Secretary of Housing & Urban Development v. Sky Meadow Ass'n

ORDER GRANTING GOVERNMENT’S MOTION FOR PARTIAL SUMMARY JUDGMENT AND DENYING DEFENDANTS’ MOTIONS FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT

I.

Introduction

In this case, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (“HUD”), seeks to quiet title in property it acquired under the Single Family Mortgage Insurance Program, but that was subsequently sold through a private non-judicial foreclosure sale initiated by defendant Sky Meadow Association (“Sky Meadow”) when HUD failed to pay homeowner association assessment fees. HUD maintains that although the foreclosure sale was authorized by Sky Meadow’s Declaration of Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions (“CC & R’s”) and state law, Sky Meadow is precluded by the Property and Supremacy Clauses of the Constitution from initiating foreclosure proceedings against property owned by the United States. Defendant’s argue that because the sale was authorized by the CC & R’s, state law and sanctioned by federal law, the trustee’s sale terminated HUD’s rights to the property.

The Court addressed this issue in Yunis v. United States, 118 F.Supp.2d 1024 , in its Order granting the United States’ motion for partial summary judgment. Although, the non-judicial…