You're correct; the Homestead provisions of Florida law do indeed protect primary residence homeowners from creditors to a large degree, among other things, such as a property tax exemption to lower the taxes on one's primary home. However, that protection is not inviolate and in certain circumstances a primary home may have a lien placed against it and/or be sold to satisfy a debt that meets the criteria set out by the legislature and the courts. Occasionally, a lien is misplaced on homestead property and is an avoidable lien, or an unenforcable lien, even if the property is sold. But again, in certain circumstances, the homestead provision will not prevent foreclosure to satisfy a lien placed due to an unrelated debt.
Voluntary liens, such as mortgages, have little or nothing to do with the Homestead laws. So, for example, if a Florida resident is dependent on a source of income that ends up evaporating and are unable to meet their mortgage payments, the mortgage company could and would foreclose, of course. Many people have put their homes up to guarantee loans for other purposes, such as bond for a loved one, only to have that loved one abscond and they ended up losing their home.
I don't know what the stars say about this and would appreciate input from our talented astros but what I'm trying to get across here is that the A's may have used their home as collateral to pay the experts and/or JB, expecting continued donation windfalls, book and movie deals to pay the expenses. Our dear Tuba has suggested they should have shut up and should stay shut up because it will hurt them. This may be how it will hurt them, by hurting the expected cash flow to pay off any voluntary liens.
There's also an old principle in Florida law that one's poverty cannot protect them from their actions and some debts are not dischargable under bankruptcy protection. So, hypothetically, I keep filing frivolous lawsuits against Tuba because I'm annoyed that she doesn't see jail time in the immediate future for the A's.
So, Tuba, of course, wins suit after suit, having it dismissed as frivolous and wants to be compensated for attorney fees, time and trouble. Now, in this hypothetical, I'm impoverished. Maybe I'm in jail or something and didn't work for two years before that so I have no money and no assets, just my home. A court can place a lien on that home to collect the judgment and it very well may withstand appeal. A court could, under extreme, very rare circumstances, even order the home to be sold with me still living in it! It would be much more likely, however, that Tuba's lien for fees and costs would come at a time when I sold the home on my own or possibly even if I refinanced it.
Hope that info helps more than it bores to tears.
