In 2008, Bank of America assumed ownership of Countrywide Financial Corp., which at the time was the top mortgage servicer in the United States. This month witnessed a $108 million dollar settlement in a case brought by the Federal Trade Commission which affected more than 200,000 consumers who may be in line for refunds for foreclosure fees which were excessive and deemed illegal. This sum is staggering, but far less so when compared to the fact that its portfolio was greater than $1.4 trillion dollars.
In essence, a mere distraction.
In numbers far more understandable for most, lenders have “ramped up the face of completing those forestalled foreclosures” according to RealtyTrac. Monthly recordings of foreclosed properties show more than 400 homes were lost in the foreclosure sale process. New filings continue to climb from a similar period last year with Suffolk Nassau and Queens County pre-foreclosure warnings leading the pack in New York State. Homeowners must be served with this “90 day” notice as a mandatory and regulated warning under our state laws before a foreclosure summons and action can be initiated by a lender.
Loan Modification: Fallen Out of Favor?
This data confirms a recent speech by Hon. Sheila Bair, the chairwoman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). Blair states, “Sustainable homeownership is a worthy national goal. But……when there are other, equally worthy solutions……homeownership may not be the right answer”.
We find ourselves right in the middle of our nation’s absolute worst financial and economic crisis as it affects homeownership. The bigger numbers show trillions of dollars in pooled loans and investor and servicing agreements most certainly far beyond our imagination. The more comprehensible figures detail hundreds of homes and thousands of families in default and at risk of losing their homes. But our Federal Government and its agencies’ speechwriters and presenters now seem to choose phrases noticeably absent of the words which we have grown to take comfort from.
Loan modifications and incentive plans to keep home your own appear to have lost favor. Chief executive John Taylor of the National Community Reinvestment “ because of a home’s appreciation, which gave people the opportunity for wealth creation that would otherwise have remained out of reach”. These are not causes and issues for debate at a time when a family calls our law firm in crisis. Not a single client debates whether the social pathos is a logical choice or if their belongings and children’s bedrooms should be emptied by a Marshall doing his job at a foreclosure auction.
Where is HAMP?
To state the obvious, HAMP was designed to save our homes, our communities, our churches, stores and neighborhoods. But has it? We care little if the multi-million dollar loan pools and the model makers were right or wrong in buying, trading and selling our home mortgages. There is no uncertainty that the Wall Street creations dating back to the beginning of this century have left millions of Americans now searching for paths of solution when served with a foreclosure summons.
We read that our government’s inventory of housing stock, through Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, represents the largest landlord in this great nation, with new foreclosed homes coming “every 90 seconds during the first three months of the year” according to numbers written in an article by Binyamin Applebaum in the NY Times.
When I meet with families involved in a foreclosure action, many of them have no recollection of the papers signed or the significance of the paperwork contained in their files. I implore them to search for these documents and to bring them in to the office. Together, we find a way, and the absurdity of losing their home at a foreclosure sale begins to formulate a definite path and defense.
The Potential for Illegal Loans
Consider the millions of loans closed with perhaps the trillions of documents created; the potential for excessive and illegal fees in the origination process as well as other defects now being realized for the first time. As these loans are litigated and brought into the courtrooms of New York State, our judiciary is called upon, for the first time in our history, to analyze and question the ability to proceed to foreclosure.
There is no such concept as indefensible power, and our law firm focuses upon foreclosure defense to protect and keep home your own. With the new laws and statutes enacted by the Legislature of our state, we do not yet have a firm grasp on the results of many of the foreclosure cases. However, I witness on a regular basis solutions and saved homes for families who would otherwise become victims of the foreclosure crisis.
The power to defend against foreclosure is now a protected right in New York State and we argue against foreclosure and tragedy on a daily basis. If you face a pre-foreclosure notice or a foreclosure summons, keep home your own and call us to consult and discuss your rights to defend and protect all that you earned when you decided to become a homeowner. Keep home your own is a mantra to be jotted down and read often, to keep everyone focused on avoiding foreclosure.
