Saturday, September 03, 2011
This week in history: Open thread
Cash-strapped homeowners are being telephoned by their taxpayer-owned banks and told to cut spending on ‘luxuries’ – or risk losing their homes
Cash-strapped homeowners are being telephoned by their banks and told to cut spending on ‘luxuries’ – or risk losing their homes.
Every week, around 2,000 customers of Northern Rock Asset Management and Bradford & Bingley are being warned to slash their outlay on mobile phones, gym memberships and even socialising, to ‘prioritise’ their mortgages.
In an extraordinary admission, the taxpayer-owned banks said that for the first time they were doing secret credit checks to identify high-risk customers.
They expect to call 30,000 in total. Although it is standard for a credit check to be done when a loan is taken out, it is unprecedented for so many to be carried out after mortgages have been approved
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2031934/Banks-warn-home-owners-cut-spending-risk-losing-house.html#ixzz1WrBLc8Yp
HUD provides state AGs information on robo-signing
The Department of Housing and Urban Development and other agencies provided the 50 state attorneys general a report on robo-signing practices at the largest mortgage servicers.
A spokesman for Iowa AG Tom Miller, the lead in the ongoing negotiations, confirmed a report that appeared in American Banker Friday.
"HUD among other federal and state agencies has provided us information that gives us a very clear picture of what has occurred," the spokesman said.
Miller's office would not provide details on the report's findings. A HUD spokesman was not immediately available for comment.
Wells Fargo completes 85% of mortgage mods in house
In the past two years, Wells Fargo (WFC: 24.23 -3.96%) offered more than 4.4 million homeowners new low-rate loans and did more than 704,000 loan modifications for mortgages in its servicing portfolio, the bank said this week.
About 85% of its loan modifications were completed through Wells Fargo programs, while 105,404 modifications were handled through the government's Home Affordable Modification Program.
As of the second quarter, 93% of home loans in the company's servicing portfolio were current on payments. Fewer than 2% of owner-occupied loans in the servicing portfolio proceeded to foreclosure sale in the past year.
Friday, September 02, 2011
Robo-signed mortgage docs date back to late 1990s
NEW YORK (AP) — Counties across the United States are discovering that illegal or questionable mortgage paperwork is far more widespread than thought, tainting the deeds of tens of thousands of homes dating to the late 1990s.
The suspect documents could create legal trouble for homeowners for years.
Already, mortgage papers are being invalidated by courts, insurers are hesitant to write policies, and judges are blocking banks from foreclosing on homes. The findings by various county registers of deeds have also hindered a settlement between the 50 state attorneys general who are investigating big banks and other mortgage lenders over controversial mortgage practices.
The problem of shoddy mortgage paperwork, which comprises several shortcuts known collectively as "robo-signing," led the nation's largest banks, including Bank of America Corp., JPMorgan Chase & Co., Wells Fargo & Co., and other lenders to temporarily halt foreclosures nationwide last fall.
Federal government is set to sue a dozen big banks over mortgages
The federal agency that oversees the mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac is set to file suits against more than a dozen big banks, accusing them of misrepresenting the quality of mortgage securities they assembled and sold at the height of the housing bubble, and seeking billions of dollars in compensation.
The Federal Housing Finance Agency suits, which are expected to be filed in the coming days in federal court, are aimed at Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs and Deutsche Bank, among others, according to three individuals briefed on the matter.
The suits stem from subpoenas the finance agency issued to banks a year ago. If the case is not filed Friday, they said, it will come Tuesday, shortly before a deadline expires for the housing agency to file claims.
Financial Stability Board to probe securitization more closely
A closer look at securitization and securities lending regulation is necessary as the Financial Stability Board continues to brainstorm ways to stabilize and oversee the shadow banking system, the FSB said Thursday.
The FSB was created to develop and promote international regulatory and supervisory powers to ensure systemically important financial firms do not pose risks to global economies.
The securitization model became a heated topic after the 2008 financial meltdown when toxic mortgages packed into securities defaulted, causing panic in the financial markets.
New foreclosure rules force Fannie to up attorney fees in three states
Fannie Mae will allow its servicers to pay its network of attorneys more for foreclosure work in New York, Delaware and Hawaii.
