Learning Center » Avoid Foreclosure

Legal Action is Being Initiated Against Lenders

Julie Parker — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 18:09:58 +0000

Across USA legal action is being initiated against consultants falsely cheating those seeking help to avoid foreclosures. So far 189 suits have been filed. The Federal Trade Commission’s chairperson Jon Leibowitz and the Attorney General of California Edmund G. Brown announced that these steps were part of a national move against false consultants covering 18 states. Utah is not one of the states.

The announcement served the purpose of sending out a warning to the con artists as well as a word of caution to home owners to be wary of the breed. These fraudsters approach their victims with hollow promises to line their own pockets without delivering goods.

FTC filed legal suits against Lucas Law Center of Aliso, for taking as fees $3,995 while telling them not to pay their mortgage dues. Suits were also filed against US Foreclosure Relief Corp of Orange, Loss Mitigation Services of Santa Ana and Appoy2Save of Idaho.

The legal suits were filed in the counties of Orange and Los Angeles roping in the five companies, their branches and members of their staff. Brown said, “We are going to do everything we can to stop it, realizing that there are more rats to come out of their holes than we can stomp on. But we will keep doing the best we can because it is horrible to take advantage of somebody who is vulnerable with their family exposed to foreclosure.”

The CEO of Loss Mitigation Services, Dean Schafer had his sympathies for the steps being taken by FTC to sift out the black sheep but failed to understand why his firm had been especially marked out. He had no comments to make about the suit and was still going through the allegations.

The suit seeks millions in penalties, compensation to the victims and a permanent stay order to keep the companies out of the mortgage advising and consultancy business. One of the accused, US Homeowners Assistance of Irvine has been charged for collecting fees amounting to $3,500 for each of the victims faced with foreclosure. One of the victims alleged that her signature had been copied and false information given in the documents that had been submitted to her lender.

The FTC is combing through rules that will put a ban on mortgage help services from accepting upfront fees. He is hopeful to have the regulations in effect before the end of this current year.

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Foreclosure Recap – Week #22

Kevin Simpson — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 18:23:58 +0000

The New York Daily News reported on a Mortgage ring that had been busted by the federal government. It reportedly a $10 million dollar scam that has left folks in both New York City and on famed Long Island facing eviction. Essentially the company would approach people facing foreclosure of property worth between $200 and $500 thousand dollars and convinced them to sell the property to people that they had recruited. They told the homeowners that the buyer would make the payments and allow the homeowners to stat in the homes until they could be sold for a profit. The company then took out mortgages for more than what was owed on the homes leaving the homeowners with no property and no money. If you are interested in reviewing this, the full story can be found and read here:

Today many people are considering bankruptcy as an option to the financial crisis that they are sharing with the country. There is a lot that needs to be considered before anyone takes this step due to the impact that it can have on your long term financial well being and credit worthiness which can affect getting a new home and even jobs these days. Anyone facing foreclosure that is considering this as an avenue to try and salvage the house needs to review the option very carefully and should start by reading the article that is posted here:

A newspaper in Annapolis is quoted as saying that in the second wave of foreclosures sweeping that area, the numbers of foreclosed property has tripled in the month of April. A representative in that area is quoted in the article as saying that this rate is expected to continue at least throughout the rest of this year and another source says that the elevated foreclosure rate will indeed continue for several years to come. The article also goes on to say that when people are leaving a foreclosed property, that they are sometimes taking things like the chandeliers and other items that can be sold for cash. This leaves a fairly large and sometimes costly mess for a person buying the property to handle. The
full article can be found here:

This particular article tells us what we already know, foreclosure rates are continuing to increase and that the prices are continuing to drop. In fact, the article went on to predict a large flood of foreclosures is expected to happen this coming summer as jobs are lost and the economy hits a new low in part due to things like the auto industry and the impending implosion therein. Options were once very limited for first time home buyers but now with this depressed market there is a wide range of options available and the prices are so low that people who once had little to no chance of owning a home, may just be doing so. The details make for interesting reading here:

