News Warren: CFPB Could Have Stopped Foreclosure FraudOnce it is fully operational, the new consumer agency will have supervisory authority over all large mortgage servicers. It will be able to examine them on a regular basis to make sure they follow the rules. If those servicers decide it is cheaper or faster to circumvent federal law, the consumer agency will have the tools to hold them accountable. Consumer Advocate Has Met More Often With IndustryWarren's meetings included sessions with Jamie Dimon, head of JPMorgan Chase & Co., Vikram Pandit, the head of Citigroup Inc. and various other senior executives from such financial giants as Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, American Express Co. and Wells Fargo & Co. Liz Warren Tells Only Half the Story It is a pernicious myth, perpetuated by those in charge at the time (many still here), that the federal government was powerless to stop the financial crisis and all the fraud and looting that attended it. There was plenty of authority, but the people in charge chose to look the other way.ForeclosureForeclose on the Foreclosure Fraudsters, Part 1: Put Bank of America in ReceivershipHUD reviewed the "paperwork" problem to see whether it threatened the banks -- not the homeowners who were the victims of foreclosure fraud. Your foreclosure storiesThe Washington Post asks readers to share their experiences. Time, Effort Can Rebuild Credit After ForeclosureAfter a foreclosure, your priority has to be rebuilding your credit. U of I law professor says financial crisis is a wakeup callWe have a system in this country where people have to follow rules, big or small. And if a small consumer has to follow the rules, like if they don't pay their mortgage they get foreclosed on, then a big bank has to follow the rules when they take a person's house. Administration faults firms in foreclosuresAssistant Treasury Secretary Michael Barr said Tuesday that a foreclosure task force composed of 11 federal agencies had found serious problems in the way home foreclosures were being handled. More on Florida’s Kangaroo Foreclosure Courts Christopher Meister, who ran for the sheriff of Lee County, Florida, provides specific examples of judicial misconduct.Courts Helping Banks Screw Over Homeowners They told me the state of Florida had created a special super-high-speed housing court with a specific mandate to rubber-stamp the legally dicey foreclosures by corporate mortgage pushers Why Servicers Foreclose When They Should Modify… YAWN.In fact, best that I can tell from listening to President Obama… his view is that some 20+ million Americans, inexplicably all became irresponsible at the same time, all bought homes they couldn’t afford, and now deserve to lose their homes to foreclosure… because losing 20 million homes to foreclosure will HELP our economy. Vultures & Sharks – Lenders Who WANT To Foreclose On YouShady companies that are out there buying these troubled mortgages, are running around practically unregulated by a government that says they are doing everything in their power to stabilize housing prices and help people keep their homes. Untangling The Complex Foreclosure MessNPR's Terry Gross interviews Gretchen Morgenson, assistant business and financial editor and a columnist at The New York Times. Info. about the fraudulent foreclosure practices. Mortgage Mayhem: One Homeowner's Cautionary Tale A 60-year-old cashier from Astoria, Queens, has been trying to get a mortgage modification, spurred by news of a federal assistance program that the Obama administration unveiled in February 2009. Document Mess Hits Fannie, FreddieFannie and Freddie don't actually issue mortgages, but purchase them from banks and sell them to investors as mortgage-backed securities, providing guarantees to cover losses in the event of default. While they rely on banks and other firms to service those loans, they helped build the framework for managing those loans. Home-mortgage modification work by Fannie, Freddie scrutinized
The panel questioned Treasury’s decision to use Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to administer the Home Affordable Modification Program, with Fannie so far receiving $111 million for administrating that program and Freddie $79 million Banks Want Pieces of Fannie-Freddie PieWells Fargo and some other large banks would like private companies, perhaps even themselves, to become the new housing finance giants helping to bundle individual mortgages into securities — that would be stamped with a government guarantee. HAMPLoan Modifications, More About the Failed ProgramThe point is the rules are not clear at all so homeowners waste time and money applying for a loan mod when they have absolutely no chance of it getting approved. HAMP Data Analysis