Each state recently included new steps in the foreclosure process. In the case of Hawaii, the state legislature effectively shifted all foreclosures to the judicial system. All pending Fannie Mae foreclosures that have not proceeded to a resale must be dismissed and restarted in the new judicial process, according to guidance issued to servicers Thursday.
Fannie Mae warned servicers of this new policy in June.
Read on.
Lender reluctance stifles HARP's effectiveness: Fed Gov. Duke
Despite 4 million borrowers qualifying for the Home Affordable Refinance Program, Federal Reserve Governor Elizabeth Duke said lenders are reluctant to push the program out of fear the review process will highlight underwriting issues, forcing financial institutions to take on "putback risk."
During a speech in Washington Thursday, Duke said putback risk "is the possibility that a loan originator will have to repurchase a loan from the government-sponsored enterprises because the underwriting violated GSE guidelines."
Because lenders fear underwriting reviews on loans filed through HARP — many of which were acquired from other originators — the refinance program is not reaching its full potential, Duke said.
To date, only 800,000 borrowers have refinanced mortgages through the program.
Read on.
Thursday, September 01, 2011
Robo-Signing Redux: Servicers Still Fabricating Foreclosure Documents
Some of the largest mortgage servicers are still fabricating documents that should have been signed years ago and submitting them as evidence to foreclose on homeowners.
The practice continues nearly a year after the companies were caught cutting corners in the robo-signing scandal and about six months after the industry began negotiating a settlement with state attorneys general investigating loan-servicing abuses.
Several dozen documents reviewed by American Banker show that as recently as August some of the largest U.S. banks, including Bank of America Corp., Wells Fargo & Co., Ally Financial Inc., and OneWest Financial Inc., were essentially backdating paperwork necessary to support their right to foreclose.
Some of documents reviewed by American Banker included signatures by current bank employees claiming to represent lenders that no longer exist.
Many banks are missing the original papers from when they securitized the mortgages, in some cases as long ago as 2005 and 2006, according to plaintiffs' lawyers. They and some industry members say the related mortgage assignments, showing transfers from one lender to another, should have been completed and filed with document custodians at the time of transfer.
"It's one thing to not have the documents you're supposed to have even though you told investors and the SEC you had them," says Lynn E. Szymoniak, a plaintiff's lawyer in West Palm Beach, Fla. "But they're making up new documents."
Memo: BofA to Sell Correspondent Mortgage Business
Here is the memo sent to BofA staff from mortgage executive Barbara DeSoer:
***From: Home Loan News
Sent: Wednesday, August 31, 2011 4:19am
Subject: Important Message From Barbara DeSoer
To All IMS Associates
I wanted to provide this team with information about a strategic announcement our Home Loans business will make today that is consistent with our ongoing efforts to align the business to the bank’s customer-driven strategy.
Earlier this year, when we split out the Legacy Asset Servicing business, we did so in order for our team to focus on the future of the home loans business. We have made significant progress over the past several months and are taking steps to further position our business to serve the needs of the bank’s 58 million households and attract new mortgage customers with the potential to support growth across the franchise.
We are announcing our intention to sell the Correspondent Lending division in order to focus on our direct-to-consumer business. If a suitable deal is not identified, we will consider other options, including winding down the Correspondent Lending business in an orderly manner.
This decision continues the transformation of our Home Loan operations to building relationships and deepening existing relationships; it follows our exit from wholesale lending, reverse mortgage, and the sale of Balboa Insurance. The move also is consistent with our other company-wide actions to exit non-core activities.
We are in preliminary discussions with respect to a sale of the business. At this time, there is no immediate impact to our Correspondent Lending programs, clients, or associates. Our operations continue business as usual.
We are proud of the strength of our correspondent business and the consistent contributions this team has made, but this is a necessary move to align with the bank’s customer-driven strategy.
Understandably, this announcement creates some uncertainty for correspondent associates and clients. We are committed to keeping everyone informed about key decisions as they are made. In the meantime, it’s critical that this team continues to serve the needs of our clients and competes in the marketplace.
On Wednesday, we will have a series of calls and meetings to discuss this announcement and to address your questions. On behalf of the entire leadership team, I want to thank you for your continued dedication and hard work on behalf of our customers.
