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Montana guaranty guide

Personal Guaranty Guide for Montana

A borrower-focused guide to Montana guaranty exposure, SBA guarantees, confession-of-judgment clauses, and collateral shortfall risk.

Last reviewed: May 26, 2026 by the BizLeaseCheck Editorial Team

General information, not legal or financial advice.

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Overview

Montana guaranties should be reviewed for unlimited payment liability, future advances, waiver of defenses, collateral pledges, and written release or burn-off terms.

Montana has a statutory judgment-by-confession procedure and separate homestead statutes. Deficiency exposure still depends on foreclosure path, sale process, collateral value, and guaranty waivers.

Enforceability topics to check

Confession of judgment / cognovitHigh confidence

Montana Code Annotated Title 27, Chapter 9 authorizes judgment by confession. Treat confession, cognovit, or warrant-of-attorney wording as a high-risk procedural waiver.

Mont. Code Ann. Title 27, Chapter 9
Deficiency judgments after collateral saleNeeds lawyer verification

Montana foreclosure, trust indenture, and UCC deficiency issues are collateral- and procedure-specific. Guarantors should preserve notice, valuation, and commercially reasonable sale defenses.

Montana Code Annotated — mortgages and trust indentures
Spousal signature and ECOAHigh confidence

Montana is not a community-property state. ECOA / Regulation B still limits when a creditor can require a spouse or additional party to guarantee.

CFPB Regulation B / ECOA
Statute of limitationsHigh confidence

Montana generally provides eight years for actions on written contracts, subject to UCC, demand, payment, acceleration, and guaranty-specific accrual issues.

Mont. Code Ann. § 27-2-202
Homestead exemptionHigh confidence

Montana has a homestead exemption chapter with value, declaration, lien, and sale-process rules. It does not eliminate consensual liens or all guaranty exposure.

Mont. Code Ann. § 70-32-104

Borrower protections to negotiate

  • Strike judgment-by-confession language unless Montana counsel approves the exact statutory procedure.
  • Cap guaranty exposure and exclude future advances, renewals, and affiliate obligations without written consent.
  • Preserve foreclosure, trust-indenture, valuation, notice, and commercially reasonable sale defenses.
  • Limit spouse signatures to legitimate collateral or credit-support needs under ECOA.
  • Require release after payoff, refinance, business sale, assignment, or agreed burn-off milestones.

Official resources

SBA Form 148 — Unconditional Guarantee SBA SOP 50 10 — Lender and Development Company Loan Programs 13 CFR § 120.160 — SBA loan conditions CFPB Regulation B / ECOA — 12 CFR Part 1002 Mont. Code Ann. Title 27, Chapter 9 — confession of judgment Mont. Code Ann. § 27-2-202 — written contracts Mont. Code Ann. § 70-32-104 — homestead exemption amount

Legal-review notes

Guide confidence marker: Medium confidence.

  • Have Montana counsel review commercial guaranty use of Title 27, Chapter 9 confession procedure before paid promotion.
  • Montana deficiency and guarantor-waiver treatment after foreclosure, trust indenture sale, or UCC sale needs local review.
  • Confirm current Montana homestead amount and declaration mechanics before publishing specific dollar figures.

Frequently asked questions

Can a Montana guaranty include confession-of-judgment language?

Montana has a statutory judgment-by-confession procedure, so the clause should be treated as a serious procedural waiver and reviewed before signing.

Does Montana require my spouse to guarantee?

Not simply because the applicant is married. Montana is not a community-property state, and ECOA limits spouse-guaranty requirements.

What should Montana borrowers negotiate first?

Start with confession-clause removal, a guaranty cap, future-advance limits, collateral-sale defenses, and release mechanics.