This is an area that we don’t think of when thinking about foreclosures. As people vacate homes where they have been foreclosed on they tend to not be so tidy about things and the yards of the foreclosed property that they are leaving tend to get cluttered with debris. While it is unsightly, it can also be dangerous. The article points out that in places like Florida, which is prone to being hit by hurricanes this left over junk can become flying weapons that can kill and maim folks as it is tossed about by the hurricane force winds that come as the storms move in. It is also not actually clear who has the responsibility for preparing those homes in the event of an impending storm. The article raises a lot of valid points and is well worth a few moments time to review it here:

The Miami Herald reports that in a bizarre turn around, the projects in and around Dade County Florida have become prime sellers in this foreclosure market. This is due to the fact that the banks have slashed the prices of the property to the bone in order to facilitate a quick turn around sale trend on the units. Most lenders think that the prices are going to fall even farther on these condo style dwellings and as a result financing is hard to get and the sales that are happening are of the cash and carry variety but even given that stipulation, they have been brisk indeed. The folks that control most of these units are the banks and at the moment the banks are highly motivated to unload these units before another price drop. Foreclosures and short sales in this market accounted for 60 percent of the sales. This is an article that should be reviewed if you are at all interested in the market in this area. The article can be accessed here:

Here’s another one of those make you think stories that most people would not have even given a second thought unless they read it first. Foreclosures buyers need to beware of a certain type of unwanted pest. The mosquito. The vacant property is a perfect place for the insect to breed due to standing water and anything with any type of swimming pool can be an excellent breeding location for them. So if you are in the market you might want to consider having these pests looked at while readying the location to be inhabited by humans. The story is located here:

According to the Associated Press, the federal government is trying to make the best of the situation by alluding to the fact that foreclosed homes, in the event of catastrophes such as another hurricane like Katrina, could actually provide temporary shelter for evacuees from that storm. The story goes on to indicate that the Federal Emergency Management Agency, also known as FEMA thinks it would be a perfect solution to the problem should it arise. There are so many homes in the state of foreclosure here that they could literally house thousands of families and keep them safe in the even of a major hurricane or other such disaster. In April there were 278,287 homes in the state of Florida in some form of foreclosure proceeding. The somewhat lengthy article can be found and read here:

This is nice and uplifting. The Habitat for Humanity has begun flipping foreclosed houses in Menlo Park to be used to help the homeless and lower income people of the area. It is a short but uplifting article that may be found here:

Victoria Gotti, daughter of mafia crime boss John Gotti is close to striking a deal to save her Long Island home from the foreclosure arena. Last month the bank got the clearance to foreclose on the $700,000 outstanding loan. Since then Gotti has had her lawyers working round the clock to try and salvage the home. They are reportedly close to ironing out the details that will allow that to happen. If you are interested in reviewing the details the article along with supporting photos and related links can be found at Long Islands Newsday online here:

Foreclosure Recap – Week #21

Kevin Simpson — Fri, 29 May 2009 16:09:05 +0000

From the Bank rate website is an article which tells you the twelve biggest and best tips for buying a house that is on auction. There are several styles of auction including the Trustee or Courthouse auction to the regional public auctions and this article gives people the best ideas on how to make sure that you are not biting off more than you can chew. Some auctions actually require you to settle old debts from the people that are being foreclosed on, things like tax or IRS liens. This article is full of information that is a must read if you are even contemplating attending an auction for some property.

A paper in San Diego tells of a drop in mortgage defaults there last month and tells how some people are getting some welcome relief in the form of lender loan modifications. One family had their mortgage dropped from $2900 to $339 and the interest rate was adjusted from 6.25 to 3.00. These are fixed and will stay in place for five years at which time the rate will go up to a maximum of five per cent. The bad part is that there is a huge balloon payment of over $340,000 due at the end of the forty-year loan or when the property is refinanced. The good news is that the people can stay in their home.

The Nurido website had an interesting article on how to avoid foreclosure with a chapter seven or chapter thirteen bankruptcy. It details how you can file and stop foreclosure and even roll the other debt that you have accumulated into the overall scheme of things to allow you to salvage your home and most of the other things you own. While this option is not the best route for everyone, it should be read so that you have a brief overview of the options so that in the event that there is a time you need it, the knowledge is there. It details what you need to know and let’s you know what you are likely to keep and what the options are. Well worth a read through.