Source: Wall Street Journal
NY Attorney General Deposed 53 in Bank of America Case Over Merrill
The New York Attorney General’s office has taken testimony from 53 witnesses in its investigation into Bank of America Corp.’s 2008 acquisition of Merrill Lynch & Co., a federal judge said.
U.S. District Judge Kevin Castel in Manhattan said in an order today that “there have been 53 examinations under oath by the NYAG” in its investigation. The witnesses weren’t identified in the order, which involved evidence gathering in the case.
Castel, who is overseeing separate shareholder litigation over the Merrill Lynch deal, said the depositions overlap with information sought by both sides in the litigation in his court.
The attorney general’s office, under Andrew Cuomo, now New York’s governor, sued Bank of America, former Chief Executive Officer Kenneth Lewis and former Chief Financial Officer Joseph Price in February 2010. In November, Eric Schneiderman replaced Cuomo as attorney general.
BNY Mellon Chairman And CEO Kelly Forced Out Due To Differences With The Board On Managing Company
Full release:
BNY Mellon, the global leader in investment management and investment services, today announced that Gerald L. Hassell, BNY Mellon's president and a board member since 1998, has been appointed chairman and chief executive officer of the company, effective immediately. Hassell also continues as BNY Mellon's president. Robert P. Kelly has stepped down as chairman, chief executive officer and director by mutual agreement with the board of directors, due to differences in approach to managing the company.
"Gerald is ideally positioned to guide BNY Mellon through the next phase of its growth and to bring it to its full potential," said Wesley W. von Schack, lead director of BNY Mellon. "Over the course of his more than three-decade tenure with BNY Mellon and its predecessor company, The Bank of New York, Gerald has led nearly every major division of the company, has been a key decision maker on every major business action, executive hire and promotion in the merged company, and has served on its board of directors. He brings a broad and deep knowledge of our operations, our clients, our industry and our culture to his new roles. As the executive currently overseeing our investment services business and our global client management function, and given his extensive and long-standing relationships with investment management clients, Gerald is exceptionally well-suited to ensure BNY Mellon maintains and strengthens its role as a global market leader," von Schack continued.
"I am pleased to accept these new roles and am excited about the strong growth prospects for our company," said Hassell. "When we help clients succeed, we drive value for our shareholders. I look forward to working with our outstanding management team and employees to capitalize on BNY Mellon's extensive opportunities."
"We are grateful to Bob Kelly for his leadership and the contributions he made to the company during his tenure as CEO," said von Schack. "He played a key role in the integration of The Bank of New York and Mellon Financial following the merger and helped navigate the company through the financial crisis, securing its position as the world's leading provider of investment management and investment services. Bob Kelly is a person of the highest integrity and we wish him the best in his future pursuits."
"It has been an honor to serve BNY Mellon, its management team and its employees during the past four years," said Kelly. "We have navigated tremendously difficult markets and built one of the world's premier financial institutions. I am confident that under Gerald's leadership of the firm's strong management team, BNY Mellon will continue to flourish going forward."
Hegena Berman announces securities investigation of Bank of America
Hagens Berman is investigating concerns by hedge funds and institutional investors who believe Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) may have failed to disclose to investors the risk associated with a $10 billion lawsuit threat from American International Group.
According to reports, AIG invested in billions of dollars of mortgage-backed securities sold by Bank of America prior to the housing collapse. In January 2011, after analyzing data from hundreds of thousands of loans, AIG reportedly informed the bank that it felt the risk of the securities had been misrepresented and was prepared to sue the banking giant for more than $10 billion.
Hagens Berman is investigating whether Bank of America failed to disclose fully the risks of its dispute with AIG. According to media reports, the bank did not mention the threat of the lawsuit in its quarterly regulatory filing, which was issued four days before AIG’s lawsuit was filed.
On August 8, 2011, after several months of negotiations, AIG filed its lawsuit. Bank of America shares fell sharply, losing 20 percent of their value.
According to reports, AIG invested in billions of dollars of mortgage-backed securities sold by Bank of America prior to the housing collapse. In January 2011, after analyzing data from hundreds of thousands of loans, AIG reportedly informed the bank that it felt the risk of the securities had been misrepresented and was prepared to sue the banking giant for more than $10 billion.
