Foreclosure Horror Story

Warren Nyerges and his wife Maureen purchased a home from Bank of America in St. Petersburg, Florida. They paid $165,000 for a twenty-seven-hundred square foot home.

Foreclosure Proceedings Initiated on Home

Several months after paying $165,000 for the home and having no mortgage on it, Warren and Maureen were sued in a foreclosure proceeding. They originally thought this was a joke. The house had no mortgage on it. This was the start of a saga lasting almost two years. A representative from Bank of America told Warren he was not current on his mortgage. This was ridiculous; he didn’t have a mortgage.

Homeowners Sue Bank of America

Warren and Maureen eventually sued Bank of America. After painstakingly researching this situation, Warren and Maureen found out that their names were taken from their real estate contract to buy the house and placed on a previously initiated foreclosure proceeding.

Florida Attorney General Investigation

The Attorney General’s office in Florida investigated this matter. They ascertained the attorney representing Bank of America had engaged in fraudulent practices. He had overcharged homeowners in legal fees. He also brought foreclosure proceedings without having the appropriate documents showing the banks were owed money on the homes. Eventually, Maureen and Warren were able to straighten out their problem with the help of a foreclosure defense attorney.

Foreclosure Help

Is your home in foreclosure? If so, we can help you save it! We are a foreclosure defense law firm. For more than 45 years, we have helped our clients in obtaining mortgage modifications and dealing with mortgage modification programs that fail to meet their needs. We represent our clients in foreclosure defense litigation. We litigate issues involvingdefective mortgage, predatory lending, defective foreclosure lawsuits and other types of real estate issues. We attend foreclosure court conferences on behalf of our clients.

At the time of our initial consultation, we provide all foreclosure options to our clients. In situations when foreclosure related bankruptcies make sense, we discuss either filing a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy. Filing bankruptcy immediately stops the foreclosure from moving forward. Sometimes the bankruptcy can also eliminate second mortgages. We discuss with our clients how to re-establish credit at the end of the bankruptcy. Feel free to call to discuss your foreclosure options. We appreciate your visiting us on our foreclosure blog.

Federal Government Getting Out of the Mortgage Business

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were created by the Federal Government to assist homeowners in obtaining mortgages to purchase single family and/or multiple family homes. Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae are not doing well. They are both bankrupt. These organizations are currently being bailed out by the Federal Government.

President Obama and his administration would like to abolish Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Both the White House and Congress are in agreement that the long term future of the mortgage market should be determined by private enterprise and not by federally backed agencies.

Today, tax payers are shelling out billions of dollars to keep Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae financially solvent. These organizations are involved in almost 90% of all mortgages in the United States. Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae buy mortgage loans from primary lenders (banks). They put them together in investment products and sell them with guarantees in the event the borrower defaults. The initial purpose of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae was to facilitate the purchase of homes by middle class Americans. The underlying reason for their creation was to allow more Americans to obtain the American dream, the ownership of a single family home at an affordable mortgage rate.

Three Proposals for the replacement of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae

Proposal 1: The Federal Government would not be involved in the underwriting of home mortgages. The Federal Housing Administration would simply police mortgage activities.

Proposal 2: The Government would act as an insurer of mortgages.

Proposal 3: The Government would act as an insurer of only targeted mortgages. Under this proposal, the government would be involved more as a reinsurer of mortgages.

Congress and the Obama Administration are now discussing these proposals.

New York Foreclosure Defense Lawyers

Our law office can help you with mortgage modifications. We are familiar with mortgage modification programs that fail to meet consumers’ needs. We represent New Yorkers in foreclosure litigation. We defend them from these proceedings. We litigate defective foreclosure lawsuits, predatory lending, bad faith and defective mortgages. We attend foreclosure court conferences on behalf of our clients. We have decades of experience regarding real estate transactions involving mortgages. We maintain a foreclosure blog to educate New Yorkers concerning relevant issues involving mortgages, foreclosures and real estate matters.

We file Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcies on behalf of our clients. We explain to our clients why they should or should not file bankruptcy. We utilize bankruptcies to stop foreclosures in their tracks. When the bankruptcy is completed, we are available to assist our clients in re-establishing their credit.

Should you have a foreclosure or mortgage modification problem, feel free to call us a 1-800-344-6431, 516-561-6645 or 718-350-2802.

Fixing Up Your Home for Sale

Do you want to sell your house? If the answer is yes, you may want to consider fixing it up to make it more sale worthy. It may be necessary to modernize or improve certain aspects of your home or to upgrade your property to make it more marketable in the over crowded real estate market.

