defective mortgages

JP Morgan $13 Billion Settlement for Bad Mortgage Practices

October 31, 2013 by Elliot S. Schlissel

For months now, JP Morgan Chase and the Justice Department have been in negotiations with regard to a settlement resolving federal allegations concerning the bank’s sale of faulty mortgage securities. The Justice Department’s position is the sale of these faulty mortgage securities was a major factor in the mortgage/real estate crisis in America. The $13 Billion penalty would be the largest penalty ever paid by a single institution. The Justice Department has been investigating JP Morgan Chase for many months with regard to its activities concerning mortgage backed securities. In the event this settlement is entered into, it would be a major win for the Justice Department. JP Morgan Chase is the largest bank in the country. This settlement will not stop the federal government from bringing criminal charges against JP Morgan Chase. However, the deal would end a New York State lawsuit brought by Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman and an investigation in the State of California.

HSBC and Barclay’s Bank Fined Also

Attorney General Holder has in the past levied multimillion dollar fines against other large financial institutions which includes both HSBC and Barclay’s Bank.

JP Morgan seeks to resolve this investigation regarding its conduct in recent years. As a result of this investigation, the bank’s first quarter report showed a loss. This was the first quarterly loss for JP Morgan Chase in ten years. The bank’s Chief Executive Officer, Jamie Dimon, seeks to resolve these investigations into the bank’s conduct. With this in mind, he is taking a conciliatory approach in his dealings with regulators. He has stated that the problems JP Morgan is facing are “painful.”

In 2011, JP Morgan Chase was one of the eighteen banks sued by the Federal Housing Finance Agency. That suit was to recoup losses sustained by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac with regard to bundled securities that were improperly underwritten as home loans.

Elliot Schlissel is a foreclosure defense lawyer. Elliot and his associates litigate foreclosure lawsuits and they help their clients obtain mortgage modifications. Elliot and his aggressive associates work hard to keep their clients living in their homes.

Filed Under: Foreclosure, Foreclosure Defense, Mortgage Modification Tagged With: defective foreclosure lawsuits, defective mortgages, financial crisis, foreclosure, foreclosure attorney, foreclosure defense, mortgage modifications

Appearance at a Foreclosure Settlement Conference Considered an “Informal Appearance” and not a Default by the Mortgagor

October 7, 2013 by Elliot S. Schlissel

In a case of first impression, Justice Jack Battaglia sitting in Supreme Court Real Property Part in Kings County, New York, dealt with an issue as to whether the appearance by the mortgagor at the mandated Foreclosure Court Conference part in Kings County without submitting a formal written answer to the summons and complaint can be considered an informal appearance denying the financial institution the ability to claim the homeowner was in default.

In this case, the financial institution brought a summary judgment application to the Court. A summary judgment motion claims there are no issues of fact and therefore no trial is necessary. The basis for the summary judgment was the default by the mortgagor, Butler, in this proceeding. There were two prior applications by the financial institution but questions concerning the affidavit of service caused them to be denied. The Judge had the case sent over to the Foreclosure Settlement Conference Part for mandatory foreclosure settlement proceedings.

Mr. Butler made numerous appearances at the Foreclosure Conference Part. The judge questioned whether since Butler appeared in the action in the Foreclosure Conference Part, how could she be “in default” for purposes of entering a judgment on default. The Court took the position, under New York case law, what Butler made was called an “informal appearance” within the time specified in the Summons and Complaint.
This is covered by New York Civil Practice and Rules § 320(a). The judge therefore entered a decision that Butler was not in default. A motion to enter judgement based on default could not be granted since Butler was not in default. Butler had participated in court conferences pursuant to this informal appearance. It should be noted, Butler appeared twenty-five times in the Foreclosure Conference Settlement Part and several other times before the court. The financial institution’s application for a default judgment was denied.

Elliot S. Schlissel is a foreclosure defense attorney representing homeowners throughout the metropolitan New York area. Elliot and his staff of attorneys have been keeping homeowners in their homes for more than 45 years.

Filed Under: Foreclosure, Foreclosure Defense Tagged With: defective foreclosure lawsuits, defective mortgages, foreclosure, foreclosure attorney, foreclosure defense, foreclosure defense attorneys, foreclosure defense lawyers, foreclosure proceedings, New York foreclosure attorney

Part I: Bank of America Employees Lied To Homeowners

September 2, 2013 by Elliot S. Schlissel

In a lawsuit filed against Bank of America, six former Bank of America employees and one outside contractor working for Bank of America, filed affidavits with the court, claiming they regularly lied to homeowner’s seeking mortgage loan modifications. The mortgage modifications were denied for made up reasons. These employees were rewarded for denying mortgage modifications and putting the homes into foreclosure. The lawsuit is pending in a United States District Court in Boston, Massachusetts. It is part of a class action brought on behalf of homeowner’s who were trying to avoid foreclosures on their homes pursuant to the governments Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP).