Hagens Berman is investigating whether Bank of America failed to disclose fully the risks of its dispute with AIG. According to media reports, the bank did not mention the threat of the lawsuit in its quarterly regulatory filing, which was issued four days before AIG’s lawsuit was filed.
On August 8, 2011, after several months of negotiations, AIG filed its lawsuit. Bank of America shares fell sharply, losing 20 percent of their value.
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
A current mortgage customer received letter from Citi offering foreclosure alternatives
A borrower in Michigan recently received a letter from his mortgage servicer, CitiMortgage . It offers to discuss foreclosure alternatives, including potential eligibility for the government's mortgage bailout program. It is clear, succinct, and gives several phone numbers and contact information. The letter includes the borrower's name, address, and mortgage loan number. It seems quite reasonable...except that the borrower tells me he isn't and hasn't been late on any payments.
"I called them and they stated they sent this letter out to all mortgage clients," the borrower tells me in an email. "I am one of these clients and have had no issues with my mortgage, and they get my direct payment on time every month."
He says that when he called Citi, the operator said it was a, "blanket letter and basically junk mail."
I called Citi to verify the letter, which arrived in an envelope with a Citi logo.
Federal Housing Finance Agency Action Regarding Court Consideration of Proposed Bank of America $8.5 Billion Settlement
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), in its capacity as conservator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises), today filed an Appearance and Conditional Objection regarding the proposed settlement between Bank of America and a consortium of 22 investors being considered by a court in New York. This pleading was filed to obtain any additional pertinent information developed in the matter. The conservator is aware of no basis upon which it would raise a substantive objection to the proposed settlement at this time. In fact, FHFA considers it positive that the proposed settlement includes subservicing requirements, specific terms for the servicing of troubled mortgages and the curing of certain document deficiencies. Additionally, FHFA is encouraged that a number of significant market participants support the proposed settlement.
Due to its duty to preserve and conserve Enterprise assets, the conservator believes it prudent not only to receive additional information as it continues its due diligence of the proposed settlement, but also to reserve its capability to voice a substantive objection in the unlikely event that necessity should arise.
###
The Federal Housing Finance Agency regulates Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the 12 Federal Home Loan Banks. These government-sponsored enterprises provide more than $5.7 trillion in funding for the U.S. mortgage markets and financial institutions.
Federal Housing Finance Agency Action Regarding Court Consideration of Proposed Bank of America Settlement
U.S. Bank sues Countrywide alleging RMBS repurchase failures
U.S. Bank National Association is suing Countrywide Financial Corp. — now owned by Bank of America (BAC: 8.14 -2.98%) — for allegedly breaching its contractual obligation to repurchase more than 4,000 toxic mortgages securitized in the HarborView Mortgage Loan Trust 2005-10.
U.S. Bank, which is Trustee for the HarborView Trust, filed suit in New York to compel Countrywide (now BofA) to buy back the soured loans.
The suit relates to $1.75 billion in certificates sold to investors by HarborView.
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
NY lawmakers criticize Iowa AG over Schneiderman removal
New York lawmakers sent a letter to Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller criticizing a decision to drop New York AG Eric Schneiderman from an executive committee focused on settlement talks with mortgage servicers.
In the letter, 21 Democratic lawmakers out of New York say the decision to remove Schneiderman from the committee is "a dangerous precedent for other attorneys general who, out of fear of what might happen, may choose silence over voicing valid concerns with particular aspects of the proposed settlement."
Tom Miller's office was still waiting to receive the letter Tuesday morning.
Read on.Ltr to Miller Re Schneiderman Dismissal August 2011
Be careful what you say: Warren Buffett's Philosophy On Investing In Banks
Zerohedge:
In light of last week's surprise announcement of Buffett's bailout redux of Bank of America (the first one being Goldman back in 2008), and following today's even more surprising objection by the FDIC which threatens to scuttle the Bank of Ameria settlement and force Bank of Countrywide Lynch to raise far more capital, pushing Warren to double down on his investment throwin more good money after bad, especially if the legal case moves from an Article 77-friendly NY state court to Federal, here are the philosophical thoughts from the Berkshire's oracles contained, in his "Collected Writings", on his desire to put money into banks.
