As many of you that read my blog on a daily basis already know, in addition to posting business tips, blogging tips and social media tips for small business owners I dabble in a few other post topics as well. I found my post topic for today to be a little interesting not to mention it’s another one of those sweet government concepts that does nothing but screw over the hard working folks of the US trying to get ahead, or in some cases get their head above water.
Original Press Release
LAWYERS TO LAWMAKERS: REJECT ANTI-CONSUMER FORECLOSURE BILL
TALLAHASSEE – A group of attorneys who represent foreclosure defendants around the state is calling on lawmakers to reject a proposed new law deceptively titled “Homeowner Relief and Housing Recovery Act” designed to change Florida’s foreclosure process from that is supervised by the courts, to a non-judicial process that would be entirely in the hands of the banks and mortgage companies from start to finish. Lawyers for Homeowners Rights or LHR-FL, a statewide coalition of consumer attorneys, will travel to Tallahassee on April 21 with homeowners to speak out against this anti-consumer legislation. According to Chip Parker, a Jacksonville attorney, “every Florida homeowner should be worried about passage of this bill”.
The two bills, HB 1523 by Rep. Tom Grady, R-Naples, and SB 2270, by Sen. Michael Bennett, R-Bradenton, will be considered this week by legislative committees. These two lawmakers want to allow mortgage companies to obtain foreclosure quickly so the home owned by a borrower who falls behind on their payments can be sold only after two letters sent by mail. If the homeowner does not respond or cannot pay what has been demanded by the bank, the house can be s sold – even if the homeowner is still living in it. There would be no independent review of any amounts claimed to be owed, or whether there has been a default under the mortgage, or even if the mortgage company has the right to foreclose even if there has been a mistake.
“It offends me that bankers can convince our lawmakers to use such blatantly misleading titles to legislation in a concerted effort to fool consumers,” said St Petersburg attorney Matt Weidner, who represents hundreds of homeowners across the state in foreclosure proceedings. “I see first-hand, every single day the profound effect the foreclosure crisis is having on consumers, institutions and our communities. This bill will do nothing to help homeowners.”
LHR-FL opposes the legislation saying that these institutions cannot be trusted with the foreclosure process pointing to a federal probe, recently reported in the Wall Street Journal, that is now underway and looking into alleged fraud by a Jacksonville, Florida company known as Lender Processing Services and its subsidiary Docx, LLC. These companies regularly prepare thousands of documents for banks and mortgage companies to be used in foreclosures all over the U.S., including at least one document that was prepared and filed in a Florida county showing that “bogus assignee” owned the mortgage. “Our lawmakers should not vote to trust the same people involved in that kind of activity. That is not good judgment in our view”, says Weidner.
Dominick Salfi, a former Circuit Court Judge in Seminole County, says “passage of this law would only worsen the abuse by mortgage companies”. He continues, “mortgage companies, banks and their lawyers are taking advantage of our overworked judges and their support staff who do not have sufficient hours in a day to thoroughly review each file.” LHR-FL argues that lawmakers who vote to put the foreclosure process in the hands of an industry that has shown little regard for the law, our courts and homeowner rights themselves risk being someday at the mercy of these institutions if mortgage payments are missed. “It’s a sobering thought. Even if you have faithfully paid for years into your mortgage, if something unexpected happens to you and cannot pay, or if the mortgage company mistakes you for someone else, it’s two notices and you’re out. That could happen to anyone, and it’s just not safe at all.” says Parker.
End Press Release Copy
It doesn’t matter if you live in Florida or not, retweet and share on Facebook or through a Facebook Fan Page and create awareness for yet something else that doesn’t need to be passed, not to mention it’s a great way to show support for attorneys that are taking it upon themselves to look out for what’s right.
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{ 10 comments… read them below or add one }
NO NO NO
This is similar to de-regulation and can’t happen.
WTF were they thinking.
The foreclosure process is a long a grueling process and does need to
be shortened but this is not the answer.
So many problems will arise if this is passed.
The banks just need to do their job properly and they would not have millions of foreclosures on their hands.
They created the problem now they must deal with it.
No More Bail-Outs, because this is another form of a bail-out.
Many people are abusing the foreclosure process right now but when things return to normal ( whatever that is ) the foreclosure process works.
The Banks made their bed, now they must lye in it as we all have to do.
No more special treatment for the powerful.
Let propose a bill to eliminate the LOBBYIST’S.
