The U.S. government will not have the right to modify distressed home mortgage loans if the government acquires mortgage-backed securities as part of a $700 billion Wall Street bailout, the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) said today.  Only court-ordered loan modification in chapter 13 bankruptcy will prevent home foreclosures in CRL’s view.
Why?  The holders of [...]

In these days of old-line financial powerhouses filing for bankruptcy and continuing questions about the economic stability of banks and mortgage companies, we are often asked what happens if your mortgage company goes bankrupt?
The answer is actually pretty simple and straightforward.

Mortgage modifications can hurt.  Here is a summary of a very recent study on mortgage modifications by Alan M. White, Assistant Professor, Valparaiso University School of Law, with my emphasis added. 
“The gist is that voluntary mortgage modifications are not reducing principal debt, and are in fact increasing it, and that many modifications are not even [...]

On September 6, 2008, most foreclosures in California will need to be conducted under the new requirements of California Civil Code 2923.5.  This new code provision applies to loans made from January 1, 2003, to December 31, 2007, inclusive, that are secured by residential real property and are for owner-occupied residences.

For the second time in a week, Connecticut’s Attorney General has taken a pro-consumer case to court. Earlier this week, the state moved to shut down an unlicensed collection agency. The state has now filed suit against Countrywide Financial Corp. alleging that the company made inappropriate and unaffordable mortgage loans to borrowers and [...]

Attorney General Brown of California has filed suit on behalf of the State suing Countrywide Financial for Mortgage abuses and deceptive practices.  The suit is one of the first of its kind in this day and age of sub-prime loans and soaring foreclosures.
The lawsuit alleges a number of abuses committed by Countrywide, chief among them [...]

With new rules that highlight what has been going on, by what will now be prohibited, the Federal Reserve Board announced new mortgage regulations that will go into effect next year.
Mortgage companies will now be prohibited from extending credit without regard to the borrower’s ability to repay.
Now that foreclosures are at record levels, largely due [...]

The National Association of Consumer Advocates (NACA) will conduct a Mortgage Lending Litigation Conference on September 5th, 2008 in Cleveland OH.  The program is restricted to NACA members, however, qualified candidates who are members of the National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys can submit an application for membership to the NACA board of directors.
Ohio courts [...]

The 5th District Appellate Court of Illinois overturned a foreclosure judgment and order of sale on grounds that the plaintiff did not own the mortgage.  In Bayview Loan Servicing L.L.C. vs Jeffrey Eden Nelson, the three judge panel of Justice Stewart, Justice Goldenhersh and Justice Spomer, unanimously ruled that Bayview did not have the [...]

Does this story sound familiar? A homeowner is struggling with his mortgage payment and wants to work something out with the lender to avoid foreclosure. He has read in his local newspaper that lenders have pledged to help distressed homeowners in these difficult times, and so he calls the loan servicer (whom he thinks is [...]