And we quote:
The banking business is no favorite of ours. When assets are twenty times equity-a common ratio in this industry-mistakes that involve only a small portion of assets can destroy a major portion of equity. And mistakes have been the rule rather than the exception at many major banks. Most have resulted from a managerial failing that we described last year when discussing the "institutional imperative:" the tendency of executives to mindlessly imitate the behavior of their peers, no matter how foolish it may be to do so. In their lending, many bankers played follow-the-Ieader with lemming-like zeal; now they are experiencing a lemming-like fate.
Because leverage of 20:1 magnifies the effects of managerial strengths and weaknesses, we have no interest in purchasing shares of a poorly-managed bank at a "cheap" price. Instead, our only interest is in buying into well-managed banks at fair prices.
Buffett collected writings
Transition team e-mails show how FL Gov. Scott's administration took shape
Details about what went on within Scott's inner circle in the days and weeks following the election were revealed in a batch of e-mails from Scott's transition team leader, Susie Wiles, which were released late Friday evening.
Wiles, who served as Scott's campaign manager and then as his legislative liaison, has since left the first-term governor's administration.
But the e-mails show that, following the election, Wiles and two other women -- Enu Manigi and Mary Anne Carter -- closely controlled hiring, dealings with the press and Scott's public appearances.
And the e-mails demonstrate how Scott's fledgling administration paid special attention to appointing and hiring people who supported the conservative Republican's agenda, to the exclusion of others who, it was suspected, might not.
Carter and Manigi were the two key players in Scott's transition team and early administration.
Carter objected to including Scott in a preliminary meeting with the Office of Policy and Budget staff.
Donna Arduin, a long-time budget director for several governors including Jeb Bush, served as Scott's budget adviser during his campaign and transition. In mid-December, Arduin wanted Scott, a Tallahassee neophyte, and his aides to meet with the budget staff to get an inside look at how the budget is crafted.
But writing to Arduin on Dec. 15, Carter (who calls Scott "RLS" in her messages) asked, "Are we not better off going through it without RLS and then determine what decisions need to be made? If there are going to be areas where policy and politics collide, I think it's best to know ahead of time and not have him involved in initial conversations."
Arduin didn't agree. "You will see how budget meetings go by observing tomorrow," Arduin wrote. "The meetings are the governor meeting with his OPB staff and making decisions."
The politically-savvy Arduin then complained to Wiles: "Keep the governor out of his budget decisions because we don't want him involved in political decisionsreally??!!!"
"This process is beyond amazing to me," Wiles, who has since left Scott's administration, responded. "I am praying hard for Rick."
Many of the e-mails show Wiles was central in finding jobs for former campaign workers, family and friends of supporters and political figures and others.
Ohio Supreme Court is taking up the question of what a bank needs to prove to force someone from his /her home.
The Ohio Supreme Court is getting ready to take on what some are calling the biggest issue in state foreclosure law in a century. The question before the justices is what paperwork does a lender need to force an owner out of his home? For Ohio Public Radio, WCPN’s Mhari Saito reports that what the state's justices decide could have huge implications for the financial services industry.
THE US GOVT. IS BIGGEST OWNER OF RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY
Aug. 26 (Bloomberg) -- For sale or rent by motivated owner: 248,000 foreclosed homes.
The U.S. government, which has become the nation’s biggest owner of residential properties, is looking for ways to reduce and manage its huge inventory without swamping the real estate market or exposing federal agencies to enormous losses.
Government-run Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Housing Administration now own about a third of the country’s nearly 800,000 foreclosed properties. With that inventory predicted to grow, they are looking for new ways to cope.
In a joint public appeal this month, the agencies invited the public to send in suggestions for managing the inventory, particularly ideas for turning foreclosed homes into rentals.
Biloxi Buzz for Tuesday
Last week's poll had asked:
Did the Iowa straw poll change your mind about GOP candidates? JL readers answered no. This week's poll is now up.
Squatting Homeowner’s Persistence Pays Off
Breaking into her own home was just the beginning of Tanya Dennis’ campaign to convince Wells Fargo to modify her mortgage
It’s hasn’t been easy, but nearly a year and a half after Wells Fargo foreclosed on her home of 27 years, Tanya Dennis has finally convinced the lender to modify her mortgage.
“They had to deal with me to pacify me and get me out of their hair,” joked Dennis, who made headlines earlier this year by hiring a locksmith and breaking into her South Berkeley home after Alameda County sheriff’s deputies evicted her.