How Much Should You Spend

The rule of thumb with regard to spending to make your home more marketable is to spend no more than one or two percent of your home’s value. There are various things you can do to make your home more marketable.

Kitchen Appliances

Your kitchen appliances should match each other (hopefully, this is not the first time you have heard this suggestion!). Attractive, stainless steel kitchen appliances or color coordinated kitchen appliances make the kitchen more presentable.

Landscaping

Real estate brokers talk about the concept of curb appeal. When a purchaser walks towards your home, do they like what they see? Your gardening should be neat and attractive. Shrubs should not be overgrown. Weeds should be removed from your lawn. Flowering shrubs, flowers and attractive pots also add to the curb appeal of your home. You may have to hire a gardener to obtain this look.

Painting

Homes with fresh coats of paint in their rooms have a cleaner, more attractive look. Stick to neutral colors, such as off whites or baige. Take a look at your moldings. Are they scratched or beaten up? Replacing or repairing and painting moldings adds a finishing touch to a room.

Storage Space

Perspective purchasers like to see organized storage areas. Make sure your closets and storage areas are neat and organized. Buyers will be looking into them! Closet systems can be an inexpensive upgrade.

Bathrooms

The grout around your toilets and your bathroom tiles should not be discolored, cracked, uneven, and there should be no missing grout. Beat up toilets and black grout have a negative impact on prospective purchasers. You don’t have to remodel your entire bathroom. Just fix it up and make it more attractive! If the shower head is dirty or rusty, replace it! Take a look at the light fixtures in your bathroom. Are they out of date, dirty or damaged? If so, upgrade and replace them with new, attractive light fixtures.

Selling Price

The minor upgrades, enhancements and fixing-up suggestions in this article may help you sell your home. However, in today’s market, one should be realistic as to what a home is worth. Your home is worth only what someone else will pay for it. Real estate values are based on numerous factors, including supply and demand. If you want more money than the market values your home at, you’re making a mistake. If you want to sell your home now, take the best reasonable offer! Do not be greedy!

Foreclosure Help in New York

Our office assists clients with mortgage modifications. We deal with mortgage modification programs that fail to meet our clients needs. We litigate defective foreclosure lawsuits, predatory lending issues, defective mortgages and bad faith by financial institutions. Our office has been involved in handling real estate matters for more than three decades. We also maintain a foreclosure blog. We advise our clients whether filing a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy is necessary to stop their foreclosure proceedings from moving forward. We assist our clients in stopping foreclosure and sometimes we can help eliminate second mortgages. If a bankruptcy is filed at the end of the bankruptcy, we can help our clients reestablish credit. Feel free to contact us for a free consultation.

Credit Consequences of Foreclosure and Deficiency Judgments

Foreclosure And Deficiency JudgmentsFamilies facing foreclosure are concerned about being thrown out of their homes. Credit issues and concerns about deficiency judgments are secondary. When a bank initiates a foreclosure proceeding, they file a lis pendens on the property. A lis pendens filing notifies all prospective purchasers that the property is in foreclosure. This has the effect of making the title to the home unmarketable. This means the foreclosure proceeding must be dealt with before the house can be sold.

Late Mortgage Payments

Each time a mortgage payment is paid late, the financial institution notifies credit reporting agencies concerning this late payment. When mortgage payments are not made, credit reporting agents are also provided this information. Each late payment and each non-payment has a negative effect on credit ratings.

Sale of Property

At the end of the foreclosure proceeding the home is sold. Courts usually appoint referees in New York to sell these homes. If the financial institution does not receive enough funds from the foreclosure sale to pay off the mortgage in total, they may enter a deficiency judgment against the homeowner. The deficiency judgment is the portion of the mortgage that was not paid from the proceeds of the foreclosure sale. For example, if your home sells for $200,000 in the foreclosure sale and you owe $250,000 on your mortgage, the bank can enter a judgment against you for the $50,000 deficiency. This is called the deficiency judgment.

Avoiding Deficiency Judgment

There are a variety of ways to avoid deficiency judgments. You can enter into an agreement with the bank to have a short sale. This is when the bank agrees to forgive the balance of the mortgage not covered by the sale. You can also turn your house over to the bank by a deed in lieu of foreclosure, with the bank agreeing to forgive any deficiency from the sale of your home. Should your house be in foreclosure, it is important to consult with a knowledgeable attorney to avoid being subject to a deficiency judgment.

