In late June 2016 the legislature in the state of New York passed a bill that created a state wide zombie house registry.  This statute created a toll free number for homeowners to report eyesores related to abandoned homes in foreclosure. The statute imposed fines on banks that fail to maintain homes which were abandoned by their homeowners during the foreclosure process.

Speeding up Foreclosures in New York Courts

This new statute in addition to dealing with the abandoned “Zombie” home issue is also designed to speed up the foreclosure process in New York state courts.

Zombie Homes on Long Island

Many communities on Long Island have had problems in recent years dealing with thousands of homes which were abandoned by their owners as their homes went into foreclosure.  This problem also exists in parts of the city of New York and cities in Upstate New York.

Misunderstanding By Homeowners

Homeowners sometimes misunderstand how the foreclosure process works. The service of a foreclosure summons and complaint upon the homeowner by the bank holding the mortgage, on the home is the start of a process whereby the bank takes back the ownership of the home.  Homeowners sometimes misunderstand how the legal process of foreclosure progresses from the initiation of the lawsuit to the bank taking title to the home when it is sold on the courthouse steps. Even when the bank takes title to the home this doesn’t give them the right to show up at the house and force the homeowner from the home.

Attorney Elliot S. Schlissel and his associates are foreclosure attorneys representing homeowners in foreclosure cases throughout the metropolitan New York area.

Zombie Home Legislature: Part Two

Under New York State law, the bank or the individuals or the party that purchased the home at the foreclosure sale must bring a landlord tenant proceeding if they seek to evict the homeowners. In many cases the bank and or the people who purchased the property at the foreclosure sale are prepared to negotiate and discuss an amicable resolution of the issue of the homeowners vacating the home.

This new statute gives municipalities and the state dept of financial services the power to take legal action against banks and mortgage serving companies that do not maintain vacant homes.  The banks and or mortgage servicer can be fined as much as $500.00 dollars per day for each property they do not properly maintain. State senator Jeffrey Klein stated concerning this new legislation “finally, banks will be responsible to maintain zombie properties that have caused property devaluation across our state.”

Banks Failure During Foreclosure Process

Banks who are found to not be acting appropriately or exercising good faith during the foreclosure court proceedings can be fined up to $25,000.00 under this new statute. This new statute also can cause banks to be fined up to $25,000.00 for failure to produce required documents, during foreclosure mediation court conferences.

Eliot S Schlissel is a foreclosure defense lawyer representing homeowners throughout the New York Metropolitan area with regard to obtaining mortgage modifications and defending foreclosure lawsuits. Elliot and his staff of attorneys take legal action to keep homeowners and their families in their homes by fighting foreclosure lawsuits and working with financial institutions to obtain mortgage modifications for the firm’s clients.

In a case pending in Kings County, New York before Justice Robyn Garcin, a defendant named Acevedo sought to restore a prior motion to dismiss the foreclosure lawsuit brought against him by Deutsche Bank. The bank had an affidavit from their process server that claimed that Acevedo was served at 272 Etna Street. The service of the Summons and Complaint was made at that address, the bank claimed, to person of suitable age and discretion and thereafter a copy of it was mailed to Acevedo at that address.

ACEVEDO MOVED IN 2009

Acevedo, in his motion papers, documented that he had not resided at 272 Etna Street since 2009. He therefore argued that the service of the Summon ad Complaint was not properly effectuated at his him or the place he resided. The attorneys for the bank claimed Acevedo waived the defense of of lack of personal jurisdiction by failing to commence a motion to dismiss the lawsuit within 60 days of service of the original date of service of his answer to the Summons and Complaint. However, Justice Robyn Garcin found that due to the circumstances involved in this case Acevedo should not be held to the 60 day limitation with regard to making a motion to dismiss a Summons and Complaint based on improper service. Justice Garcin, in her opinion stated that: “the initiation of the lawsuit by serving Acevedo at the wrong address was defective and therefore the foreclosure lawsuit was dismissed.

Elliot S. Schlissel, Esq. is a foreclosure defense attorney representing homeowners throughout the metropolitan New York area for more than 45 years.

In this video Elliot discusses the subject of underwater homes and foreclosure.

There are many published articles on the topic of what you should do if your home is going into foreclosure. This article is not going to discuss these issues. The purpose of this article is to tell you exactly what you shouldn’t do when facing the possibility of foreclosure.

The first thing you shouldn’t do is to sign over the deed to your home to someone else. Some despicable individuals and companies seek to take advantage of families in financial trouble by promising to get them their mortgages current. They have this bait and switch plan where they request you turn your home over to them. They then claim they will get a mortgage modification because their credit or circumstances is better than yours and thereafter they will sign the mortgage and deed back over to the beleaguered family. This is a bait and switch type of fraud designed to cause families to lose their homes. What these fraudulent companies do is refinance the property, take the equity out of the home, and thereafter let the foreclosure lawsuit proceed against the property. They then walk away from the situation leaving the homeowner in a worse situation than they were to begin with. Now there is no equity in their home, the homeowner no longer owns their home, and their options in dealing with the potential foreclosure are usually reduced or eliminated.

Do Not Ignore a Legal Document From the Bank or Their Lawyers

Facing a foreclosure lawsuit due to negative financial or personal circumstances can be difficult. It is easier to run from your life’s problems. However, ignoring the fact that your home is going into foreclosure is not a solution to your problem. This will exacerbate the problem by limiting the possibility of you and your family staying in your home. If you are contacted by your bank, mortgage company, or servicing company with requests, you should honor those requests and try to cooperate with them. If they are threatening you, you should hire a foreclosure attorney to advise you on how to deal with the situation. Competent, experienced foreclosure defense lawyers have developed a variety of techniques to help beleaguered homeowners stay in their homes.

Be Leery of Mortgage Modification Companies That Promise Stellar Results

There are many mortgage modification companies marketing their services to the public in the United States. Many of these companies more or less claim if you are breathing we will get you a mortgage modification. These companies are taking advantage of families in trouble. They present success rates which are usually unrealistic. Mortgage modification companies are no more successful in obtaining mortgage modifications for their customers than homeowners who submit mortgage modifications on their own. Many of these modification companies are hustlers taking advantage of people by asking for large up front fees based on false promises. Be sure to check with your local bar association, or the Better Business Bureau before hiring an attorney or mortgage modification company that claims they will get you a mortgage modification or stop your foreclosure from moving forward.