.-= SafariDave´s last blog ..Come get crabs at Pet Safari =-.
@SafariDave, Agree. Banks don’t really care about doing the right thing from the start since they just sell the mortgages to someone else. Money, money, money. If FL residents were literally made out of money I bet they would listen to them and do the right thing.
Georgia’s foreclosure process has been like this (non-judicial) for as long as I can remember and I don’t ever recall hearing a story of a mortgage company or bank tricking the homeowner so that they can foreclose on them. Not saying it hasn’t happened. I have just never heard about it. It costs banks 10′s of thousands of dollars to foreclose and get the house back on the market. Believe me, Foreclosing on a home is the last thing a bank wants to do.
It sounds like to me that the lawyers who ‘represent’ all these homeowners currently are just worried about losing a lot of money.
.-= Matt@Atlanta GA Real Estate´s last blog ..The Perfect Storm for Home-Buyers =-.
@Matt@Atlanta GA Real Estate, Thanks for the info Matt,
The banks really need to work with the “true” home owners that are in a bind a willing to stay put with a restructured mortgage. The government has many programs in place to help the home owner, but the banks are just now willing to start working with them. This should of been done last year and avoided a further market melt down. I am a realtor in Florida and am working with REO’s. The banks and secondary companies are now finally working together to approve short sales and avoid all the costly foreclosure fees.
.-= SafariDave´s last blog ..Come get crabs at Pet Safari =-.
Hey John, thanks for shedding light/sharing this story….I’m so glad that Matt was here too! If you hadn’t written this post, I may have never ran into him….two blessings in one.
.-= Kissie´s last blog ..We’ll Take You, Not Your Dog =-.
Its obvious these 2 politicians are “in bed” with the banks. Or perhaps they have a side business buying foreclosures and flipping them. These guys are supposed to work for the people not themselves and this is the problem with not only Florida but the entire country.
.-= Alan@ blu-ray player reviews´s last blog ..The Sony BDP-N460 Blu-ray Disc Player Is Packed With Extras Without The Extra Cost! =-.
This bill probably isn’t in the best interest of the homeowner going through foreclosure, and will favor the lender, but anyone in business will tell you the cost ultimately falls on the consumer—you and me. I personally know 2 people that have been sitting cost free for nearly 3 years in a home they couldn’t afford when they bought it. Yeah, shame on the banks for making the loan. The problem is the home squatter is milking it for all they can. The real negative side is a squatter isn’t interested in taking care of the property. I recently bought a house from a bank for $40,000 (what a mess). The original loan was over $200,000 and it took the bank 2 years to get it back, and all the while paying the property taxes (over $5000), closing costs, and insurance.
When someone buys something from me I expect them to pay me back. Banks shouldn’t be any different. I’m just sayin’. Red Dog, out…
One of the things I hate about politicians is that they give bad bills names that are hard to oppose. They can name a bill “the Milk and cookies for children act” when it makes it easier for banks to evict little old ladies out of their homes. No one is going to vote against mike and cookies for children.
I am usually against bills that make things like foreclosures harder for lenders because if someone hasn’t honored their commitment I believe they should suffer the consequences of their own bad actions and choices. However I AM a believer in due process, and to allow banks to foreclose without oversight is a bad idea.
Aside from the idea that abuses would be easy, banks have consistently shown poor judgment and bad management. The abuse may not be deliberate but could happen just as easily because of their incompetence.
.-= Ned Carey´s last blog ..What Is Hard Money? =-.
I think this is just trying to put less work on them and may actually make foreclosure more painful for a lot of people. They should definitely try to think this through.
Twitter: johnjmcdonald
Heh, I know exactly why these guys are trying to keep the cases out of court…
See I worked for a big bank here in Jax for a while a few years ago, during the height of the housing bubble. Well anyway, the bank was collecting mortgages from all kinds of origination points, trying to build the biggest pile of housing debt that they possibly could. My actual job was to scan the physical mortgages on to their network – then destroy them in the shredder.
Unfortunately for the bankers, most of the mortgage statutes require the actual original copy to make a debt enforceable. A few lawyers in Jacksonville figured this out and now they’re fighting foreclosure proceedings with requests for original documentation that mostly doesn’t exist anymore.
What ends up happening in many of these cases is that the title is in the borrower’s name but there is no legally binding proof of a mortgage lien. So the home’s resident keeps the home, and no one else really has an enforceable property claim.
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