Bank Of America Denies The Allegations

Bank of America has given a statement through a spokesperson. The statement indicated the affidavits of the employees were “rife with factual inconsistencies.” Bank of America claims to have modified more loans than any other bank in the country.

William Wilson, Jr., who worked as an underwriter for Bank of America and as a manager between the years 2010 and 2012 stated homeowners had to submit documentation of financial information with their mortgage modification applications. Wilson stated that twice a month, the bank required all files that were more than 60 days old had to be denied. This was called “a blitz.” During this period, one team would deny between 600 and 1500 mortgage modification applications all at the same time.

The manner in which the employees justified the turning down of these mortgages was to create fictitious reasons for these mortgage denials. The most common fictitious reason for denying the mortgage was claiming the homeowner had not sent in the appropriate financial documents requested by Bank of America. The Bank of America employees claimed these financial documents were not sent in when the documents were right in front of them!

Erica Brown, a former Bank of America employee, has made statements indicating “Bank of America’s practice was to string homeowners along with no apparent intention of providing the permanent loan modification it promises.” Bank of America and its executives should be subject to criminal investigations with regard to their actions under the HAMP program.

Filed Under: Bankruptcy, Foreclosure Defense, Mortgage Modification Tagged With: Bankruptcy mortgage modification, defective mortgages, mortgage modification, mortgage modification attorneys, mortgage modification denial, mortgage modification denied new york

Banks Deny Mortgage Modifications

August 9, 2013 by Elliot S. Schlissel

New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has decided to sue Bank of America and Wells Fargo Bank for refusing to live up to their obligations concerning mortgage modification applications. Attorney General Schneiderman stated “339 people, since October of 2012, have complained about mortgage modification problems with Wells Fargo and Bank of America.” These banks are under an obligation under a $25 billion dollar settlement with the fifty States and the Federal Government to respond to requests for mortgage modifications within 30 days. Attorney General Schneiderman claims Wells Fargo and Bank of America have flagrantly violated their obligations under the settlement of that law suit. Mr. Schneiderman stated 220 of the complaints by homeowners were against Wells Fargo and 119 complaints were made against Bank of America.

Bank Of America And Mortgage Modifications

In response to these allegations, Bank of America representatives say they had already provided relief for more than 10,000 New York homeowners. These mortgage modifications, they claimed, amounted to more than a billion dollars. Bank of America representatives claimed they would work quickly to address the complaints made to the New York State Attorney General. A Wells Fargo representative stated “it is unfortunate that [Schneiderman] has chosen this route rather than engage in constructive dialogue through the established dispute resolution process.”

Foreclosure Defense

More and more homeowners have been taken advantage of by financial institutions to which they have submitted mortgage modifications requests. The loss of documents, the many months of delays, the lack of response from the bank’s representatives are frustrating and aggravating to homeowners. The best way for a homeowner to deal with these problems is to contact a foreclosure attorney who is experienced in taking legal action against banks for their failures to live up to their obligations and State and Federal consumer protection laws.

Filed Under: Foreclosure, Foreclosure Defense, Mortgage Modification Tagged With: defective mortgages, foreclosure defense, foreclosure defense attorneys, mortgage modification, mortgage modification attorneys, mortgage modification denied, Mortgage Modifications new york, New York foreclosure attorney

Courts Impact On The Foreclosure Crisis

October 11, 2012 by Elliot S. Schlissel

Many foreclosure actions spend years tied up in court. This is caused by lenders losing the note. Lenders also have been guilty of sloppy record keeping, loss of documentation of their standing to sue and other violations of court rules and statutes.

Foreclosure lawsuits today, in many situations, are not initiated by the original lenders. The parties bringing the foreclosure action received the mortgages after a series of transfers. It is estimated, millions of mortgage notes have been lost or misplaced. For a lender to bring a foreclosure proceeding it must be the holder or the assignee of both the mortgage and the note.

Show Me The Mortgage Note Defense

Defense lawyers in foreclosure actions now utilize a “show me the note” defense. This has allowed defaulting borrowers to hold off the foreclosure proceeding from going forward while the foreclosing lender or servicing organization looks for the note. Sometimes while looking for the note, they ascertain they do not physically hold the note and they cannot find out where it is.

