Archives for January 2011

Blame the Banks, Not the Homeowners, for the Mortgage Crisis (PART 1)

There is a foreclosure crisis in America.  There has been a lot of discussion as to where the blame lies for this crisis.  From my point of view, the blame sits squarely with the financial institutions.

There are those who say that homeowners are responsible for the foreclosure crisis because they haven’t been paying their mortgages.  Every foreclosure starts with a bank making a mortgage loan.  Banks make money by giving mortgage loans to consumers. They make more money when they sell the loans to other banks.  The banks that buy the loans make money when they contract with servicing companies to service these loans. When the underlying loans should not have been given to the consumer because the banks knew the consumer had no potential of making the loan payments, the banks bear the responsibility when the loans go bad.

Banks Knowingly Made Millions of Bad Loans

Banks made millions of loans in the United States to potential homeowners who had no potential of making the payments on these loans.  They carelessly handled the paperwork and processing of these loans.  Then when confronted with the mortgage crisis by President Obama, they said they would set up mortgage modification programs to help the beleaguered homeowners.  Instead of setting up reasonable mortgage modification programs, the banks intentionally and incompetently set up under-financed, poorly managed programs that were doomed to fail.  These programs, if they were properly and intelligently designed, operated and maintained, could have saved hundreds of thousands of salvageable mortgage loans.

Foreclosure Help

Should you need help with a foreclosure, we are the law firm for you.  We provide foreclosure defense for our clients.  We handle mortgage modifications.  Should you be served with a Summons and Complaint (legal documents in a foreclosure), we can represent you in these proceedings and keep you in your home.  We also countersue banks for defective foreclosure lawsuits, predatory lending and bad faith.  We attend foreclosure conferences and we litigate foreclosure proceedings on behalf of our clients. Feel free to contact us at 1-800-344-6431, 516-561-6645 or 718-350-2802.

Bank Acts in Bad Faith Regarding Mortgage Foreclosure

Posted by Elliot. S. Schlissel, Esq.

Justice Spinner, sitting in the Supreme Court in Suffolk County, recently had before him the case of U.S. Bank National Association v. Mathon. In this case, the bank had offered homeowners a three-month trial modification to their mortgage. The homeowners accepted the agreement and made the payments. The bank advised the homeowners, in writing, that a final modification would be forwarded to them in the very near future. The homeowners waited, and waited, and waited. They waited for an entire year. After a year had passed, they received notification from U.S. Bank National Association that their mortgage modification request had been turned down.

During the course of the one-year waiting period, the homeowners made ten additional mortgage payments. These payments were made on a timely basis and they were all accepted by the bank without protest. Thereafter, the bank made an application to the court to obtain a judgment in the foreclosure proceeding and sell the homeowners’ property. The homeowners brought an application by Order to Show Cause which motivated the bank to withdraw their request for a judgment of foreclosure and sale.

Hearing Held by Judge Spinner

Judge Spinner ordered a hearing regarding what had happened on this mortgage. The focus of the hearing was to look into whether the bank had acted in good faith or whether they acted in bad faith. If the bank acted in bad faith, the court was going to consider sanctions and other remedial measures against the financial institution. The court noted in its decision that the conduct of the bank in this matter was “rife with bad faith”. They had accepted twelve payments on a three-month trial modification. There had made the homeowner wait a year to find out that even making the twelve payments in good faith, they were getting turned down for their mortgage modification. There were both written and verbal assurances by the bank that the homeowners would receive a permanent loan modification.

Long Island and New York City Foreclosure Defense Lawyers

We defend homeowners whose homes are in foreclosure. We assist homeowners in obtaining mortgage modifications. We litigate bad faith procedures by financial institutions. We attend foreclosure conferences in court. We are familiar with the problems concerning mortgage modification programs that, instead of helping the homeowner, simply don’t work. We deal with predatory lending situations and defective foreclosure lawsuits. We are the New York Foreclosure Defense Law Firm that has presented innovative defenses for our clients. If your house is in foreclosure or you have financial problems related to your mortgage, call us at 1-800-344-6431, 516-561-6645 or 718-350-2802. We can help you save your home! Call us now!

Foreclosure Rates Dip In November 2010

November 2010 marked the lowest level of foreclosure activity in the United States in the past eighteen months! This is not an indication that the economy is coming back, or that people are earning more money and homeowners are making their mortgage payments. The significance of lower foreclosure rates is most likely caused by a number of the largest banks in the country freezing their foreclosure process due to the fact that they are being investigated by attorney generals in all fifty states. The investigations concern the improper handling of foreclosure proceedings.

