Nationstar Mortgage, LLC v. D'Andrea Community Association, 3:15-cv-00377

Background

In 2007 Laura Kerr took a $196,000 loan secured by a first deed of trust on property in Sparks, NV; the HOA later recorded delinquency notices and held a foreclosure sale on December 19, 2013.
Nationstar filed suit (2015) seeking a declaration that the HOA sale did not extinguish its deed of trust because Fannie Mae (allegedly owner of the loan) was protected by FHFA conservatorship preemption under 12 U.S.C. § 4617(j)(3).
Nationstar submitted declarations and internal database printouts (Fannie Mae SIR, Nationstar and BOA screenshots) asserting Fannie Mae acquired the loan on or about December 1, 2007 and still owned it at the time of the HOA sale.
The recorded county chain of title showed: assignments from MERS to BOA (2011) and from BOA to Nationstar (recorded May 6, 2013); a Notice of Default (Sept. 19, 2013) and an affidavit signed under penalty of perjury identifying Nationstar as servicer, beneficiary of record, and holder of the note.
The court found genuine disputes of material fact about whether Fannie Mae owned the loan/deed of trust at the time of the HOA sale, and denied Nationstar’s motion for summary judgment.

Issues

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether Fannie Mae owned the note/DOT at time of HOA sale (preemption under §4617(j)(3))	Fannie Mae acquired the loan Dec. 1, 2007 and retained ownership; FHFA conservator consent needed, so HOA sale cannot extinguish Fannie Mae’s interest	Recorded chain of title and recorded affidavit show Nationstar (not Fannie Mae) was owner/holder by 2013; recorded documents rebut Fannie Mae ownership claim	Denied summary judgment — ownership is genuinely disputed and unresolved at summary stage
Whether Nationstar’s declarations/database extracts suffice to establish undisputed Fannie Mae ownership	Internal system printouts and declarations from Fannie Mae, Nationstar, BOA show Fannie Mae ownership	Recorded public documents (assignments, Notice of Default, affidavit) directly contradict those assertions	Court finds such internal records are disputed by recorded documents; evidence insufficient to carry Nationstar’s initial burden
Effect of recorded assignments dated 2013 (to Nationstar)	Assignment to Nationstar was only beneficiary-of-record/servicing change; Fannie Mae still owned loan	Assignment expressly conveyed “all beneficial interest” including the note to Nationstar; affidavit identifies Nationstar as holder	Recorded assignment and affidavit create a real conflict with Nationstar’s present contention; raises triable issue
Applicability of Nevada’s Montierth decision to permit split legal/title relationships	Montierth allows record beneficiary and separate note owner to coexist by contract; thus Fannie Mae could own loan despite records	Even if legally possible, the record here does not establish such a contractual relationship; recorded documents show Nationstar as owner/holder	Court: Montierth does not resolve factual dispute; possibility of split ownership does not eliminate genuine dispute of fact

Key Cases Cited

Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, 477 U.S. 242 (summary judgment standard) (the court’s role at summary judgment and when disputes are genuine)
Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574 (summary judgment burden-shifting principles)
In re Montierth, 354 P.3d 648 (Nev. 2015) (Nevada law permits separate record beneficiary and note owner in some contractual arrangements)
Skylights LLC v. Byron, 112 F. Supp. 3d 1145 (D. Nev. 2015) (FHFA/Fannie Mae preemption under §4617(j)(3) applied in HOA foreclosure context)
Kaiser Cement Corp. v. Fischbach & Moore, Inc., 793 F.2d 1100 (9th Cir. 1986) (view evidence in light most favorable to nonmoving party)