Since then, Dennis, a short, 63-year-old woman who was once vice principal of Oakland’s Castlemont High, has been a thorn in the side of the nation’s largest mortgage originator.
Wells Fargo spokesman Tom Goyda said the deal — which Dennis said reduces the amount of money she owes on her home from $484,000 to $365,000 — occurred not because of Dennis’ persistence, “but because we want to keep homeowners in their homes.”
Yet it’s hard to imagine that public pressure played no role in Wells Fargo’s decision to reduce Dennis’ principal and promise to transfer the deed to the property back to her hands.
Here are some of the steps Dennis took after breaking back into her home in January:
Check out the steps she took here…Real estate broker confronts Obama on housing
Source: Inman
If, as Andy Warhol said, everyone eventually gets their 15 minutes of fame, LuAnn Lavine is getting hers.
Or at least five, maybe six minutes. In the week or so since she stood up in a crowd and asked President Obama how he planned to help the housing market, the Geneseo, Ill., real estate agent has been showered with media attention — here she is, asking her question in a clip on "NBC Nightly News," there she is on CBS' "Sunday Morning." Here she is in a Chicago Sun-Times story, there she is on her local news.
Most improbably, perhaps, there she is in the lead sentence of influential columnist Maureen Dowd's Aug. 21 piece in the New York Times, explaining why she sought out President Obama on his recent bus tour through western Illinois.
Monday, August 29, 2011
Bailed-out banks that were supposed to use TARP to help homeowners avoid foreclosure snap up tax liens
Banks that took bailout money were supposed to use part of the taxpayer-provided cash infusion to help customers avoid foreclosure, but instead, many of them are buying up struggling homeowners' tax debt.
The tax liens earn banks up to 16 percent interest, and if homeowners don't repay their debt within three years the banks can foreclose on their homes. Since the bailout in 2008, major banks have bought nearly 6,000 tax liens in Pima County that total at least $15.8 million.
Although the primary goal of the $700 billion bailout was to prop up struggling banks stung by the mortgage crisis, the government has criticized banks that took bailout money for not doing enough to help customers stay in their homes. In June, the U.S. Treasury Department withheld an estimated $24 million in combined monthly incentive payments from three - Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo - for not doing enough to help homeowners, and it could do the same for July. All three are among the biggest buyers of tax liens in Arizona.
And last month the federal inspector general monitoring the bailout issued a stinging report supporting the penalties.
Many banks dabbled in delinquent tax liens before the bailout, but they have ramped up their purchases many-fold since the housing market collapse and bailout money became available.
In the two years before the bailout, banks bought about $3.9 million in tax liens at Pima County's annual tax auction. At the last two auctions they bought $10.3 million. Additionally, they bought $4.1 million in liens outside the auction since the bailout.
Bank of America still working on case of Pasco couple who paid mortgage early
It appears Sharon and James Bullington will have to wait a little longer to learn how Bank of America plans to modify their mortgage.
The couple’s anxiety hasn’t diminished since the bank apologized this week for mistakenly pushing their home into foreclosure despite the couple making their mortgage payment early.
Shawn Yesner, the Bullingtons’ attorney, said bank officials told him they will call him daily until a resolution is reached. Bank officials told him “they are aggressively working the Bullingtons’ file at the highest level … and may not have an answer by week’s end.”
State Sen. Mike Fasano, R-New Port Richey, started calling bank officials about the case Monday. An official told him he’d get an answer Wednesday. No call came. On Thursday, the bank assured Fasano the couple would have details by Friday.
“It’s concerning and frustrating that it has taken this long to get a simple answer,” Fasano said.
James Bullington, 78, is terminally ill and bedridden. Sharon, 70, is his sole caregiver.
The retired couple faced foreclosure after paying a January mortgage payment one week early in December to Bank of America. The next month, the bank rejected their next payment because it was made electronically without a signature.
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Nonjudicial state Oregon foreclosures appear likely to shift to the courts
For half a century, the vast majority of the state's residential foreclosures have occurred without a judge's involvement. Oregon is one of 24 states that allow nonjudicial foreclosures, provided lenders give borrowers proper notice, publicize the sale and abide by other requirements.
