The Mortgage Electronic Registration System (MERS) was created by the mortgage industry to fast-track the loan assignment process and helped bypass the burden of having to record every assignment. MERS was a perfect solution during the mortgage securitization frenzy. When the housing bubble imploded and foreclosure activity went through the roof, MERS found itself the target … [Read more…]
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…]
When it rains, it pours. The fallout from the artificially generated housing bubble and the attendant financial crisis is really starting to take hold against the various major players in the banking industry. It seems everyone with any stake in the mortgage meltdown, from individual home owners to purchasers of mortgage-backed securities, are seeking their … [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…]
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…]
A San Diego police officer and his wife recently pleaded not guilty to accusations that they trashed their foreclosed home in Riverside County, taking $44,000 in appliances and fixtures with them when they moved out. Both have been charged with one felony count of damaging or carrying away items from a foreclosed property. Damage was … [Read more…]
On October 20, 2010, the White House issued the following Fact Sheet: FACT SHEET: Federal Government Efforts to Support Accountability, Stability and Clarity in the Housing Market Today the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Department of the Treasury, the Department of Justice, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Office … [Read more…]
MERS or the Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, little known before the foreclosure tsunami struck, was developed in the early 1990’s by a number of financial entities, including Bank of America, Countrywide, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac, allegedly to allow consumers to pay less for mortgage loans, streamline the mortgage process through electronic commerce, and eliminate … [Read more…]
Let’s start out with this – I’m incensed today. The newest cottage industry to crop up in the wake of the foreclosure tsunami are the loan modifiers. Many of the most notorious loan modification companies were headed by the same individuals that were all to happy to originate loans that never should have been considered … [Read more…]
In one of my prior blog posts (April 6, 2010 – "Tax Lien Foreclosure: Ready, Willing, and Able to Redeem"), I wrote about an unpublished Memorandum Decision from the Arizona Court of Appeals, Division 2 – Leveraged Land, Montgomery, v. Hodges, 2 CA-CV 2009-0057. In that Decision, the Court overturned a default judgment that a tax … [Read more…]