Please click on the link below to watch today’s video blog:
Elliot S. Schlissel is a foreclosure defense attorney. He and his associates have been representing homeowners for more than 45 years. Elliot represents homeowners throughout all phases of foreclosure litigation, at foreclosure settlement court conferences and helps his clients obtain mortgage modifications. He can be reached at 516-561-6645, 718-350-2802 or by email to schlissel.law@att.net. Contact the office for a free consultation.
Response To The Motion For Summary Judgment
When the motion for summary judgment is made, it is extremely important the attorney for the homeowner submit an aggressive, well thought out, well-written response to the motion for summary judgment. If the attorney for the homeowner is successful in defeating the motion for summary judgment, the litigation will continue and the case will eventually get placed on a trial calendar for a trial on the issues raised in the plaintiff’s Complaint and the defenses alleged in the homeowners’ Answer.
If the bank is successful with regard to the motion for summary judgment, the court will grant the motion and the lender will thereafter move for an Order of Reference as described in Part II of this series of articles.
Trial
As stated earlier, in the event the motion for summary judgment is defeated, the case will eventually go to the trial calendar. However, before the case goes to the trial calendar, the attorneys for the homeowner can make motions on their own to dismiss the case and for all types of other relief.
Conclusion
The foreclosure legal process described in this series of articles just gives an overview. Numerous nuances, subtleties and other legal procedures can be taken during this process. The best way of dealing with any foreclosure lawsuit is to immediately hire an experienced, dedicated foreclosure defense lawyer. Before you hire any lawyer to represent you in a lawsuit as significant as this, you should investigate his or her background. The lawyer should not be someone who handles a foreclosure defense case every now and then. You should hire a lawyer who does a significant amount of foreclosure defense legal work.
Be aware, the attorneys for the financial institutions usually bring hundreds of foreclosure cases each and every year. Many of these law firms have been doing this for decades. They have expertise in dealing with these foreclosure related issues. Some law firms that handle a foreclosure defense case every now and then may not have the expertise, experience, and wherewithal to litigate with the attorneys representing a financial institution worth hundreds of billions of dollars.
Ten million American families reside in homes worth less than the amount of the mortgages due on the homes. The large number of homes underwater in the United States still has a negative effect on the American economy. This is seven years after the great recession in the United States caused the collapse of the real estate market.
Although ten million Americans owe more on their property than their homes are worth, this is still an improvement from 2013.
Underwater Homes On Long Island
Long Island is fortunate that a smaller portion of the homeowners’ homes in Nassau and Suffolk Counties are underwater than the national average. Approximately 9% of the homeowners on Long Island, approximately 48,000 homes, are worth less than the amounts of their mortgages.
The actual figure of homes which are worth less than their mortgages on Long Island, is substantially higher. When taking into consideration the homeowners who have equity in their homes, it must be noted that for many of these homeowners, if they were to sell their homes, the proceeds from selling their homes would be too low to cover the costs and expenses involved in the sale of the home.
Fewer Homes Being Placed On The Market
The fact that homeowners can’t place their homes on the market and cover the expenses of paying the mortgage and the real estate transaction, is causing homeowners to keep their homes out of the marketplace. This has a negative impact on economic growth. A shortage of homes being listed in some areas has actually resulted in the homes which are on the market having inflated prices. This tends to prevent first time homeowners from coming into the marketplace due to their inability to meet the cost of these new homes.
Stan Humphries, the Chief Economist for Zillow, recently stated “the unfortunate reality is the housing markets look to be swimming with underwater borrowers for years to come.”
Hopefully the economy on Long Island and the rest of the United States will continue to improve which will raise the incomes of Americans and put more value into their homes.
Elliot S. Schlissel is a foreclosure lawyer. He defends foreclosure lawsuits brought by financial institutions against homeowners and assists homeowners in obtaining mortgage modifications.
To Avoid Default, You Must Answer The Summons And Complaint
A foreclosure lawsuit is initiated by the bank’s lawyers serving you with a Summons and Complaint. You can be served personally. The service can be on a person of suitable age and discretion at the residence. You can also be served by the process server leaving a copy of the Summons and Complaint at the residence and mailing you a copy. When you are served with a Summons and Complaint in a foreclosure you must file a written Answer. You must serve it on opposing counsel and file it with the Court within twenty days if served personally, or thirty days if served by any other means!
Mortgage Modification
You may be negotiating a mortgage modification with the bank. This does not change the fact you must respond to the Summons and Complaint by serving on opposing counsel a written Answer and filing it with the court. Negotiating a mortgage modification does not stop the foreclosure lawsuit from moving forward. If you don’t serve an Answer upon opposing counsel and file it with the court, the bank lawyers will take a default judgment against you. This will allow them to move forward with the foreclosure action without the court ever hearing as to whether you have a defense or wish to stay in your home.