In the month of November 2010, 67,428 homes were taken back by lenders. This is the lowest rate since May 2009; however, as of the end of November, 980,000 homes in the United States have been lost in foreclosure sales. This is the largest amount of homes being taken in foreclosure since 2005.

Rick Shark, a senior vice president at Realty Tarc stated “It’s almost impossible to imagine we won’t break a million” (referring to foreclosed homes this year). He further stated, “Unfortunately, it’s a record that we’ll probably break next year.” Had there not been a problem with improper foreclosure procedures, it was likely that banks would have taken back 1.2 million homes in 2010.

Due to the problems seen in the courts and the investigations by attorney generals in all fifty states, banks temporarily ceased taking legal action against their borrowers who were behind on their mortgage payments. Some banks thereafter indicated they would proceed with the foreclosure process, but there are still a number of large banks who are not moving forward with foreclosures at this time.

Foreclosure Problems to Continue in 2011

Many of the factors that have been involved in this foreclosure crisis will still exist in 2011. High unemployment, falling home values and difficulty in obtaining new mortgages are several of the factors that are contributing to the current mortgage crisis.

It is estimated that almost 11 million homes, or 22.5%, of all homes that have a mortgage, were under water for the July through September quarter of 2010. This is according to housing data by the firm CoreLogic.

During November 2010, 262,339 homes received at least one foreclosure notice. Utah is now the number two state in foreclosures on a per-capita basis in the United States. It is estimated that 1 out of every 220 households in Utah received a foreclosure notice in November 2010. This is more than twice the average in the United States. Other states with very high foreclosure rates are California, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, Idaho, Illinois and Colorado. The foreclosure rate in New York is high, but not as high as some of the aforementioned harder hit states.

Foreclosure Defense Lawyers

If you’re behind in your mortgage or have been turned down for a mortgage modification, you need to think about foreclosure defense. The foreclosure defense lawyers at The Law Offices of Schlissel DeCorpo have been assisting their clients in dealing with foreclosure problems for more than 45 years. We also help our clients with mortgage modifications. We represent our clients in court appearances and foreclosure conferences in court. We stop the foreclosure from going forward!

We deal with defective foreclosure lawsuits, bad faith bank practices and predatory lending issues. If you have a foreclosure problem, call us at 1-800-344-6431, 516-561-6645 or 718-350-2802. We can help you!

Foreclosure Action Dismissed, Bank Had No Standing to Sue

Posted by Elliot S. Schlissel, Esq.

Justice Madden, sitting in the Supreme Court of New York County, recently dismissed a foreclosure proceeding because the plaintiff financial institution had no standing to sue. The court held that they had no standing to sue because they could not document that the mortgage had been properly assigned to them. The case involved was LPP Mortgage Ltd. v. Sabine Properties, LLC.

LLP Mortgage claimed that Sabine had defaulted in making mortgage payments to them. They had accelerated the mortgage (called it due) and asked for a judgment for the entire mortgage balance.

Justice Madden noted that the complaint submitted by LLP Mortgage Ltd. did not specifically identify the original institution that granted the mortgage. It also didn’t state how the mortgage was assigned to LLP Mortgage Ltd.

The attorneys for Sabine alleged that the mortgage was originally given by Wall Street Mortgage Banks. They also claim that Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems was acting as a nominee and was not the mortgage holder filed with the Registrar of Deeds in the City of New York.

Sabine Properties contended that LLP Mortgage did not provide the courts with documentation that this mortgage had been assigned to them.The court ruled in favor of Sabine Properties. The court held that LLP Mortgage could not show the rightful owner of the note and mortgage. Sabine Properties could not show a continuing chain of title as to how the mortgage became their property. On this basis. the court dismissed the lawsuit because they had no standing to sue.

Foreclosure Defense Lawyers

Should you be facing a foreclosure situation regarding your home, it is important you have experienced legal counsel to defend you. For more than 45 years, the Law Offices of Schlissel DeCorpo has been representing individuals whose homes have been foreclosed upon. We litigate foreclosure cases. When necessary, we can file Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcies to stop foreclosures from moving forward. We are adept at handling mortgage modifications as well as defending foreclosure lawsuits based on the banks using defective procedures , bad faith and assignments. We also deal with predatory lending cases. Call us should you need assistance at 1-800-344- 6431; 516-561-6645 or 718-350-2802.

