By Julia M. Wei, Esq. Buried in the New Year’s Day bill was SEC. 202, which extended the Mortgage Debt Forgiveness Relief Act through 2013. Except, the section was cryptically called “EXTENSION OF EXCLUSION FROM GROSS INCOME OF DISCHARGE OF QUALIFIED PRINCIPAL RESIDENCE INDEBTEDNESS.” That means … [Read more...]
California Passes “Homeowner Bill of Rights” Legislation
With much fanfare, the Attorney General's office announced today the passage of a collection of bills intended to protect homeowners who are attempting a loan modification. Among the key provisions, the statutes will: -Require creditors to provide documentation to a borrower that … [Read more...]
California Attorney General Sues “Mass Action” Lawyers
It's bad enough when people are dealing with their underwater properties, but to then have attorneys tell them to join these "mass action" lawsuits like it's a silver bullet to stop the foreclosure sale is egregious. Apparently, the Attorney General thought so too and she sued them and … [Read more...]
Lenders Behaving Badly – A New Twist
By: Julia M. Wei, Esq. The Ninth Circuit ruled on the case of Wes Johnson v. Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, Inc. dba America's Servicing company yesterday (Case No. 09-15937) and while the bulk of the ruling was really dealing with procedural issues related to arbitration, the facts themselves were … [Read more...]
SETTING ASIDE A FORECLOSURE SALE IN CALIFORNIA – An Uphill Battle for Borrowers
By: Julia M. Wei, Esq. Dear Readers – Happy New Year! This marks my 100th post. I am still frequently getting calls from borrowers who say they have read my blog and have questions about challenging a foreclosure. I am not totally convinced they read my blog because I often say that I work for … [Read more...]
FTC Cracks Down on Loan Mod Scammers
The FTC announced last week that starting January 31, 2011, it would proceed against any firm that collects upfront fees without obtaining the required written proposals at no charge from lenders. If a firm charges anything or collects money in advance, it will be in violation of federal law and … [Read more...]
When Lender Collection Goes Too Far
I have always thought it was unfair to consumers that banks would appear to work with the servicer and the borrower to accept forbearance payments or loan modification paperwork, yet another department from the same bank would tell the servicer or trustee to continue with the foreclosure … [Read more...]
More on MERS – Another Bankruptcy Court Strikes Bank’s Claim
Last week, New Jersey Bankruptcy court judge, the Hon. Judith Wizmur granted debtor John Kemp's application to expunge Countrywide's proof of claim. Countrywide's successor Bank of New York filed a proof of claim in Kemp's bankruptcy, which is typical in a bankruptcy proceeding. However, … [Read more...]
Watching the Robo Signing Litigation – Davis v. Countrywide, Bank of America, et al. Developments
The Davises sued their lender in Federal Court alleging violations of the Racketeering Act (RICO) and the Federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. Essentially, they claimed they were damaged because the bank employees were “robo-signers” on their foreclosure documents … [Read more...]
Foreclosure Moratoriums in California – Not a Good Idea
The news is filled with reports of JP Morgan Chase, Ally (GMAC) and politicians like Senator Menedez calling for foreclosure moratoriums. While it is true that Bank of America announced moratoriums in 23 states--California is NOT one of those states. Why not? Some states, like the 23 … [Read more...]