Answering the Complaint
An Answer to the Complaint is a written response to the allegations in the Complaint. In addition to responding to what the bank states in their Complaint, you can submit affirmative defenses and you can also counter sue the bank. There are numerous requirements a bank must meet for their foreclosure lawsuit to go forward. Affirmative defenses can be alleged that the bank lacks standing to sue you, the bank does not have the original note and mortgage, the bank has violated truth in lending laws, the bank has failed to provide you with pre-foreclosure notice requirements, the bank was engaged in fraudulent activities, the person signing the documents is a robo-signer, and numerous other defenses. You only have to be successful with regard to one affirmative defense to stop the bank’s foreclosure lawsuit in its tracks!
To watch today’s video blog, please click on the link below:
Elliot S. Schlissel is a foreclosure lawyer. He has been representing clients in foreclosure lawsuits and mortgage modifications for more than 45 years. He can be reached at 516-561-6645, 718-350-2802, 1-800-344-6431 or by email schlissel.law@att.net.
The law firms which represent financial institutions in foreclosure legal actions sometimes process thousands of foreclosure cases per year. These law firms are designed to operate efficiently to obtain a maximum profit level on the foreclosure cases they handle. They are most profitable and most successful with regard to their foreclosure litigation when they don’t run into a foreclosure defense lawyer who has a detailed understanding of the legal process involved in foreclosures, the defenses which can be plead and the problems financial institutions have in prosecuting foreclosure lawsuits. It is most profitable for the bank lawyers processing foreclosures when they can move forward with their lawsuit without significant opposition from the homeowners and their counsel.
When my office raises twenty or more affirmative defenses and countersues financial institutions involved in foreclosure lawsuits, it creates numerous problems for the financial institutions and their attorneys. To start with, the bank lawyers go from aggressive moving party to defending their clients’ practices, producing documents and explaining to the court whether all aspects of the mortgage transaction were legal, ethical and appropriate. In numerous cases in which our law firm is involved, we take the banks and their attorneys to task. Sometimes these cases get put aside for years by the bank’s attorneys. In some of the cases the banks simply move to dismiss their own lawsuit.
Mortgage Modifications
By submitting an aggressive, well thought out series of affirmative defenses and counterclaims, the banks are put back on their heals. One of the ways they deal with these cases is by entering into negotiations for mortgage modifications. Sometimes the pressure of an aggressively litigated foreclosure defense results in the bank offering very favorable mortgage modifications as a means of ending the lawsuit.
Conclusion
If you are sued in a foreclosure, hire an experienced, dedicated foreclosure attorney to protect your rights and prevent the financial institution from taking advantage of you.
The foreclosure crisis on Long Island is much more serious than in the rest of the country. On a national basis, approximately 2% of all homes were in foreclosure during the month of January 2014. However, on Long Island, 6.3% of all homes were in foreclosure. That is three times the national average.
Long Island real estate has not recovered as fast as the rest of the nation for a variety of reasons. The court rules concerning foreclosures are designed to protect homeowners. However, the legal protection afforded homeowners impacts on the length of a foreclosure process through the courts in New York. During the 2013 calendar year, 663 homes were sold at auction in foreclosure on Long Island.
Rising Home Prices
Home prices have been rising on Long Island. The rising home prices allows more homes to be sold quickly and should have an impact on reducing the number of homes in foreclosure. The average home price, excluding homes on the east end of Long Island, during the last quarter of 2013 were sold for approximately $360,000. This is up approximately 3% from 2012.
Superstorm Sandy Impacts Homes on Long Island
The large number of homes on Long Island damaged by Superstorm Sandy has had a significant impact on the number of homes going into foreclosures. Many homeowners spent all of their savings bringing their homes back to liveable condition after Superstorm Sandy. However some of those homeowners overspent and fell behind on their mortgages while trying to rectify the problems caused by Superstorm Sandy to their homes.
Delinquency Rates on Long Island Are High
It is estimated approximately 10% of all mortgage loans on Long Island are more than 90 days past due. This is double the national average of 5% of mortgage loans which are 90 days past due.
Elliot Schlissel and his associates maintain one of the busiest foreclosure defense law firms in the Metropolitan New York area. Elliot has been interviewed on radio and in newspapers concerning foreclosure defense issues and is widely considered to be one of the best and well known foreclosure defense lawyers in the Metropolitan New York area.
Homeowners Associations (condo and coop organizations) oversee 25 million homes. Approximately three quarters of all newly constructed homes are in Homeowners Association communities.
Homeowners Associations set up rules for their communities. They have monthly dues to cover the costs of servicing and maintaining the homes in the communities. These dues can cover road repairs, street lights, maintaining the lawns and roofs of the dwellings in the association, as well as all other aspects of maintaining the community. Homeowners Associations can levy special assessments over and above regular dues payments. These special assessments deal with major repairs or one time large expenses.
Foreclosures and Homeowners Associations
As more and more banks take over foreclosed homes and throw the residents out, the homes become vacant. Vacant homes don’t pay dues towards Homeowner Associations. This causes financial problems for these organizations.