But late last year, federal judges began blocking them, ruling that lenders had failed to follow one of those requirements: filing the mortgage's ownership history in county records.
No one can say how many of the estimated 26,000 foreclosures pending in Oregon will ultimately land in front of a judge. But attorneys and trustees involved in both processes say hundreds of files are being reviewed.
"It could be thousands, ultimately," said Lance Olsen, attorney with Routh Crabtree Olsen in Bellevue, Wash., whose affiliate, Northwest Trustee Services Inc., is the largest nonjudicial service provider in the West.
But late last year, federal judges began blocking them, ruling that lenders had failed to follow one of those requirements: filing the mortgage's ownership history in county records.
No one can say how many of the estimated 26,000 foreclosures pending in Oregon will ultimately land in front of a judge. But attorneys and trustees involved in both processes say hundreds of files are being reviewed.
"It could be thousands, ultimately," said Lance Olsen, attorney with Routh Crabtree Olsen in Bellevue, Wash., whose affiliate, Northwest Trustee Services Inc., is the largest nonjudicial service provider in the West.
Florida Gov. Scott transition team knew of e-mail deletions in March, records show
TALLAHASSEE — Gov. Rick Scott said he learned within the past two weeks that state transition e-mail accounts could not be recovered from a private computer server, potentially erasing records that state law requires be kept.
But documents show that Rackspace, the Texas company that provided the e-mail service, notified Scott's transition team as early as March 14 that records no longer existed from 44 of 47 e-mail accounts, including Scott's.
News of the disconnect between Scott and his transition staff comes at the same time the state produced 700 pages of e-mails from Susie Wiles, Scott's campaign manager and legislative liaison during the transition.
Beyond Robosigning Forgers-The Truths Exposed in the AHMSI Suit
The American Home Servicing lawsuit against consummate and prolific robosigner Lender Processing Services is a pretty good read, but if you don’t have the time, I’ve highlighted the best nuggets.
Page 1: American Home Servicing Inc. says that over 30,000 assignments of mortgage in Texas and across America are fraudulent—“improperly executed, notarized and recorded”.
Page 2: American Home renames robosigners “Special Officers” to suggest the robosigners were legitimately signing the assignments of mortgages.
The problem with the concept of Special Officer is that the robosigner’s title on the assignment of mortgage was generally “Vice President”, “Assistant Vice President” or “Assistant Secretary”, all normal corporate officer titles. That is, nothing in the robosigner’s title indicated he or she was a “Special Officer.” And in this context that omission seems deeply deceptive to me. Seems to me the court and the homeowner are supposed to look at the assignment and think a normal Vice President, Assistant Vice President, or Assistant Secretary signed it. Otherwise why not simply have the robosigners sign as “Special Officers”?
Further down page two, American Home says the reason the 30,000+ assignments of mortgage were fraudulent is that LPS used fake robosigners. That is, instead of using the “Special Officers”, LPS had other people forge the “Special Officers” names. The forgers, American Home points out, were not authorized by it.
American Home concludes that the forged robosigned assignments of mortgage have cost it dearly. Part of the cost is “an extensive remediation effort to identify and, where necessary, remedy any surrogate-signed assignments of mortgage.” Get that? American Home is only replacing fake robosigned documents it says are fraudulent “where necessary.”
Hurricane Irene Could Mean Foreclosure Windfall For Banks
From the Brevard Times
As if the underwater U.S. housing market needed another curve ball, the prospect of billions of dollars in insurance claims on underwater homes could mean a financial and litigation windfall for the banks.
Although mortgage documents and individual state laws vary, common language in mortgage documents requires that any insurance check be made out to both the bank and the homeowner. The homeowner is then contractually required to sign the insurance check over to the bank which is then held in escrow by the bank.
Banks can make many legal and equitable arguments as to why the property should not be rebuilt, but rather deemed a total loss. If deemed a total loss, the banks could then be able to claim that the insurance proceeds cover the outstanding mortgage balance.
But before a bank can make such claims, it still has to prove that it owns the right to foreclose on the subject property in the first place.
However, if the destroyed property is in foreclosure, the now homeless homeowner would be less likely to fight the foreclosure proceeding in order to stay in an dilapidated structure because such legal arguments become more academic rather than personally tangible.
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