Clar

This action concerns the competing claims to priority of two deeds of trust on a residence. We conclude that the trial court correctly adjudged that the deed of trust of defendants recorded first was valid, and was a lien prior in time to that of plaintiffs’ deed of trust; we therefore affirm.

I.

The property which is the subject of this lawsuit was owned by Richard and Sharon Larscheid, a married couple. Richard Larscheid (Larscheid) was a real estate salesperson employed by Richard Morrell, a real estate broker, promoter and investor in Contra Costa County. Larscheid’s job was to solicit funds from investors. Starting in 1978 or 1979, Larscheid frequently solicited funds from defendant Thomas Cacciola for investment in various real estate ventures. Cacciola, a real estate and insurance broker from Pittsburg, was a longtime friend of both Richard and Sharon Larscheid. Over a period of approximately three years, Richard Larscheid induced Cacciola to invest large sums of money in a number of real estate investments. At the same time, Morrell was soliciting and obtaining funds for investment from defendant Peter Vetrano, a retired restaurant owner and friend of Cacciola.…