Reveals Servicer FailureThree times as many applications were turned down for a trial mod because of paperwork issues than because of a failure of the net present value test. HAMP Doesn't WorkBecause it wasn't designed to work ... Loan Mod Program Left Homeowners Fate in Hands of Dysfunctional Industrythe Obama administration bet the success of its foreclosure prevention program on the ability and willingness of the troubled loan-servicing industry to help homeowners -- and lost. Loan Modification Process Hard For ManyAs Congress urged banks to modify more home loans Tuesday, hundreds of thousands of homeowners are caught in the foreclosure crunch. To them it's more than just numbers. The Fix Is Over: Mortgage Foreclosure Scandal Offers New Hope for Homeowners
A large part of the problem is that banks have dragged their feet getting borrowers into the program, which bogged borrowers down in repeated rounds of paperwork that were subsequently lost. Finally Some Hope of HAMP Oversight It's well known that the servicers and banks have not been forthcoming in their reasons for denying loan modifications and in some cases have given outlandish reasons to home owners A Shot Across the Bow! A game changing precedent was set in a small claims court in Indio California that may bring the Banks to their knees. A small lawsuit with a unique plan of action has gotten the attention of one of the Country’s largest Banks. Loan Modification Profile: Fed Up, Giving Up, and Moving OnFarmer’s frustration at the delays and the runaround are common among people trying to get help through the government program. More than three-quarters of the homeowners who responded to our questionnaire said they did not trust their servicers to make a good-faith effort to evaluate them for a modification. Bank Of America Finally Admits Its Mortgage Modification Program Is A Mess
BofA had been dismissing its shortcomings by blaming its customers for failing to make it through the program. Law Foreclosed Homeowners Go to Court on Their OwnLawyers are scarce and free legal assistance is overwhelmed in New Mexico, so a community center here is offering an hourlong class in how to download the correct forms, decipher the lingo and mount a defense, however tentative and primitive, against a multibillion-dollar bank.New claims in foreclosure fights"If the government doesn't step in, this [type of litigation] is going to make personal injury, or maybe even asbestos litigation, seem like a drop in a bucket." Blame Dishonest Banks, Not Ethical Lawyers Exposing Foreclosure FraudsYou excuse loan servicers and their lawyers for presenting of false affidavits in thousands of cases. I cannot believe that you would ever have tolerated the presentation of false or perjured testimony in your courtroom, and I cannot understand why you are willing to excuse it now. California Man Gets to Keep His House, for NowBecause the bank told him to stop making his payments and to default on his loan, Gonzalez found that Khast was irreparably harmed and entitled to an order temporarily halting foreclosure proceedings. Big banks escaping big foreclosure class action lawsuitsLenders snarled in the legal thicket over shoddy U.S. foreclosure procedures have so far avoided national class action lawsuits from homeowners, largely because borrowers cannot demonstrate economic harm, according to plaintiff lawyers. The jury is in AND we need judges to modify the way banks behave.... lenders and mortgage servicers in this country are working solely in their own best interests, and it should be just as clear that those interests are not aligned with the interests of anyone else; not the investors they’re supposed to protect, not the borrowers whose lives have been torn apart but will someday recover, and certainly not our nation as a whole. Arizona bills aim to help homeowners facing foreclosure House Democrats touted that legislation Monday as part of a package foreclosure-related bills they dubbed Homeowner Relief for a Strong Future.Loan Modification (not HAMP specific) Beware of the Danger in Loan ModificationsAccording to the latest data from the Federal Reserve "approximately 3 percent of the seriously delinquent borrowers received a concessionary modification in the year following their first serious delinquency, while fewer than 8 percent received any type of modification," at all!Banks Boost Home-Loan ReliefBanks say they are doing more of their own modifications—and fewer HAMP mods—because eligibility requirements for HAMP are more stringent. Fannie, Freddie Pressed on MortgagesAn agreement with the two government-owned mortgage giants to write down so-called underwater loans could reduce the threat to the U.S. housing market from the glut of homeowners believed at risk of default