Upside Down Mortgage

Archive for April, 2009

Bank Of America Predatory Lending Settlement

Back when the housing market was hot, lenders were qualifying borrowers for loans who were probably never able to qualify for a home loan before.  These borrowers are now upside down on the mortgages because the rates adjusted and they can no longer afford their homes, in turn most are going into foreclosure, or being forced to sell through a short sale. 

In turn, homeowners and the government are taking more and more of these institutions to court, stating unfair and predatory practices. While most of these suits are still finding their way through the legal system, most banks have already settled for millions of dollars. 

Wells Fargo, Countrywide Financial and Citigroup are just a few among the rest of the defendants.  Borrowers who are suffering with such issues are turning to the legal system to save their homes.  Many professionals say they have not seen so many cases in over 23 years. 

Some Homeowners are seeking the courts' help individually, while others are serving as part of class action lawsuits. With foreclosures continuing to rise, borrowers are looking to force banks to modify unaffordable loans or to stop them from foreclosing on homes. Often, they also seek money for loss and damages. 

Banks have faced lending lawsuits and have paid millions of dollars in settlements. But the recent housing boom was fueled by questionable loans that many borrowers had no hope of repaying, because realistically they would not be able to afford it in the long run.

During the housing boom the mortgage industry went after the middle-class borrowers, these people are able to hire attorneys and go after the lenders.  Borrowers in a more sticky financial situation, are turning to attorneys who take payment when the case is won.  In most cases when an attorney is hired to help against the foreclosure of their home, they win the case. 

There are also a ton of class action suits on behalf of thousands of homeowners. A lot of the class action cases are because borrowers were originated payment option adjustable-rate mortgages. This loan allows you borrowers to make very low monthly payments, with the unpaid interest added to the principal balance of your loan. Most borrowers have ended up defaulting on their payments because of this.  The purpose of the lawsuits are to get the lenders to restructure the loan to make it more affordable for the borrower.  This lawsuit will also seek damages for those borrowers who have already lost their homes or paid off their loans.

State attorneys general are also filing suits against the industry's key players, stating deceptive business practices. The California-based lender agrees to do some more loan modifications and not to foreclose upon up to 2,200 loans without notifying the attorney general's office and seeking court approval in certain circumstances.   Attorney Generals continue to hold the lender liable for this nightmare they have caused so many people. 

Bank of America agreed to spend $8.4 billion to lower the interest rates or loan balances of nearly 400,000 Countrywide customers with subprime loans or payment option ARMs.  The number one lender in the Country is now responsible for giving out loans that the borrowers could not afford 

Although there has been in increase in lending disputes, there aren't as many lending lawsuits as expected, considering the how big subprime loans were during the housing boom. These suits are expensive and difficult to win.  Said cases could take anywhere from months to years to resolve.  

This lending crisis has left many people in a bind.  Seeking proper legal help is the only way to insure you get out if it in one piece. 

About the Author:

Yanni Raz is a mentor for many in the Real Estate Mortgage industry, Yanni Raz is been tutoring many homeowners in California and help some also to save their homes. http://www.homesinsale.com

Source - Mortgage Lenders Being Sued

AMERICA IS BUSH FINISHED IF MCCAIN WINS PRESIDENCY!!! YIKES

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Mortgage Modification For Veterans

Military personnel are highly trained and skilled in various specialties to perform their duties efficiently to safeguard the country. While they have high degree of specialization in the art of combat, many of them are not adept with facing the nitty-gritty of day-to-day life. Being a low-paying job, they need to face up with meeting the demands of their families with their meager salaries. They too find the necessity of taking up some loans to meet certain requirements like a house, educating their children, buying a car, etc. While many of them are faced up with these circumstances, it becomes very important to check on interest rates being offered for such loans as it has to feasible for the military personnel to bear these expenses. In order to safeguard their interests, a loan rate act was passed in the year 2004 for all military loans.

This act that is known as Veteran Benefits Act was approved by President Bush and was brought into effect from 10 December 2004. This act also sought out to make some vital alterations to the program called Veteran Home Loan Guaranty Program. One such change that was brought in is an increase in the upper limit of a loan that could be procured by military personnel to $359,650 from a previous figure of $240,000. It also sought an increase in the amount taken by loans for the purpose of home mortgage in Alaska, Guam, Hawaii and Virgin Islands by fifty percent. Hence, loan rate act has brought in much needed relief to many military personnel by the services it offers.

