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68 the next business day; and » e telephone number of the statewide foreclosure hotline recommended by the housing finance commission and the statewide civil legal aid hotline, together with a statement that the property owner may have the right to participate in mediation. e records noted above must be maintained for at least four years, and if the servicer discovers that the property is occupied upon entry, or if the servicer is contacted by the owner or an authorized occupant, the servicer is required to leave and cease efforts to preserve or secure the property. Although the limitations listed above are not insignificant, it is anticipated that in most cases the property will truly be abandoned and thus much of these concerns will not come into play. ere will, however, still be times when a court order is necessary. In the past, some courts have been hesitant to issue these orders as there was no specific statutory authority. Fortunately, the new law now specifically addresses the filing of an action to obtain a court order to preserve and protect property. Further, the law makes clear that this action in no way prejudices the right of the servicer to continue with a non-judicial foreclosure. It is important to note that if a county, city, or town provides notice to a servicer that property is abandoned and in need of repair, failure of the servicer to act can result in a super lien against the property. e super lien is limited to only the actual costs of remedy (no attorney fees or fines) completed by the county, city, or town, but this lien would survive foreclosure. Finally, as to property preservation, if the servicer is the first party to discover that the property is abandoned and a nuisance, the new law states that the servicer may make a request upon the county, city, or town for a determination that the property is abandoned, and that the servicer should be allowed entry. e county, city, or town will then have 15 days from the receipt of that request to respond. e available responses are either: provision of the notice and accompanying affidavit allowing the servicer access; response that the property is not abandoned; or response that the county, city, or town does not have adequate resources or is otherwise unable to make the requested determination. us, the abandonment determination that will allow access can either originate with the servicer or the county, city or town. However, in not every case where the determination originates with the servicer will access be allowed. ADDRESSING BENEFICIARIES Property Preservation isn't all that is new in Washington. After many years of ambiguity and confusion, the new law finally addresses the identity of who may be a foreclosing beneficiary. For many years, the law in Washington has required that before a notice of trustee's sale is recorded, a trustee must have proof that the beneficiary is the owner of any note secured by the deed of trust to be foreclosed. e trustee was allowed to rely on a declaration from the beneficiary that it was the actual holder of the note as proof that the beneficiary was the owner. e defect with the above is of course that an owner and a holder are not the same thing and those words are not synonyms. A note may be "owned" by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac but held by a servicer for the purposes of enforcement. Further, a declaration that the servicer is the "actual holder" doesn't make that servicer the "owner" of the note. Finally, it isn't at all clear what the difference is between a holder and an actual holder is when completing a declaration. Fortunately, the long regional nightmare comes to an end with the new legislation. From June 7 forward, the trustee must have proof that the beneficiary is the holder of the note secured by the deed of trust, and a declaration from the beneficiary that it is the holder of that note will provide sufficient proof. us the word "actual" may be removed from the form beneficiary declaration, and the process should no longer need to address arguments about ownership when conducting a foreclosure. PERFORMING DUE DILIGENCE IN DE- CEASED DEFAULTS In Washington, when a borrower is deceased, title companies have, by and large, refused to insure non-judicial foreclosure. e theory has apparently been that if the borrower "Although the new procedure will increase the cost of the non-judicial foreclosure as the due diligence procedure will include necessary fees and costs, the savings in time and costs over the current judicial process will more than compensate for those increases."

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