Mediation Saving Homes With Mandatory MediationGoading lenders into modifying mortgages by throwing dollars at them isn't the only way to prevent foreclosures. One option that has received scant national attention is mandatory mediation, which is a requirement that a mortgage servicer meet with the borrower--in the presence of a mediator or other neutral third party--to try to find an alternate arrangement before putting the borrower's home into foreclosure.Fed Wants to Strip a Key Protection for HomeownersSince 1968, the Truth in Lending Act has given homeowners the right to cancel, or rescind illegal loans for up to three years after the transaction was completed if the buyer wasn't provided with proper disclosures at the time of closing. PoliticalDems: Obama Broke Pledge to Force Banks to Help HomeownersTo force those servicers to modify mortgages, advocates pushed for a change to bankruptcy law giving judges the power not just to change interest rates but to reduce the overall amount owed on the loan, something servicers are loath to do. Strategic DefaultIf you do decide to walk, after you've done all you could to work out your mortgage problems with the blood-sucking bank, don't feel too bad. Walk out with your head high. Here's a little musical sendoff for you ... walk like an Egyptian. Learning To Walk: Fear, Shame And Your Underwater MortgageWalking away from a home, however, is more than the sum of a few business decisions. For many homeowners, it's either an act of civic defiance against a system they no longer buy into or the end result of being shuffled around by institutions that don't help them solve their financial problems. Is Walking Away from Your Mortgage the Smartest Thing You Can Do?Ethics didn't enter bank's decision to give you a mortgage, and ethics should not enter your decision to stop paying the mortgage Strategic Mortgage Default: The Irresponsible, Amoral, But Best Strategy?If you owe a ton more than what your home is worth, the only real holdups to walking away from your mortgage are your sense of obligation, your fear of getting a bad credit score, and your personal attachment to the home. Home Underwater? Walk Away from Geithner's Perverse 'Homeowner Relief' PlanAs the program is currently structured, its chief benefits accrue directly to the nation's largest banks, leaving troubled borrowers to twist in the wind. Treasury Dept. Foreclosure Express: Why the Feds Let Banks Get Away With MurderLet us pause briefly to marvel at the imbecility of this policy, at its Kafkaesque incoherence, its brutish indifference to people’s lives: The feds won’t punish banks for breaking the rules because, if they do, the banks might break the rules.Video The American DreamA bittersweet cartoon that gives the historical perspective of how U.S. banks have controlled this country and its citizens for yearsMortgage Servicers' SecretThe secret mortgage servicers don't want you to know is they can make MORE money off of homeowners when they keep your loan in default. Warren Says Focus Should Be Stabilizing U.S. FamiliesElizabeth Warren, the White House adviser in charge of setting up the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, talks with Judy Woodruff about Wall Street profits and executive bonus payouts amid an unstable economy. Wells Fargo Bank Sues ItselfTampa attorney Kristofer Fernandez, said he’s seen several cases where a large bank has sued itself for foreclosure as the holder of both first and second mortgages. Wells Fargo Loan ModificationWells Fargo loves to kick homeowners out of Trial Modifications. They have the right to request all supporting documents to be re-submitted during the trial modification period; if these documents are not received “on time”, they may kick you out. Wells Fargo erred in thousands of foreclosures
Wells Fargo described the mistakes as technical and said it has no plans to halt the foreclosure process, though filing new paperwork will cause some delays. Wells Fargo Admits Foreclosure Problems, Tries To Sweep Them Under The Rug
And that’s what the banks keep trying to play down: they’re committing fraud by circumventing the legal process in place for initiating and completing a foreclosure. Clinic at University of Maryland School of Law joins foreclosure
