Can unsecured credit card bills be reduced to judgment and become a
lien against my house in North Carolina?

Hi Corky,

Yes, absolutely, a creditor of any kind who obtains a judgement
against you may obtain a lien against your house or any other
property.  This is true in every state:

"Q.	As a plaintiff, how do I collect a judgment I win?

A.	When an arbitration award becomes a court judgment, it can be
enforced in the same manner as any other money judgment. If you win a
judgment, it is valid for ten years. Before the end of that time, you
may ask the court to extend the judgment for an additional ten years.

The judgment becomes a lien against any land located within the county
or counties where the judgment is docketed and owned by the person
against whom the judgment was awarded (the defendant). This lien also
extends to any land the defendant acquires in that same county(ies)
for a ten-year period after the judgment is docketed. This means the
defendant cannot sell that land without first paying your judgment.

If the defendant pays you directly, you must go to the clerk's office
and tell the clerk that you have been paid, so that the lien on the
defendant's land can be removed.

Even though you may win a judgment, you may not, in fact, be able to
collect it. If the defendant does not pay you, you may ask the court
to use a process called an execution, to try to collect the judgment.
An execution is an order to the sheriff to seize and sell land and
personal property owned by the defendant to satisfy the judgment. If
you pay the required fee, you may ask the clerk for an execution as
often as you wish during the period the judgment is in effect."

North Carolina Courts FAQ
http://www.nccourts.org/Support/FAQs/FAQs.asp?type=6&language=1#42

"What this means is that if you default on a credit card balance for
long enough, your creditor can only sue you, from which they may
possibly obtain a court judgement. In this situation, the worst that
can happen is that your creditor can put a lien on your house, so that
if you ever do sell, you are forced to pay off the money. This is not
good, certainly, but your creditor cannot FORCE you to sell your
house."

Professional Debt Help
http://www.consolidation-debt.net/debt-choices.html

"Judgement
The decision of a court of law stating that one individual is indebted
to another and fixing the amount of indebtedness. Judgements, when
recorded, become a lien on real property owned by the defendant.

Judgement Lien
The claim on the property of a debtor resulting from a judgement."

Mortgage Glossary
http://www.zerodownhomemortgage.com/Mortgage_Glossary.htm

"If you are just ignoring the constant calls and letters from the
creditors, some of them will eventually take it all the way to the
courts and possibly get a judgment against you, which could result in
wage garnishment or lien on your property. Action is needed to
completely eliminate your debt. Just hoping things will get better
will not resolve the problem. In the meantime, the creditors will tack
on late fees and over the limit fees and bleed you financially for the
rest of your life."

How To Reduce Debt Faster
http://www.edebtfree.org/options4.htm

"Unsecured Debt

Your credit cards are considered "unsecured debt" with some
exceptions. A credit card company can not come after the groceries you
purchased with the credit card. If you don't pay your credit card
debt, the banks and credit card companies "may" sue you and they "may"
put a lien on your house, but they cannot make you sell your house to
pay off your debt."

The Bottom Line
http://www.debtamerica.com/site/news.shtml

A lien of any kind on your house can prevent you from re-financing
your home or from selling it:

"Lien - A claim of money against a property, wherein the value of the
property is used as security in repayment of a debt. Examples include
a mechanic's lien, which might be for the unpaid cost of building
supplies, or a tax lien for unpaid property taxes. A lien is a defect
on the title and needs to be settled before transfer of ownership. A
lien release is a written report of the settlement of a lien and is
recorded in the public record as evidence of payment."

Homeowner Terminology
http://www.debt-help.com/terminology.htm

Hope this helps!

--Missy

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