According to US Legal, a waiver of homestead rights is an agreement between a borrower and lender to relinquish the homeowner’s statutory homestead rights under state law. Homestead protections shield a homeowner’s equity from creditors in the event of insolvency. Homestead exemptions are often applicable to residential mortgages and homeowners association contracts.

According to US Legal, the homestead rights safeguard a homeowner from the seizure or forced sale of his home to satisfy debts. The legal protection applies to all debts, including credit card debt, medical expenses, personal loans, bankruptcy, and accident-related lawsuits. Numerous homeowner associations require property owners to acknowledge that the association’s lien on their land is superior to the homestead exemption afforded by state law. Homeowners who seek to utilise the homestead exemption to protect their equity and prevent creditors from forcibly seizing their properties are required to file a Declaration of Homestead. The Declaration of Homestead applies to debts for which no waiver has been signed.

US Legal states that banks include homestead waivers in residential mortgages in order to retain the right to collect the entire loan balance in cases of foreclosure. Certain states permit the protection of a certain amount of home equity. Other states are limitless.