How Courts In New York Handle Cases Involving Lost Mortgage Notes

Courts in New York can proceed with foreclosure proceedings even without a mortgage note. To accomplish this, the lender must show to the Court it owns the note. They must present to the Court the facts preventing the production of the note and present to the Court the terms of the note. The lender has to provide the Court with a detailed explanation of the note’s chain of transfers. This is to prove that the prior note holders had the intention to transfer the mortgage and that the current note owner is the rightful recipient of the mortgage.

Financial Institutions Proving Ownership Of The Notes

For financial institutions to prove the ownership of the note they must produce a valid assignment of the note or, in the alternative, they must show the note was physically hand delivered to them. Determining what actually constitutes the physical delivery of the note may vary on a case to case basis.

Lost Mortgage Notes

If the lender can demonstrate to the Court it owns the note it then must provide the Court with a logical explanation of why the note was lost. The lender has the burden of proving the terms of the lost note. To prove this, the lender must provide the Court with information concerning the name of the last holder of the note, the name of the borrower, the name of the person who signed on behalf of the borrower, the type of note, the effective date of the note, the value of the note, the payment terms of the note, the loan number and currently how much is unpaid under the note. The person providing evidence of this information must have personal knowledge of all of this information.

Conclusion

Lenders have heavy burdens to meet before they can successfully bring foreclosure proceedings in New York State Courts when they can’t produce the note or provide documentation of the assignment of the note.

Filed Under: Current Events, Foreclosure, Foreclosure Defense, Mortgage Modification Tagged With: Bankruptcy mortgage modification, defective foreclosure lawsuits, defective mortgages, financial crisis, foreclosure, foreclosure attorney, foreclosure crisis, foreclosure defense, foreclosure defense attorneys, foreclosure defense lawyers, foreclosure proceedings, mortgage modifications

Home prices are down! Interest rates are at an all time low!! But can you get a loan?

July 31, 2012 by Elliot S. Schlissel

Mortgage rates have reached all time lows. Unfortunately, the mortgage crisis in American has made it extremely difficult for the average American to qualify for these low interest mortgages.

A number of years ago, during the housing boom, if you were breathing and you walked into a mortgage brokers office, you could walk out with a mortgage. Today, only the most highly qualified perspective homeowners can obtain mortgage financing. Recent data from the Federal Reserve System shows more than 25% of all Americans who apply for mortgage loans are being rejected.

Lawrence Yun, the chief economist for the National Association of Real Estate Brokers, recently stated “good borrowers with one or two blemishes on their credit are being denied credit.”

Statistics regarding credit scores concerning Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac financed loans show the average credit score to qualify for a loan has increased from 720 to 760. For Federal Housing Authority loans the average score has increased from 660 to 700.

Down Payments

Today it is necessary that a perspective mortgage borrower have between 15 and 20% of the total cost of the home to qualify for obtaining a mortgage. It should be noted during the boom year in the real estate market all a prospective borrower needed to buy a home was a down payment of Zero!

About the Author

Elliot Schlissel, Esq. is an attorney who assists clients in real estate related matters. He is a former president of the Commercial Lawyer’s Conference of New York. He currently represents numerous individuals throughout the Metropolitan New York area in a variety of foreclosure defense lawsuits and mortgage modification applications.

Filed Under: Current Events, Foreclosure, Foreclosure Defense, Mortgage Modification Tagged With: defective foreclosure lawsuits, defective mortgages, financial crisis, foreclosure, foreclosure attorney, foreclosure defense, foreclosure defense attorneys, foreclosure related bankruptciy, long island bankruptcy attorney, mortgage, mortgage modification, mortgage modifications, New York foreclosure attorney

Late Mortgage Payments Increase

July 24, 2012 by Elliot S. Schlissel

During the last quarter of 2011, Trans Union credit reporting agency reports more than 6% of all mortgage holders in the United States were behind on their mortgage payments by 60 days or more. It should be noted prior to the housing crisis that exists in America, the delinquency rate on mortgages was usually in the area of 2%.

Tim Morton, a group Vice President of US Housing in the Trans Union financial services unit, stated “the more encouraging news is when looking year over year the delinquency rate dropped over 6%! At this pace it will take a very long time for mortgage delinquency rates to get back to normal.”