In these times one thing that you might not think of is your local mall having financial issues. But this article details how one company filed for bankruptcy protection last month and in doing so, pulled 166 of the mall properties that it owned into the proceeding with it. Many of these malls are or were doing fine even given the state of the economy but since they were listed in the paperwork they are considered a part of the actual petition. It is leading many to wonder what far reaching effects this might have on the retail industry where people thought that individual properties would be spared.

This article is quite interesting and it goes through one reason that we got caught up in the foreclosure issues we are in now and points the finger directly at one politician from Rhode Island who actually authored two obscure but significant bills all the way back in 1980 that eventually led to the sub prime lending that dug the financial hole that the country is now mired in. These bills, The Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act of 1980 and the Alternative Mortgage Transaction Parity Act passed in 1982. For anyone facing foreclosure or just interested in a theory or explanation of how we got here, this is required reading.

This is a little on the opposite side of the coin. It is how you can benefit by adopting a pet that may have been displaced sue to a family losing a home to foreclosure. It seems that they are of the opinion that by adding that puppy into your home and making it a part of your life you will become more active by playing with it and taking it for walks and besides the obvious well being and peace of mind, you will actually lose weight by being more active and you will be helping an animal in need at the same time.

This is a bit of bad news, it seems that the folks at the property wire are quite concerned that we are about to have another spike in home foreclosures due to the job loss and unemployment that is happening today. With all the companies having financial issues, layoff and people losing jobs they expect that the foreclosure rates are about to ripple out from Middle America and cause the actual numbers to skyrocket.

MSNBC ran a piece that warned of foreclosure consultants that are fraudulent and are set to prey on unsuspecting people that are caught up in the foreclosure mire. The article tells you how you can recognize a good and honest consultant from one of the many blood suckers out there looking to make quick cash forma nation of people that are desperately grasping for any rope that they can find to help pull them out of the financial hole they are in and to save the family home that they love and hold near.

This is a decent little article that tells you all about mortgage loan modifications and how to debunk the myths so that you can totally understand the pros and the cons of having the mortgage that you currently hold modified to something that you can hopefully deal with while avoiding the misconceptions that often accompany the ideas. This is an article that should be read by anyone that holds a mortgage. The ideas and facts in it might prove more than just mildly helpful to you in the future.

A company in Atlanta, Georgia named Ransom Enterprizes tells us that the best way to stay off a foreclosure is for you, as a homeowner to actually fight the bank for a better deal and to do so long before you actually are in danger of falling into foreclosure. This is because it may be difficult at best to get them to even identify the property as one that they own in time enough to stop you from losing it, much less to modify any of the terms. The people here have been doing this kind of thing for over 11 years in the Atlanta market and the article has some needed information for you.

Mediation is becoming a common method of trying to stop foreclosures. More and more these days lenders and the borrowers are attempting to work out the issues over a mediation meeting as opposed to a foreclosure meeting. The hope is that things can be ironed out so both parties win.

6 Useful Tips to Stop Foreclosure

Kevin Simpson — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 12:46:10 +0000

The following are the tips which would help you to avoid foreclosure:

First tip there are various things that can help you to stop the foreclosure procedure. If you want to stop the foreclosure then you should not avoid the problems due to which you were not able to pay the loan, you should not forget to contact your lender, give proper responses to the mails of the lender and try to contact HUD as soon as possible.

Second tip the following are the tips which would help you to avoid foreclosure is don’t ignore your problem. If you want to stop the foreclosure then you should not ignore the problems due to which foreclosure arises. You should give proper response to the phones of your lender and you should give proper response to the mails of your lender and you should not ignore the phones and the mails of your lender. This would help the lender to know that your intentions are not wrong and you want to pay your loan as soon as possible. If you assure your lender that you don’t want to lose your house, then they would help you to find a permanent solution to your problems.

Third tip is avoiding the scams. You will find that there are many scams who would give you assurance of helping you stop foreclosure. They would like you to sign a document which would give them right to work on your behalf. If you sign this document then you would become the renter of your own property. So, before signing any document you should try to take the guidance of legal entities.

Fourth tip is you should try to prioritize your things. You need to cut down your extra expenses and then rank things according to their importance. You need to make your monthly payments as soon as possible. This would help you to stop foreclosure as soon as possible.

Fifth tip is stop foreclosure as soon as possible. Foreclosure is the procedure that would have an effect on your credit score. It is a procedure due to which your credit can decrease in the market of loan. If you want to stop this procedure then you should try to stop foreclosure as soon as possible. If you want to save your house then you should try to make some last payments which can aid you to save your house from foreclosure.

