Opinion ID: 1241225
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 8

Heading: Right of Foothill to Proceed with Foreclosure

Text: Foothill may have had a double remedy, that is, whether to look to the certificate of deposit as a source of interim payments, or to declare the whole indebtedness due and foreclose. The choice was its and not the court's. We think it clear that the Mikkelsons, as of December 6, 1979, had not performed material covenants of the note and security instruments. Their continuing failure to make timely payment of the monthly installments through November of 1979 may have been waived by the election of the bank to enter late charges or by acceptance of late payments without objection, but it cannot be denied that the Mikkelsons had not paid the assessments nor had they paid the encumbrances represented by the judgments. We conclude that substantial defaults existed at the time Foothill forwarded to the Mikkelsons a copy of the intended notice of foreclosure, as well as on December 6, 1979, the date of publication of the notice. Moreover, the record is clear that the payment due February 1, 1980, had not been paid at the time of trial. In Jones v. Clark, Wyo., 418 P.2d 792, 796-797 (1966), we stated this rule: ... [I]t is said in 55 Am.Jur., Vendor and Purchaser, § 119, p. 595, `However, the vendor's acceptance of one or more payments subsequent to the time specified in the agreement does not necessarily waive his right to object to the vendee's delinquency as to future payments, or preclude him from insisting on strict performance in the future and declaring a forfeiture for the vendee's default as to future payments,' citing Boone v. Templeman, 158 Cal. 290, 110 P. 947, 139 Am.St.Rep. 126; Annotation 9 A.L.R. 1001, ... It is not for this court to hold that these breaches of the security agreement, not waived by the bank, are to be considered unsubstantial and such as not to justify foreclosure. In Nylen v. Geeraert, 246 Md. 4, 226 A.2d 878, 882 (1967), where the security agreement provided that in default in the payment of taxes all principal should, at the option of the note holder, become due and payable, the court held that the taxes became in default when they commenced drawing interest. Suit was brought to enjoin foreclosure proceedings, which was granted. On appeal, the Court of Appeals of Maryland made this observation: The trial judge could not `bring ... [himself] to deny this injunction.' One can share his sympathy for the plight of the appellees but one cannot disregard the rights of the appellants, however strict and uncompromising their attitude may be.... The court then referred to Doeller, supra, (where the mortgagor had delayed paying interest for only three days) and quoted the same passage hereinabove quoted. At 755, 756. We conclude that on December 6, 1979, the Mikkelsons had failed to make payments required of them by the security instruments and Foothill was entitled to proceed with foreclosure.