Delinquency rates have been decreasing in Arizona and California. Florida, which is the state with the highest delinquency rate, has a mortgage delinquency rate of approximately 14.5%!

The recent settlement by the five largest banks concerning mortgage improprieties may result in as many as one million mortgage holders having a reduction in the size of their mortgages.

Stabilization of Home Prices

The key to the real estate crisis in the United States is the stabilization of home prices and the reduction in the unemployment rate in the United States. As the unemployment rate goes down, more Americans will become employed and the delinquency rates on mortgage payments will go down. Less homes will be foreclosed upon and there will be stabilization over the long run in the real estate market.

Filed Under: Bankruptcy, Current Events, Foreclosure, Foreclosure Defense, Mortgage Modification Tagged With: defective mortgages, foreclosure, foreclosure attorney, foreclosure crisis, foreclosure defense, foreclosure defense attorneys, New York foreclosure defense lawyers, predatory lending

Buyers Are Still Wary Of Purchasing Homes In New York

April 16, 2012 by Elliot S. Schlissel

The housing market on Long Island did not improve in the month of January 2012. According to Multiple Listing Service on Long Island the median sales price of a home in Nassau County fell 6.1% between January 2011 and January 2012. This brought the median home price down from $410,000 to $385,000. During the same period of time homes in Suffolk County fell 5.2%. With the median price going from $313,000 to $296,800. The volume of homes that were sold also was reduced.

James Retz, a Vice President at Daniel Gale Sotheby’s International Realty in Cold Spring Harbor, stated with regard to the real estate market on Long Island it is “showing a lot of life, but there’s still a lot of caution.”

High Foreclosure Rates

The high foreclosure rates on Long Island continue to have a negative impact on the sales price of homes. There are simply too many homes on the market in Long Island. When you have a lack of equilibrium between the amount homes listed to be sold and the number of purchasers interested in buying homes the market will continue to go down.

Conclusion

It is still a difficult time to sell a house and buyers who are in the market today can obtain substantial bargains.

Real Estate Lawyers

The Real Estate Lawyers at the Law Offices of Schlissel DeCorpo can help you if your home is in foreclosure or if your home is heading toward foreclosure. We can represent you at foreclosure court conferences. We can submit foreclosure defenses in litigation brought by financial institutions against you. A commonly utilized pleading involves defenses such as defective foreclosures, predatory lending, foreclosure fraud, and other real estate related defenses. We can also help you with regard to a forensic audit with regard to your mortgage. Call us and we will discuss your foreclosure options with you.
An additional option when faced with foreclosure is filing a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy.

Our attorneys are available to discuss foreclosures related to bankruptcy with you. Feel free to call us.

Filed Under: Bankruptcy, Current Events, Foreclosure, Foreclosure Defense, Mortgage Modification Tagged With: bankruptcy, bankruptcy attorneys, Bankruptcy mortgage modification, bankruptcy proceedings, Chapter 13, Chapter 13 bankruptcy, Chapter 7, defective foreclosure lawsuits, defective mortgages, financial crisis, foreclosure, foreclosure defense, foreclosure defense attorneys, foreclosure defense lawyers, long island bankruptcy attorney, mortgage modification

Housing Prices on Long Island Decrease

October 6, 2011 by Elliot S. Schlissel

The sale prices of homes on Long Island went down in the month of August. This is compared to the price that homes sold for one year ago. The medium sale price for a home in Nassau County was $420,000. This represents a reduction of 4.5 % from last year. The medium sale price for a home in Suffolk County in August of 2011 was $324,000. This was only $1,000 less than that home would have sold for in August of 2010.

A Stabilizing Market

Real estate experts have indicated that the market for single family homes on Long Island is stabilizing. This is another way of saying that the amount of decline in home values is slowly leveling off.

Rock Bottom Prices

Buyers today are looking for rock bottom prices before they will buy a home. Has the market bottomed out? One can never be sure as to what the real estate market is going to do. The major issues involved in the real estate market relate to national and local economic decisions. The unemployment rate has a significant impact on the real estate market. The consensus among families as to the future of their employment prospects impacts on the real estate market. Worries and fears about recessions impact the real estate market. Job security issues have a negative impact on the real estate market. Home values have been going down on Long Island for more than four years. When will the bleeding stop?

Foreclosure Defense and Bankruptcy Lawyer

The Law Offices of Schlissel DeCorpo handles foreclosure defense for homeowners. We litigate all aspects of foreclosure proceedings including, but not limited to, defective foreclosure lawsuits,defective mortgages, predatory lending issues, bad faith, and other real estate legal issues. We attend foreclosure court conferencesfor the clients we represent. We also assist our clients in the preparation of mortgage modification applications, as well as deal with mortgage modification programs that are unresponsive to our clients’ needs.

