When I hear the term "cram down" authority in the bankruptcy context, I keep picturing some poor mortgage lender warily stepping into a bankruptcy judge’s chambers only to have a long metal pipe shoved down his throat until the lender is willing to give in on a loan modification. Only a month ago it appeared that … [Read more…]
As the foreclosure wave has grown into a tsunami-like crisis, advocacy groups such as the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) have taken to the streets in campaigns to lobby legislators about implementing new regulations that will help stem the foreclosure crisis and curtail predatory lending. When I left the Pima County courthouse … [Read more…]
It is clear that that lending industry has been slow to confront the ever-widening foreclosure crisis that began to pick up steam in 2007. Indeed, Sandor E. Samuels, the former chief legal officer of Countrywide Financial was quoted as saying "We are going to keep making these loans [subprime teaser loans] until the last second … [Read more…]
RealtyTrac just released its 2008 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report, which reported that there were a total of 3,157,806 foreclosure filings (default notices, auction sale notices, and bank repossessions) on 2,330,483 properties during 2008. That was an 81 percent increase over 2007 and a 225 percent increase over 2006. To get a feel for the breadth … [Read more…]
So a borrower defaults under a promissory note and the deed of trust. Normally, the lender in that circumstance will exercise the power of sale clause in the deed of trust and begin the foreclosure process by noticing a trustee’s sale. However, the lender may also choose to call the note due and accelerate the … [Read more…]
What do the traditional Japanese Ninja and the the American Ninja have in common? Both destablize and cause social chaos. While traditional Ninjas allegedly intended to destabilize and cause social chaos in enemy territory or against opposing rules, the American Ninja never intended to do anything but make money. The American Ninja is actually an … [Read more…]
RealtyTrac estimates that 1 in every 171 United States households were in the process of losing their home – up 121% on last year. To give some perspective on that number, RealtyTrac estimates that almost 740,000 United States homes entered the foreclosure process in the second quarter of 2008. That number includes receiving a default … [Read more…]
A recent Reader’s Digest article highlighted Clint Medford, referred to by some as "Mr. Foreclosure." While the foreclosure epidemic certainly has hit many homeowners and would-be investors hard, it has created a host of interesting opportunities for savvy investors and thieves alike. Often a foreclosed home will sit empty for a time, which has invited … [Read more…]
Simply speaking, a short sale is when a bank or mortgage lender agrees to allow a homeowner to sell their home for less than the outstanding balance on the home. Lenders often only consider this option if it makes if the cost of a foreclosure is greater than the loss it will suffer as a … [Read more…]
Clearly, the foreclosure crisis is real and is affecting a broad spectrum of people. In other words, the epidemic is not just hitting homeowners with subprime mortgages with adjusting rates. Indeed, it seems those at the upper echelons are being hit as well. Indeed, Ed McMahon‘s six-bedroom, five-bathroom, 7,000-square-foot house is on the verge of … [Read more…]