There are still more added benefits to the act. One such clause includes providing some additional benefits to personnel suffering from occupational disabilities. Personnel who had suffered disabilities of the upper extremities were provided with an additional $50,000 through a grant known as Specially Adapted Housing Grant that aimed at making the house friendlier to these people by making some modifications.

The act also sought to make important changes to the interest rates being charged for loans taken by military personnel. Through this act, it made military loans to be provided at an adjustable rate of interest that could be amended once in a year. Even the revision in the rate of interest has been fixed to a maximum of one percent with each adjustment and to a tune of not more than five percent for the entire tenure of the loan. The initial interest being charged also has to be underwritten at one percent.

Also included in the clauses of the loan rate act is the funding fee for loans. Many personnel who were not eligible for a waiver of the funding fee could now avail it because of the act. In order to be eligible for the waiver, the personnel should be in active service and veterans were not eligible. Now the act has modified it by saying that personnel who are in active duty will be eligible for the waiver if they apply for the loan before they are discharged from active service.

Thus, the loan rate act has worked in many benefits for military personnel trying to take loans. With this act, many military servicemen and women have been benefited in being able to sustain the burden of taking loans with their meager paying jobs.

About the Author:

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Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - Personal Military Loan - The Benefits Of Military Loan Rate Act

Mortgage Fraud Rescue Act

When the financial bubble burst, many people’s lives went spinning out of control. Unfamiliar with the fallout they would be facing, homeowners were scrambling for information. Unfortunately, the unscrupulous scammers were just starting to gear up their machines to reel in the catch.

The FBI defines mortgage fraud as "any material misstatement, misrepresentation or omission relied upon by an underwriter or lender to fund, purchase or insure a loan", and there is a plethora of companies doing just that.

There are several organizations across the country that offer rescue plans for people in financial distress. However, incidents such as changing signed documents after the clients leave the office, or other acts of fraud, are all too common.

Some unethical companies may claim to be working in government-sponsored homeowner programs or agencies. Actual or fictional names of government agencies or other official-sounding terms could also be used as the scam artists do their best to appear legitimate.

There is help available for those who have been unfortunate enough to fall prey to these tactics.

If consumers think they have encountered a mortgage fraud situation, or are even suspicious, one of the first stops they can make is the Florida Attorney General's Office. A toll-free Consumer Hotline has been set up, and there is a variety of mortgage- and fraud-related information on their website.

Through its Division of Real Estate, the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation sets rules and guidelines for real estate professionals and exercises disciplinary authority. A Consumer Complaints Section is available to report any incidents people believe to be unethical or illegal conduct by real estate professionals.

HUD, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, also offers consumers the resources they need to make intelligent decisions when it comes to their mortgages.

Here are some points to watch out for when dealing with rescue recovery plans.

Avoid up-front fees:

One prominent scam in play is the requirement for up-front fees by mortgage rescue firms. Consumers facing foreclosure are coerced into paying fees for loan modification or payment rescheduling assistance. All too often, these companies are not legitimate and do nothing to prevent a foreclosure from proceeding. In the end, the homeowner loses the fee, receives no assistance, and forfeits their home.

Because so many have been victimized by this fraud scheme, governments at all levels have put the brakes on these exorbitant fees. The FTC (Federal Trade Commission) recently put out a consumer warning to avoid any company that asks for a large fee in advance, noting it is definitely a red flag to consider. These fees are prohibited in 20 states, with more to come.

While there are a large number of nonprofit agencies that do offer homeowner assistance programs under government sponsorship (usually through HUD), they charge little or no fee for their services.

Leaseback/rent-to-buy scams:

In order to get the consumer to sign on for this scheme, the scam artist offers a deal to have the owner turn over the deed to their property in exchange for a rent-to-own agreement. Supposedly, this will allow the owner to stay where they are and at some point in the future, reclaim their home. Unfortunately, once the deal is signed, the owner may find there are a number of hidden fees and penalties, making it easy for the scam artist to void the deal and evict the owner.

Debt-elimination schemes

In this scenario, the scam artist often claims to be able to eliminate the homeowner’s debt by way of secret laws or other financial trickery known only to his company. When the homeowner buys into this plan, it usually involves a fee for advice, and the owner is convinced to halt their mortgage payments to participate in the false program. This puts the homeowners in a dire position as they end up in a far greater debt situation that is difficult to resolve.

About the Author:

Visit WaterfrontPropertiesAdmiralsCove.com for everything to do with Admirals Cove Jupiter. You'll find information about a range of issues and properties in this beautiful area, including Homes For Sale in the Admirals Cove Golf Village.

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - Mortgage Frauds Rampant in Florida