New York Foreclosure Defense

Losing your home in foreclosure is a scary prospect. Having an experienced foreclosure defense lawyer will not only help you in court it will give you piece of mind. Our office litigates foreclosure defense matters on behalf of our clients. We attend foreclosure court conferences. We litigate all types of real estate related issues including, but not limited to, predatory lending, defective foreclosure lawsuits, defective mortgages and bad faith on behalf of financial institutions. We maintain a foreclosure blog to update the general public concerning issues involving foreclosures, mortgage modifications and real estate matters. We also file Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcies to deal with foreclosure problems. Call us we can help you!

Cities With High Foreclosure Rates

Cities With High Foreclosure RatesLas Vegas, Nevada and Phoenix, Arizona are running neck and neck for the title of having the highest foreclosure rates in the United States of America. Although it has been widely written about these two cities enormous foreclosure rates, there are numerous other small cities in America that have similar problems.

Albuquerque, New Mexico

Albuquerque is a city of approximately 500,000 people. They have a foreclosure rate of one in every forty-six homes. During 2010, their foreclosure rate increased by over 60%. Albuquerque was one of the fastest growing metropolitan areas in the continental United States. It has a warm climate and, for many years, it had a very favorable job market. Albuquerque has been devastated in recent years due to the falling economy.

Albuquerque is suffering from a high unemployment rate. More than 13% of all of construction jobs were lost in Albuquerque during 2010, pursuant to the Associated General Contractors of America. High lay-offs in the construction industry contributed to Albuquerque having a high foreclosure rate.

Savanna, Georgia

Savanna is a beautiful city. It is known for its beautiful old south architecture. The city has a population of approximately 350,000 people. Unfortunately, one in every forty homes is in foreclosure. This amounts to a home being in foreclosure on every three blocks in the city of Savanna. In 2010, Savanna’s foreclosure rate increased by 37%. Some homes in Savanna are now selling for less then $50,000. The cost of the raw materials to build these homes would be more then double this amount!

Tulsa, Oklahoma

Tulsa has a population of about a million people. One out of every fifty homes in Tulsa is in foreclosure. This amounted to a 37% increase during the 2010 calendar year. Although the unemployment rate in Tulsa has been below the national average for the past few years, the foreclosure rate has been increasingly high. Job losses in Tulsa increased by 38% in 2010.

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, is dependent on vacation home buyers. It is a vacation destination for the majority of the families who spend time there. In 2009, the unemployment rate was over 12% for this city. The unemployment rate dipped to 11.8% in 2010.

During 2010, there was an increase of approximately 45% in the amount of homes going into foreclosure. This is a small increase compared with the increase of 446% for foreclosures in 2009. The huge foreclosure increases in 2009 and 2010 is indicative of the fact that Myrtle Beach is a tourism dependent community. When Americans have financial difficulties, they have less discretionary funds to spend on vacation homes and tourism.

Foreclosure rates throughout the United States are causing pain in many communities. This will delay the economic recovery in the United States.

Stop Foreclosure In Its Tracks

There are legal defenses to foreclosure lawsuits. We litigate foreclosure lawsuits. We assist our clients with mortgage modifications. We attend foreclosure court conferences on behalf of our clients. We litigate defective mortgages, predatory lending issues and defective foreclosure lawsuits. We advise our clients as to whether Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcies are the appropriate means to deal with their financial situations.

Read our foreclosure blog. It will help you understand the nature of the foreclosure crisis in the United States and the fact that there are things that can be done to keep you and your family in your home. Feel free to call our foreclosure defense and real estate attorneys at 516-561-6645, 1-800-344-6431 and 718-350-2802 for a free consultation. Call us now, our phones are answered 24/7.

In January 2011, Fewer Mortgage Modifications Were Granted

Mortgage Modifications Were GrantedFinancial institutions granted fewer mortgage modifications in January of 2011 than in previous months. Throughout the country, approximately 101,000 mortgage modifications were granted in January, while more than 111,000 mortgage modifications were granted in December. Of the modifications granted in January, seventy-three thousand were modifications done with lenders and twenty-eight thousand were new modifications under the HAMP program.

Republicans seek to cancel HAMP. The Republican majority in the United States House of Representatives has approved a statute that would end the HAMP program. The democrats in Congress oppose this measure. In the unlikely event that the elimination of the HAMP anti-foreclosure program is approved by Congress, President Obama has stated he will veto this statute.

Mortgage Delinquencies Increase

While the amount of mortgage modifications went down in January of 2011, the number of mortgage delinquencies rose. There were three million home loans that were more then sixty days overdue in January of 2011.

