The Mortgage Debt Relief Act of 2007 has survived the "fiscal cliff," which will invariably lead to a continued increase in the number of short sales nationwide. The "fiscal cliff" deal will extend the Act for another year, meaning that homeowners who receive debt forgiveness resulting from a foreclosure, deed in lieu, or short sale … [Read more…]
The Arizona Court of Appeals (Division 1 in Maricopa County) just issued an opinion entitled Helvetica v. Pasquan, which addresses the scope of Arizona’s anti-deficiency protections in the judicial foreclosure (non-trustee’s sale) context. The first issue the Court addressed is whether refinancing a purchase money loan forfeits a borrowers’ anti-deficiency protection, to the extent that … [Read more…]
Housing Wire recently reported that the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has directed the two government sponsored agencies, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to align their guidelines for servicing delinquent mortgages. Previously, they maintained different requirements for how their mortgage servicers would treat loan backed by Freddie and Fannie. This new push for alignment may … [Read more…]
Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard announced that on December 17, 2010, his Office filed a lawsuit against Bank of America and its affiliated companies alleging violations of the Arizona Consumer Fraud Act and violations of the consent judgment entered in March 2009 between Arizona and the Countrywide companies owned by Bank of America. The lawsuit, … [Read more…]
A great article by Don Lee – Tribune Washington Bureau – highlights how underwater mortgages are a serious contributor to the dismal performance of the national economy. It is estimated that there are 15 million homeowners who are undewater on their mortgages, many of whom can and continue to pay on their mortgage, but have … [Read more…]
The Federal Housing Finance Agency, which has served as the conservator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac since 2008, is looking to recoup on serious losses that the government sponsored entities have suffered as a result of their heavy purchases of mortgage-backed securities during the hey days of the real estate bubble. The FHFA has … [Read more…]
Tax lien investors need to understand the importance of sub-taxing their tax liens in Arizona. When a tax lien investor purchases a tax lien at the February Pima County tax lien sale, for example, that investor then has the right to purchase the next year’s delinquent taxes if the owner does not pay the subsequent … [Read more…]
Bank of America, which bought Countrywide Financial for $4 billion in stock in early 2008, has come under pressure from the Massachusetts Attorney General, as a result of Countrywide’s notorious lending practices. Bank of America’s move is part of an agreement to settle claims over certain high-risk loans made by Countrywide. See link to Wall … [Read more…]
In the tax lien foreclosure world, appropriate service of process is absolutely crucial. Consider what is at stake in a tax lien foreclosure case – the potential forfeiture of the right of the owner of a property to pay off their delinquent property taxes, which practically speaking means the likely loss of their property. If … [Read more…]
The Arizona legislature, probably with some good ol’ vested interest prodding, provides a nice little mechanism to insulate tax lien investors from some of their down-side risk. Under A.R.S. Section 42-18206, any person who redeems a tax lien after they have been personally served with a complaint seeking to foreclose their right to redeem then … [Read more…]