Homeowner Associations can foreclose on homes when the homeowner refuses or is unable to pay the association’s dues. Imagine this situation: you lose your job and you modify your mortgage with the bank. Homes in your community become vacant and the Homeowner Association raises your dues. You notify the association that you’re not in a financial position to pay your dues, but you’ll catch up when you obtain a new job. Their response: if your dues aren’t current within sixty days we will foreclose on your home! This is happening more and more frequently to homeowners in the United States.
During times of economic prosperity, homeowner associations keep communities safe, they maintain the grounds of the communities, they set up and maintain tennis courts, swimming pools and sometimes golf clubs. When times are tough, homeowners associations raise their rates and foreclose on nonpaying home owners!
New York Foreclosure Defense Attorneys
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 involving defective 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 look forward to seeing you again on our foreclosure blog.
2011 is not a good year for the housing markets in the United States. It is anticipated that real estate prices will fall an additional 2.5% in the second half of this year. The high foreclosure rates, high unemployment rates and low consumer confidence has a continuing negative effect on the real estate market. However, there are some markets that are expected to perform well this year. The five metropolitan areas that anticipate having the price of residential real estate go up are Washington D.C., Orlando, Dallas, San Francisco and New York City.
There tends to a be a positive up tick in the real estate market in the summer. The warm weather allows people to go outside and shop around for homes, co-ops and condos.
Distressed Home Sales
Before the housing market started to fail, distressed home sales related to foreclosures were a very small part of the real estate market. Today, bank owned homes represent approximately a third of all total sales of residential real estate. When you compare this to the year 2005, where distressed home sales were less than 5%, you see an enormous jump. In the year 2010, 1.7 million homes were considered distressed home sales.
Will Home Sales Bottom Out In 2011?
Some real estate experts believe that home sales will reach their lowest point in the first quarter of 2012. The Federal Reserve feels that the jobless rate will dip below 8% in 2012 and that the growth domestic product will increase from 3.3% to 3.7%.
If your house is being foreclosed or threatened to being foreclosed upon, call us, we can help you. We can attend foreclosure court conferences on your behalf. We can submit an answer to your foreclosure proceeding that can include defenses involving defective mortgages, defective foreclosure lawsuits, predatory lending and other real estate related defenses. We are knowledgeable about federal laws and foreclosure. We will provide you at the time of the initial consultation with all of your foreclosure options. These options will include foreclosure related bankruptcies. The filing of either a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy will stop foreclosures from moving forward. Filing a bankruptcy will also stop debt collectors and collection lawyers that may be harassing you. There are many bankruptcy myths that are untrue. Bankruptcy will not permanently destroy your credit. We will be able to help you re-establish credit after filing a bankruptcy.
Call us for a free consultation, we can help you. Thank you for visiting our foreclosure blog.
Adam Letman Bailey is the author of “Finding the Uncommon Deal.” It is his belief that this is the best time to buy a home. Adam believes that the key to finding a good deal regarding the purchase of a home is to have the right information. In his book, “Finding the Uncommon Deal”, he talks about becoming an expert regarding the circumstances involved in your local real estate market.
He makes three specific recommendations: 1) Limit the geographic area in which you’re looking to buy a home; 2) For a short period of time, look intensely at that local market place; and 3) Look at as many properties as humanly possible.
Developing Your Own Expertise
Adam, in his book, suggests you develop your own expertise as to what is a good value in your local market place. For you to spot a bargain, you need to know what constitutes a bargain. He strongly suggests you limit your foray into the real estate market in to one or two local areas.
Distressed Properties
Adam suggests that if you’re considering buying a distressed property, contact the bank directly. See if they will talk to you and provide you with financing to buy a home they took back in foreclosure.
Credit Scores
Before even looking for a home, Adam suggests that you research your credit score. If you’re credit score is not up to par, it is important that you rehabilitate your credit score before applying for a mortgage.
Adam’s book suggests that the real estate market of foreclosed homes represents a unique buying opportunity for prospective homeowners. He believes you can buy homes for speculation and make huge profits or simply buy the home of your dreams at an extremely reasonable price.
Adam makes it clear that he does not believe the real estate market will come back for a long time. He advises in his book that if you buy a home, plan on living there for a minimum of seven years. He believes that real estate prices may continue to drop for several more years before they recover.
We are foreclosure defense lawyers. We help homeowners stay in their homes, even when they’re in foreclosure. We assist homeowners with mortgage modifications and mortgage modification programs that fail to meet their needs.
We litigate predatory lending issues, defective foreclosure lawsuits, defective mortgages and issues involving federal laws and foreclosure. We attend foreclosure court conferences on behalf of our clients. We discuss foreclosure related bankruptcy issues.
In the appropriate circumstances, we file Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcies on behalf of our clients. We discuss with our clients why bankruptcy filings will be helpful to them and the types of bankruptcies available to them. Filing bankruptcy can stop foreclosures from moving forward and stop debt collection from collection agencies and collection lawyers. At the end of the bankruptcies, we can help our client in re-establishing credit. We appreciate your spending time on our foreclosure blog.