They charge that Jeffrey Stephan of GMAC Mortgage and Xee Moua of Wells Fargo did not have any personal knowledge of facts in affidavits they signed. Both gave depositions last year in Florida foreclosure cases, stating that they signed hundreds of documents a day, only making sure the spellings of their names was correct. Wells Fargo Represented At Loan Modification HearingA trial modification should not count as "help." That's really misleading; only permanent mods should be counted. Then the numbers would reflect the truly dismal extent of help offered. In States Where Foreclosures Bypass Judges, New Evidence of Robo-SignersSilva was deposed as part of a lawsuit against Wells Fargo, in which he testified that he signed the default notice on behalf of his employer, Ticor Title, which was signing on behalf of another LSI Title, which was signing as an agent for National Default Servicing Corporation, an agent for Wells Fargo. Wells Fargo Robosigner Extraordinaire 500 Documents a Day ...Xee Moua, identified in court documents as a vice-president of loan documentation for Wells, said she signed as many as 500 foreclosure-related papers a day on behalf of the bank. News ConsolidatorsNational Mortgage NewsNational Foreclosure News Stop Foreclosure Fraud Mortgage News Clips Columns/EditorialsNew Deal 2.0a one-stop-shop for current news, fresh insight, sharp analysis of the country’s fiscal crisis — and the people and policies that offer potential solutions. No Room at the Inn, No Mortgage Relief in TARP"HAMP produced a net increase of fewer than 26,000 permanent modifications a month signaling that the anemic pace of permanent modifications may even get worse" When Banks Are the RobbersAccording to RealtyTrac, banks repossessed 102,134 properties in September, a home roughly every 30 seconds. Every 30 seconds, banks—many that received funds from the Bush administration’s TARP, and that may be using fraudulent practices—foreclose on an American family’s dream of home ownership. 11 Ways Bank of America Practices Hurt Americans What WikiLeaks has is a mystery, but we already know a lot about Bank of America practices that are hurting Americans and prolonging the economic crisis. (And the other big mortgage lenders seem to all be doing the same things ...)
How the Banks Put the Economy UnderwaterThe banks and other players in the securitization industry now seem to be looking to Congress to snap its fingers to make the whole problem go away, preferably with a law that relieves them of liability for their bad behavior. Wall Street Execs Whine To Politico About Their Hurt Feelings They are sad, you see, and the record-setting profits they have made are no comfort to them, because hey, maybe The Huffington Post will say something really mean!Wells Fargo and Freddie Mac: No Honor Among Lenders!What is particularly galling is the blend of incompetence and arrogance exercised by these two giants, who took multi-billions of federal tax dollars from all of our pockets, while dragging their heels on federally-supported and mandated loan modifications and other legal requirements TheDC OP-ED: One nation, under fraud Tomorrow, a bank—not your bank, but any bank—could evict you from your home. Even if you didn’t know the bank was foreclosing. Even if the bank doesn’t hold a single piece of paper that you signed.
Keep My HouseA blog that encourages the respectful exchange of ideas, opinions, and advice about loan modifications (also known as mortgage modifications), loan workouts, foreclosure and foreclosure self-defense, forbearance, loss mitigation, mortgage recast and more. The Foreclosure Detonator Defend Your Foreclosure Now! You can save your home.Uppity BankerA blog site where we explore the Banking Industry and how they are really handling Loan Modifications and Short Sales for their Customers! I hope this site can be a forum for answering Borrower questions concerning their own Loan Modifications and Short Sales. Mortgage Fraud Blog The editor is an attorney and Certified Mortgage Banker who handles litigation for lending institutions and secondary market investors. The other side of the mortgage fraud issue. The Mortgage Corner ForumNews and information about fraud in the mortgage industry Financial Fraud LawAn attorney, formerly of a prominent Wall Street law firm, provides financial fraud news and legal analysisMandelman MattersLiving LiesFraud Digest Loan WorkoutThe free forms, loan modification agreements, paperwork, companies, government agencies, attorneys and ammunition for you to begin the fight to save your home. Richard (RJ) EskowA former executive with experience in health care, benefits, and risk management, finance, and information technology who blogs at Huffington Post. Forclosure Forum A blog to provide information to those involved in Mortgage Foreclosure and Bank Fraud. The Florida Foreclosure Fraud WeblogAttorney Michael Alex Wasylik helps Florida homeowners fight mortgage fraud, predatory lending and foreclosure rescue scams. Foreclosure IndustryA free information resource guide for Foreclosures, Short Sales and the Real Estate industry. TaibblogRolling Stone political reporter Matt Taibbi Have a site to add to this page? Contact the Webmaster. |
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