In certain situations, foreclosure related bankruptcies can be utilized to stop foreclosures from moving forward. Upon filing either a Chapter 7 or a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, the bankruptcy court issues an automatic stay that stops the foreclosure lawsuit from moving forward. It should be noted that bankruptcy proceedings are brought in the United States Bankruptcy Court, while foreclosure proceedings are brought in New York State Courts.

For our clients who file bankruptcy, we can sometimes eliminate second mortgages. We also can assist our clients in re-establishing their credit after filing bankruptcy. Should you have questions as to what type of bankruptcy would be appropriate for you or whether there is other alternatives related to foreclosure defense, feel free to contact us. At your initial free consultation, we will discuss all of your foreclosure options. We look forward to seeing you again on our foreclosure blog.

Filed Under: Bankruptcy, Current Events, Foreclosure, Foreclosure Defense, Mortgage Modification Tagged With: Chapter 13 bankruptcy, Chapter 7 bankruptcy, defective foreclosure lawsuits, defective mortgages, foreclosure, foreclosure defense, foreclosure related bankruptcies, housing prices, Housing Prices Long Island, Nassau County Home Prices, new york attorney foreclosure, New York foreclosure, NY foreclosure defense attorneys, predatory lending issues, real estate market, unemployment rate, unemployment rate real estate market

Home Prices Rise in the Spring of 2011

September 30, 2011 by Elliot S. Schlissel

Each year, as the weather gets better, the real estate market seems to blossom at the same time flowers blossom in many large cities in the United States. This has been true for 2011; however, the blossoming only had a minimal impact on the real estate market in the United States this year. Home sale prices rose in 13 of the 20 largest cities that are followed by the Standard and Poor’s / Case – Shiller Home Price Index. Washington, D.C. had the most significant increase in home prices. It was followed by San Francisco, Atlanta and Seattle. The home price index in the city of New York only went up a small amount.

Long Island Home Prices

In May of 2011, there was a slight increase in the average home price in Suffolk County. It rose to $315,000. Nassau County had a decrease in the average price of home sales to $399,000. Unfortunately, these home prices must be adjusted for seasonal factors related to the search of home purchasers that usually takes place in the spring of each year.

Real Estate Crisis

America is still in the throes of a real estate crisis. Approximately a third of all homes are underwater (worth less than the amount of their mortgages). This crisis has been going on for three years. It is becoming a permanent fixture of the real estate cycle. For the economy in the United States to be pulled out of its doldrums, the real estate market must be stabilized, which is not happening. Foreclosure rates are increasing. Equity in homes is decreasing. American’s single largest asset, the single family home, is becoming a liability!

Foreclosure Lawyers

We can fight your foreclosure. We litigate predatory lending issues, defective foreclosure lawsuits, and defective mortgages. We attend foreclosure court conferences for our clients. We draft mortgage modifications and deal with mortgage modification programs that fail to meet our clients needs. We litigate foreclosure related bankruptcies, whether they’re a Chapter 7 bankruptcy or Chapter 13 bankruptcy. We also assist our clients in re-establishing credit after filing a bankruptcy. We can help stop your foreclosure from moving forward! Call us and we will provide you with a free consultation. We will discuss all of your foreclosure options.

Filed Under: Bankruptcy, Current Events, Foreclosure, Foreclosure Defense, Mortgage Modification Tagged With: Case - Shiller Home Price Index, Chapter 13 bankruptcy, Chapter 7 bankruptcy, defective foreclosure lawsuits, defective mortgages, foreclosure, Foreclosure Lawyers, foreclosure rates, home prices, Home Prices Rise, Long Island Home Prices, mortgage modification, Nassau County Home Prices, predatory lending issues, Real Estate Crisis, real estate market, Standard and Poor's Case - Shiller Home Price Index, Suffolk County Home Prices

JP Morgan $13 Billion Settlement for Bad Mortgage Practices

Appearance at a Foreclosure Settlement Conference Considered an “Informal Appearance” and not a Default by the Mortgagor

Part I: Bank of America Employees Lied To Homeowners

Banks Deny Mortgage Modifications

Courts Impact On The Foreclosure Crisis

Late Mortgage Payments Increase

Buyers Are Still Wary Of Purchasing Homes In New York

Home Prices Rise in the Spring of 2011

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