Sixth tip is be in contact with your lender. If you want to avoid foreclosure then you should try to contact your lender and you should not evade your lender. You should go through every notice that you receive from your lender. You should work with your lenders as this would give them assurance that you are willing to pay the loan that you have taken from lender. Lenders prefer to work with those lenders who want to stop the foreclosure as soon as possible. If you are sincere then you would be able to stop the foreclosure procedure. Try to contact your lenders if you to stop foreclosure procedure. If you want to saver your credit then you should take the quick decision of stopping foreclosure.

Refinancing an ARM For a Fixed Rate Loan: A Way to Avoid Foreclosure?

john — Thu, 31 Aug 2006 14:23:37 +0000

One of the most common topics discussed both on this web log and in the general real estate sector these days is the effect of Adjustable Rate Mortgages on the rising national foreclosure rate. As explained previously, in the past years many investors and homebuyers sought to capitalize on the thriving real estate market by buying up anything they could in hopes of being able to sell it for a profit. The best loan to use for this purpose is an ARM, given that it has very low initial costs, making it perfect for those who don’t intend to hang onto their property very long.

As the market has cooled off considerably, many people are now stuck with the homes they have purchased with an ARM. While the ARM had low initial costs and a standard fixed-rate for the first year since its inception, now these owners who are unable to sell are stuck with the rapidly rising interest rates, leading to foreclosure and/or financial stress for millions of Americans.

However, we have recently seen many homeowners taking steps to make sure they don’t get in any deeper as they do. With interest rates rising and some analysts predicting rates as high as ten percent within a few years, many are looking to refinance for a comparatively low fixed rate loan while they still can.

Although interest rates offered on fixed loans may be higher than they were when the homeowner first bought their home, many are hoping to simply secure a stable payment before it gets any higher. A small hike in interest rate can mean a drastic hike in mortgage payments, especially for those already struggling to meet their current payment.

This is an attractive option for anyone who has invested and finds themselves stuck with payments. While it may require some higher costs to start, it might be wise in the long run, considering the market does not seem to be improving in terms of home values or housing supply anytime soon.

Northern California Foreclosure Update

john — Thu, 31 Aug 2006 13:07:24 +0000

Homeowners in Northern California’s San Francisco Bay Area fell behind in their mortgage payments during the first three months of 2006 while statewide the number of homeowners in default rose to its highest level in more than two years.

The increase in defaults, which is the first step in the foreclosure process, signals that slower home price growth has been taking its toll on the economy. Homeowners, who are unable to pay their mortgages, now find it harder to sell their homes at a profit and pay off lenders.

Mortgage lenders sent notices of default to 527 homeowners in Santa Clara County during the first three months of that year.

A grand total of 2,583 homeowners in Northern California received notices of default. This figure was up 8.3 percent from the previous year, and up 12.7 percent from the end of 2005.

The rising rates of default seem to be caused by the depreciation of housing prices. When prices are rising, most homeowners who find themselves unable to pay their mortgages have enough equity on their homes to enable them to sell their properties, pay off their loans and avoid foreclosure. When price appreciation begins to slow, as it did in the second half of 2005, foreclosure activity increases.

Due to the fact that market appreciation has been slowing down since the recent housing boom, many homeowners are finding themselves facing foreclosure.

During this past March in Santa Clara County, for example, the median price of a previously owned single-family house was up 11 percent from the median price in March 2005. In fact, it was at a new high-$735,000.

Mortgage defaults in the Bay Area are still low by historical measures, Karevoll said. Based on default data compiled since 1992, he said, it would be normal for about 4,000 owners to receive notices of default each quarter.

Default notices hit a peak in the San Francisco Bay Area during the first quarter of 1996 with 6,830 owners defaulting.

In recent quarters, more than 90 percent of Bay Area homeowners, who had gone into default, have been able to avoid foreclosure either by getting up-to-date on their loan payments, or through selling their homes, Karevoll said.

Lenders foreclosed on only 529 houses in the San Francisco Bay Area homes last year.

Statewide, 18,668 owners received default notices in the first quarter; that this 28.7 percent more than during that same period in 2005.

-John Grady