There were 200,000 new foreclosure proceedings in January of 2011. This is down from the 230,000 foreclosure proceedings in December of 2010. In January 2011, 73,000 homes were sold in foreclosure. This was a major increase from the 56,000 homes that were sold in December of 2010.

Long Island and New York City Foreclosure Defense Lawyers

Should you be facing a foreclosure, it is important that you have high quality legal defense as early in the proceedings as possible. We provide foreclosure defense for our clients. We attend foreclosure court conferences. We litigate issues involving defective foreclosure lawsuits, defective mortgages, predatory lending, bad faith on behalf of financial institutions and other real estate matters. We assist our clients in mortgage modifications and, when necessary, we will file either Chapter 13 or Chapter 7 bankruptcies on behalf of our clients. Call us at 1-800-344-6431, 516-561-6645 or 718-350-2802 for a free consultation.

Mortgage Delinquencies Declined

Mortgage Delinquencies DeclinedDuring the past few months, there has been a reduction in the number of mortgages becoming delinquent. In the third quarter of 2010, the mortgage delinquency rate fell from 14.42% to 13.52%, according to the Mortgage Banker’s Association.

There are several explanations for a decline in mortgage delinquency rates. One explanation is that the economy is improving and this is having a positive effect on home owners ability to make mortgage payments.

Delinquencies and Foreclosures above Normal

The good news is that mortgage delinquency rates and the number of foreclosures is starting to go down. The bad news is that mortgage foreclosure rates and mortgage delinquencies are extremely high by historical standards.

It is thought that one of the reasons why foreclosure rates are starting to decline is that the new foreclosures in 2011 are not being caused by bad bank loans. Many of the foreclosures in 2009 and 2010 were caused by banking practices that provided mortgage loans to individuals who didn’t qualify. Most of the new foreclosures are related to prime loans. These loans are much harder for banks to modify than sub-prime loans. Prime loans are given out at low interest rates to start with.

The number of home owners obtaining mortgage modifications has also been decreasing. Twenty-four thousand homeowners throughout the United States obtained mortgage modifications in October of 2010. Hopefully, we will see a continuation of the reduction of mortgages that are delinquent and foreclosure rate will continue to decline.

Queens, Nassau and Suffolk County Mortgage Modification and Foreclosure Defense Lawyers

Our office can assist you with mortgage modifications. If you are sued in foreclosure, we will aggressively represent you and stop the foreclosure in its tracks.

We litigate bad faith bank practices, defective foreclosure lawsuits, predatory lending issues and fraudulent mortgages. We attend foreclosure conferences in court on behalf of our clients. We also deal with problems caused by mortgage modification programs that do not work. We will analyze your financial situation to see if filing Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy is the appropriate remedy for your difficulties.

Feel free to call us at 1-800-344-6431, 516-561-6645 or 718-350-2802 for a free consultation.

Mortgage Modifications and Bad Faith

Mortgage Modifications And Bad FaithBad faith in mortgage modifications is exhibited by financial institutions in several ways. Under pressure from President Obama, banks agreed to set up mortgage modification programs. The federal government gave the banks billions of dollars in “TARP” money. Thereafter the banks agreed to help homeowners obtain mortgage modifications. Instead of helping the homeowners, the banks set up under-funded, poorly conceived and poorly managed modification programs. The failure of the banks to fulfill their obligations under the mortgage modifications programs can be considered bad faith.

Another example of bad faith by financial institutions is when they grant a homeowner a trial mortgage modification for three months. Thereafter, the homeowner pays, on time, the modified amount for three months. When the banks don’t notify the homeowner to stop paying, the homeowner continues to pay the modified mortgage amount for as long as a year. Thereafter, the bank either tells the homeowner that they have been rejected for a permanent loan modification or that they are approved for a permanent mortgage modification, but on much more onerous terms.

Yet another bad practice by the banks is, after the homeowner has made numerous on time payments under a temporary mortgage modification program, they tell the homeowner they don’t qualify for the permanent program. In these situations, the banks are operating under bad faith!

Foreclosure Defense and Mortgage Modifications

Should you be sued in a foreclosure proceeding, we will appear in court for you. We will attend foreclosure conferences. We will make the courts aware that the mortgage modifications stall because they are poorly administrated. We litigate issues involving defective foreclosure lawsuits, defective mortgages and predatory lending issues as part as our overall foreclosure defense of our clients. Our office has been handling real estate related litigation for more than 45 years.