Foreclosure Crisis: A Problem for President Obama & the Democrats

Posted by Elliot S. Schlissel, Esq.

The foreclosure crisis in the United States is now reaching the highest office of the land. President Obama is being backed into a corner, forced to protect the banking industry from allegations of fraud, misrepresentations, improper lending practices, defective foreclosure lawsuits and predatory lending issues.

Senior democrats have been calling for a moratorium on foreclosures in the United States. They seek to punish the banking industry for their improper actions.

Recently, Shaun Donovan, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, made the following statement: “irresponsible banks need to be held accountable, but if we have not found a problem with a bank’s process, we do not believe that we should impose a moratorium that can hurt the market and hurt the individual buyers.”

The Obama Administration has taken the position that if we hurt or damage the financial industry, in the long run, it is the public who feels the pain when the economy continues to erode.

The banking industry is arguing against the moratorium on foreclosures. They claim that the moratorium would have a long term negative effect on the economy in the United States. The Obama administration shares this concern. Recently, David Axelrod, a senior White House advisor, stated “There are in fact valid foreclosures that probably should go forward.” The Obama administration’s position is that people who don’t pay their mortgages should be held accountable in foreclosure proceedings. In the alternative, homeowner advocates claim there has been a pattern of abuse in the banking industry regarding foreclosures. The Obama administration wants to play this issue both ways. They are expressing concern for homeowners’ whose homes are in foreclosure, but they do not want to take any steps that may have a negative affect on the banking industry because they feel it will have long term negative economic impact in the United States.

Protecting Homeowners From Foreclosure

Our law firm assists homeowners in foreclosure defense. We handle mortgage modifications. We deal with defective foreclosure lawsuits and predatory lending issues. In appropriate situations, we utilize Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcies to assist our clients in stopping foreclosure proceedings from moving forward. Call us for a free consultation at 1-800-344-6431, 516-561-6645 or 718-350-2802.

Problems With Foreclosure Affirmation Requirement

“Posted by Elliot S. Schlissel, Esq.”

Anne Reynolds Copps is the chairperson of the real property law section of the New York State Bar Association. On behalf of members in her section, she has filed objections to the Office of Court Administration regarding new requirements for attorney affirmations for foreclosure proceedings. She claims that the new affirmation requirements violates the attorney/client confidentiality privilege. She also feels that it unfairly blames New York attorneys for inappropriate practices that exist in other parts of the country.

The Office of Court Administration has recently made some minor changes requiring that attorneys must submit affirmations under penalty of perjury with regard to the truthfulness of documents that they file.
The letter Ms. Copps submitted to the Office of Court Administration questioned the preamble to the original affirmation which said “Numerous and wide spread insufficiencies in foreclosure filings in various courts around the nation.” Ms. Copps demanded that said preamble be removed. She further stated “Mandating the inclusion of this preamble in the affirmation creates an unfair and prejudicial connection between any attorney who submits the documentation and the unidentified attorneys around the nations who have allegedly committed this specific wrongs.”

The courts are now insisting that attorneys report their communications with lender representatives and attest to the best of their knowledge and belief that the statements made in all applications related to foreclosure proceedings in the State of New York be true and correct.

In a related note, Steven P. Younger, the president of the New York State Bar Association, stated that the State Bar has not rendered an official position with regard to the new requirements attorneys must meet with regard to all applications in foreclosure proceedings.

Foreclosure Defense Lawyers

The new requirements in foreclosure proceedings relate to the widespread practices that have existed in the United States in foreclosure cases. When appropriate, we counter sue the financial institution related to defective foreclosure lawsuits and predatory lending issues. We defend our clients from all types of foreclosure proceedings. We also help our clients obtain mortgage modifications. We also advise our clients as to whether Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcies would be the appropriate way to eliminate the foreclosure and save their home. Should you have questions regarding foreclosure defense or bankruptcy, feel free to contact us 24/7 at 1-800-344-6431, 516-561-6645 or 718-350-2802.

Foreclosure Defense in Valley Stream, Lynbrook, Baldwin, Malverne, Freeport, Oceanside, Long Beach, Elmont, Lakeview, West Hempstead, Hempstead, Merrick and Bellmore, New York

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