Except as otherwise provided by statute, the levying officer shall distribute the proceeds of sale or collection in the following order:
§ 701.810.Order of Distribution
Title 9. Enforcement of Judgments · Division 2 · Chapter 3. Execution · Article 7. Distribution of Proceeds of Sale or Collection · Last amended 2011 · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 701.810 sets the order in which a levying officer distributes sale or collection proceeds -- preferred labor claims, superior state tax liens, certain deposit repayments, exempt proceeds, the officer's costs, the judgment creditor's costs and principal, other subordinate claimants, and finally the debtor.
Full Text of § 701.810
(a) To persons having preferred labor claims that are required by Section 1206 to be satisfied from the proceeds, in the amounts required by Section 1206 to be satisfied.
(b) To the state department or agency having a state tax lien (as defined in Section 7162 of the Government Code) that is superior to the judgment creditor's lien, in the amount of the lien.
(d) To the judgment debtor in the amount of any applicable exemption of proceeds pursuant to Section 704.010 (motor vehicle), 704.020 (household furnishings and other personal effects), or 704.060 (tools of trade), except that such proceeds shall be used to satisfy all of the following in the order of their respective priorities:
(1) Any consensual liens and encumbrances, and any liens for labor or materials, that are subordinate to the judgment creditor's lien.
(2) Subject to Section 688.030, any state tax lien (as defined in Section 7162 of the Government Code) on the property sold if the notice of state tax lien on the property has been recorded or filed pursuant to Section 7171 of the Government Code prior to the time the levying officer received the proceeds of the sale or collection.
(e) To the levying officer for the reimbursement of the levying officer's costs for which an advance has not been made.
(f) To the judgment creditor to satisfy the following, in the following order:
(1) First, any costs and interest accruing on the judgment after issuance of the writ pursuant to which the sale or collection is conducted.
(2) Second, the principal amount due on the judgment with costs and interest, as entered on the writ.
(g) To any other judgment creditors who have delivered writs to the levying officer, accompanied by instructions to levy upon the judgment debtor's property or the proceeds of its sale or collection, or any other persons actually known by the levying officer to have a claim, lien, or other interest subordinate to the judgment creditor's lien that is extinguished by the sale and that is not otherwise satisfied pursuant to this section, in the amounts to which they are entitled in order of their respective priorities.
(h) To the judgment debtor in the amount remaining.
Plain-English Summary
Once property has been sold or a levied claim collected, the proceeds don't go straight to the judgment creditor — they run through a specific priority ladder. Section 701.810 lists eight rungs. Preferred labor claims required to be satisfied under § 1206 come first, followed by any state tax lien superior to the judgment creditor's own lien. If a § 720.260 deposit was made and someone other than the creditor bought the property, that deposit gets repaid with interest next.
Proceeds exemptions for a motor vehicle, household furnishings, or tools of the trade go to the debtor after that — though those exempt proceeds still have to first satisfy any subordinate consensual liens or labor-and-materials liens, and certain recorded state tax liens, before reaching the debtor's hands. The levying officer's own unreimbursed costs come next, followed by the judgment creditor: first any costs and interest that accrued after the writ issued, then the principal amount due on the judgment with its own costs and interest as entered on the writ.
What's left goes to other judgment creditors who delivered writs with levy instructions, or to anyone else known to have a subordinate claim extinguished by the sale, each paid according to their own priority. Anything still remaining after all of that goes back to the judgment debtor.
Frequently Asked Questions
What gets paid first from execution sale or collection proceeds?
Preferred labor claims required to be satisfied under § 1206, ahead of everything else.
Where do exempt proceeds for a motor vehicle or household furnishings fit in the order?
They go to the debtor, but only after first satisfying certain subordinate liens and specified recorded state tax liens on the property.
Does the levying officer get reimbursed before the judgment creditor is paid?
Yes, the officer's unreimbursed costs come before the creditor's own costs, interest, and principal in the distribution order.
What happens to money left over after the judgment creditor and other lienholders are paid?
It goes to the judgment debtor.
Can other judgment creditors share in the same proceeds?
Yes, if they've delivered writs to the levying officer with instructions to levy on the same property or proceeds, they're paid in order of their priority under § 701.810(g).
Amendment History
Amended by Stats 2010 ch 4 (AB 680),s 2, eff. 1/1/2011.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 28, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: distribution of execution sale proceeds californiapriority of payment execution sale