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North Dakota guaranty guide

Personal Guaranty Guide for North Dakota

A borrower-focused guide to North Dakota guaranty exposure, SBA guarantees, confession-clause risk, and personal-asset review.

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

General information, not legal or financial advice.

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Overview

North Dakota guaranties should be reviewed for unlimited liability, future advances, waiver of defenses, collateral pledges, and whether release terms are written into the guaranty itself.

North Dakota is not a community-property state. Its old confession-of-judgment chapter is marked superseded by civil rules, so any cognovit-style clause deserves current local procedure review.

Enforceability topics to check

Confession of judgment / cognovitMedium confidence

North Dakota Chapter 28-10 is labeled confession of judgment but superseded by North Dakota Rule of Civil Procedure 68. Treat any confession clause as a lawyer-review item.

N.D.C.C. Chapter 28-10
Deficiency judgments after collateral saleNeeds lawyer verification

North Dakota mortgage foreclosure, execution, redemption, and UCC sale issues are document- and procedure-specific. Guarantors should preserve valuation and sale-process defenses.

North Dakota Century Code Title 28
Spousal signature and ECOAHigh confidence

North Dakota 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 limitationsMedium confidence

North Dakota generally provides six years for actions on contracts and obligations, subject to demand, payment, acceleration, UCC, and guaranty-specific accrual issues.

N.D.C.C. Chapter 28-01
Homestead exemptionHigh confidence

North Dakota has a homestead chapter covering area, value, selection, conveyance, waiver, appraisal, and sale mechanics. Confirm current amount and exceptions before relying on it.

N.D.C.C. Chapter 47-18

Borrower protections to negotiate

  • Strike confession-of-judgment, cognovit, and warrant-of-attorney language unless North Dakota counsel approves it.
  • Cap guaranty exposure and exclude future advances, amendments, renewals, and affiliate debts without written consent.
  • Preserve foreclosure, redemption, notice, valuation, and commercially reasonable sale defenses.
  • Keep spouse signatures limited 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 N.D.C.C. Chapter 28-10 — confession of judgment N.D.C.C. Chapter 28-01 — time for commencing actions N.D.C.C. Chapter 47-18 — homestead

Legal-review notes

Guide confidence marker: Needs lawyer verification.

  • North Dakota confession-of-judgment treatment after Chapter 28-10 was superseded by Rule 68 needs lawyer verification.
  • North Dakota deficiency and guarantor-waiver treatment after foreclosure or UCC sale needs local counsel review.
  • Confirm the correct North Dakota limitation subsection and homestead amount before publishing specific deadlines or dollar figures.

Frequently asked questions

Can a North Dakota guaranty include confession-of-judgment language?

North Dakota’s confession-of-judgment chapter is marked superseded by civil rule, so any cognovit wording should be reviewed by local counsel before signing.

Does North Dakota require my spouse to guarantee?

Not simply because you are married. North Dakota is not a community-property state, and ECOA limits spouse-guaranty requirements.

What should North Dakota borrowers negotiate first?

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