Kurtz

Samuel T. Kurtz and Jerelyn Kurtz (collectively, Plaintiffs) sued Paul Calvo, Peggy Calvo, Howard Yonet, and Daniele Yonet (collectively, Defendants) to collect on a promissory note. They appeal a judgment in favor of Defendants after the first phase of a bifurcated trial in which the court determined the action is barred by the antideficiency rule of Code of Civil Procedure section 580b (section 580b). They contend (1) the antideficiency rule does not apply because the trust deed securing the note was not recorded against the purchased property, and (2) the court improperly decided an issue of fact concerning whether the trust deed beneficiary was a “vendor” within the terms of the statute. We reverse the judgment.

Factual and Procedural Background

Defendants purchased an apartment building in El Cajon. Real estate broker David Savage received from Defendants a commission or “finder’s fee” of $10,000 in cash and a $48,500 promissory note in connection with the purchase. The note was secured by a junior deed of trust against a property in National City that Defendants had purchased three years earlier. Savage assigned the note to Plaintiffs. Defendants later lost both…