How can we get them to release our second?

There are several unknown facts which impact the possible answers. This is clearly a situation where you should make an appointment with an experienced attorney to discuss the pros and cons of your options. Unfortunately, deeds of trusts are assumed valid for 40 years in Missouri, so you will need a lawyer to advise you on best how to approach resolution.

Based on what you've said, it is hard to know what exactly is happening. How did you purchase the farm if you couldn't get a loan? Was it an owner financed kind of thing? Are you talking about a deed of trust? Get in touch with an attorney and see if they can help you out. You probably need to talk with them shortly to make sure that your rights are protected.

I'm guessing that you are alleging that the seller agreed to sell you the farm in exchange for payments (essentially financing the sale themselves) and in so doing took a security interest in the farm as well as in your home. As Mr. Freeman has pointed out we have far too few facts here to make an intelligent assessment so your best course of action is to get with an attorney familiar with real estate matters. I post primarily to point out a couple of things that jumped out at me from what information you did provide. Generally speaking whether or not the farm was fairly priced, obscenely overpriced or a dirt cheap bargain has absolutely no bearing on the matter. However, if you are alleging that the sellers misrepresented the value of the property to you either negligently or fraudulently it may be possible to assert a claim based upon that but understand that the statute of limitations for fraud is only 5 years so depending upon the facts and the timing you may not be able to assert that at this point. In other words, you need to act quickly to retain an attorney to ensure that you do not make your situation any worse than it already is. The other thing that I noticed was that you seem to feel that since the lender (seller) foreclosed on the farm that they no longer have a right to the collateral on your home. Again that generally would not be the case and the very reason for insisting on the additional collateral was in the event that you defaulted and the foreclosure generated insufficient funds to satisfy the amounts owed. Mind you I said generally that is the case but with the seller financing the deal themselves there is a fairly good chance that they did not use a proper foreclosure sale of the property. I understand in commercial executions of property if the sale was not done in a commercially reasonable manner eliminates the creditor's ability to pursue any shortfalls. I would assume that this also applies to non-commercial foreclosure sales. I also want to take this opportunity to point out some things that you will want to keep in mind in any future real estate dealings in which you may engage. From the limited information that you provided I see a couple of red flags to this deal which should have sent you running. First off, when the bank won't lend you the money its not because they don't like you but rather based upon their significant experience in lending they know that you are not in a position to be able to pay the funds back based upon the asset being purchased. When the seller agrees to finance the deal they are not being your friend helping you out in a tough spot - they are looking out for their own interests. Secondly, when the seller/financer insisted upon additional collateral beyond the farm itself that should have screamed at you that the farm was not going to generate sufficient funds to meet your financing obligations related to the farm. Bottom line - you need to meet with counsel to protect your rights as soon as possible.

Consider what might happen in bankrupt court. If you file under Chapter 13, the court may strip off the second mortgage if there is no home equity left to attach to it after initially factoring in the first mortgage and your homestead exemption in your current home. You should consult with a bankruptcy attorney for proper guidance if you choose to go in that direction.

I would want to read the documents and understand the debt account before advising you completely. If the farm foreclosure satisfied the debt, then they should release the second deed of trust. If not, you may have to pay any deficiency. I would want to make sure the release document is correct also. Finally, if you cannot arrange something, you may need to bring a suit, probably a claim for slander of title.