to Valley State Bank, Rock Valley, Iowa and the sheriff is authorized to deliver a sheriff’s deed at the conclusion of the redemption period, if no further redemptions occur.

There were no further redemptions. A sheriff’s deed was ultimately issued to Valley conveying all real estate covered by Equitable’s mortgage, except two 46' X 46' tracts, which were described as the “residences or dwellings occupied by the mortgagors and the real property upon which the same are situated.”

On June 30, 1986, the Veningas sued Equitable in the state district court, claim[723]*723ing that the November 14 -sheriffs sale was void because no homestead had been platted by the sheriff as required by Iowa Code section 561.5 (1985). They sought to have the court set aside the sheriff’s sale, set a market value for the homestead, and then declare the homestead redeemable under Iowa Code section 654.16 (1987). The case was removed to federal district court. After the removal, Valley, on September 30, 1986, was allowed to intervene, and it filed an answer denying all material allegations of the petition.

Equitable filed a motion for summary judgment, which was granted by the federal district court in January 1988. The court noted from the legal description in the sheriffs certificate that the two 46' X 46' tracts were excepted as the homestead of the Veningas. The court observed that from this description, it appeared that the sheriff had not levied on the Veningas’ homestead. But the court then noted that the Veningas were claiming the two tracts only included two dwellings with one foot around each one. This, of course, was far less than the 40 acres allowed as a homestead by Iowa Code section 561.2 (1985), to which, apparently, the Veningas were claiming they were entitled.

The federal district court found that: (1) the Veningas had submitted to the sheriff a plan of division for the sale of the land pursuant to Iowa Code section 626.84; (2) the plan had directed the sheriff to sell all of the mortgaged property in nine 40-acre parcels; (3) the sheriff had attempted to sell the real estate in parcels according to the Veningas’ plan but the parcel sale bids were not enough to satisfy the judgment; (4) because the parcel sale bids were not enough to satisfy the judgment, the sheriff had sold the property en masse; and (5) the Veningas had expressly waived their homestead rights in the mortgage to Equitable. Relying on this last finding as to waiver, the court concluded that section 561.5 did not apply, and it granted the motion for summary judgment. The Veningas did not appeal from this ruling.

Several months after the federal district court ruling, William Veninga brought the present action against Valley, seeking to quiet title to the forty acres encompassing the two 46' X 46' tracts excepted in the Equitable mortgage as the Veningas’ homestead. William alleged that Valley had no interest in the homestead because, as a judgment creditor, it had no lien on the homestead and, consequently, no right to redeem it. Valley answered, raising three defenses: claim preclusion, issue preclusion, and laches.

Shortly after filing its answer, Valley moved for summary judgment, which William resisted. The district court granted the motion, relying on the doctrine of claim preclusion. It is from this ruling that William has appealed.

When, as here, no factual dispute exists and no conflicting inferences may be drawn from the facts, we review the district court’s conclusions only to correct errors of law. State v. Cullison, 227 N.W.2d 121, 126 (Iowa 1975).

I. On appeal William contends the district court erred in granting Valley’s motion for summary judgment because claim preclusion simply does not apply. We need not consider whether claim preclusion applies because it is clear from the record that a more compelling reason appears to support the district court’s ruling. See Kelly v. Iowa Valley Mut. Ins. Ass’n, 332 N.W.2d 330, 333 (Iowa 1983) (supreme court does not have to adopt district court’s premise in order to sustain its conclusion).

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Related

Kelly v. Iowa Valley Mutual Insurance Ass'n
332 N.W.2d 330 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1983)
Brown v. Vonnahme
343 N.W.2d 445 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1984)
State v. Cullison
227 N.W.2d 121 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1975)
Wilson v. Wilson
263 N.W. 830 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1935)
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62 Iowa 661 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1883)
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41 N.W. 3 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1888)

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Bluebook (online)
443 N.W.2d 721, 1989 Iowa Sup. LEXIS 206, 1989 WL 79625, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/veninga-v-valley-state-bank-of-rock-valley-iowa-1989.