By meeting with our attorneys, we will analyze your financial situation and provide you with a road map as to how to deal with these difficulties. Should filing a Chapter 7 or a Chapter 13 bankruptcy be appropriate, we will also represent you regarding these proceedings. Feel free to call us at your earliest convenience should you have any questions at 1-800-344-6431, 516-561-6645 or 718-350-2802.

Bank Complaints Soar

Bank Complaints SoarComplaints by consumers and homeowners against banks are rising to a stratospheric level. It has been suggested that new laws and regulations need to be put in place to reign in inappropriate bank practices.

The controller of the currency recently stated that he is receiving a record number of complaints against the more than 1500 banks subject to regulation. It is estimated that there were more than 80,000 complaints against banks in the year 2010.

The Federal Reserve and the Federal Deposit Insurance Company have recently issued specific regulations and guidelines to deal with the numerous complaints filed against banks.

Complaints About Mortgage Foreclosures

The majority of the complaints against banks have dealt with various problems encountered by homeowners in mortgage foreclosure proceedings. There were more than 36,000 complaints filed against banks in 2010 dealing with mortgage foreclosure issues. Banks are fighting numerous lawsuits throughout the country and are being investigated by all fifty state Attorney Generals concerning their practices involving foreclosure proceedings.

Prior to the financial melt down, most bank complaints dealt with credit card issues. The reason why banks are receiving so many complaints is that they have been involved in faulty practices. They have engaged in predatory lending. They have set up mortgage modification programs that simply do not work.

The American consumer deserves better. Consumers do not deserve to be left hanging for months and months at a time without getting any feedback on their mortgage modification applications. Consumers deserve to be updated regarding the status of their applications for mortgage modifications. They should not be forced to call week after week and continually get incorrect information or deal with nincompoops at the other end of the phone who have no knowledge of what is going on. If banks and financial institutions are serious about mortgage modifications they should help consumers instead of frustrating and angering them.

mortgage1Helping Homeowners with Foreclosure Defense

Our law firm has been helping homeowners with foreclosure defense issues for more than 45 years. We understand the frustrations and anger homeowners feel regarding their mortgage modification applications not being attended to. We are foreclosure defense lawyers. We deal with predatory lending, bad faith issues, defective mortgages and all aspects of mortgage foreclosure proceedings. We represent our clients in court and we attend foreclosure court conferences. We effectively tie up our client’s foreclosure cases in court and put pressure on the financial institutions to provide them with reasonable, acceptable, affordable mortgage modifications. When the situation calls for it, we file either Chapter 13 or Chapter 7 Bankruptcies for our clients. We keep our clients in their homes. We stop foreclosures cold! Call us for a free consultation at 1-800-344-6431; 516-561-6645 or 718-350-2802.

Home Modification Problems in California (Part 1): Lawyers who Assist Homeowners in Mortgage Modifications Are Now Out of Reach

Mortgage Modifications Are Now Out Of ReachThe Ridiculous Law in California

The State of California has more active foreclosure cases than any other state in the country. Homeowners in California who seek mortgage modifications have had difficulties for the past few years. Today, they have a new difficulty – they can no longer hire lawyers!

Lawyers throughout the State of California are now being forced to reject clients who come to them for the purpose of obtaining mortgage modification loans. This is because California has passed a unique, unusual and restrictive statute. The new law states that attorneys who work on mortgage modification loans can receive no payment until the loan is approved. Under the new statute, clients cannot even put retainer payments in attorney trust accounts.

This California statute is unlike any other statute in the country. The intent of the California statute is for “fly-by-night” loan modification businesses run by non lawyers to be eliminated from the marketplace. Unfortunately, there has been a fallout from this new statute. The unintended consequence of the new law is that honest, hard-working, well-known, well-established attorneys with excellent credentials can no longer represent individuals in dealing with financial institutions’ complicated and burdensome paperwork related to loan modifications.

avoidNew York Foreclosure Defense Lawyers

In the state of New York, there are no restrictions regarding the hiring of foreclosure defense attorneys. For more than 45 years, the Law Offices of Schlissel DeCorpo has been at the forefront of defending consumers and homeowners regarding litigation with financial institutions. We have developed an expertise in defending foreclosure lawsuits. Upon meeting with our attorneys, we will analyze the paperwork related to your case. We will discuss foreclosure defenses, mortgage modifications and the potential of using bankruptcy filings to assist you. We will provide you with a detailed explanation as to the foreclosure process, the mortgage modification process and how bankruptcies affect homeowners. If you are in trouble with your lender, or behind on your mortgage, call us. We can help you! Our phone numbers are 1-800-344-6431, 516-561-6645 and 718-350-2082.

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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