The effects of the robo-signing scandal that developed in 2009 through 2010 are still being felt. Foreclosure activity slowed almost to a halt for a while, and still hasn’t reached a normal pace, though banks are now beginning to file at a more normal rate. Shoddy underwriting and legal shortcuts in the foreclosure process are blamed for a great number of lost homes. However, some homeowners are now fighting back.
One couple depicted in an MSNBC story began trying to get a mortgage modification back in 2008 from Bank of America, after the husband’s job was lost. They were only a month behind on mortgage payments, and tried to work with Bank of America. However, they could get no action, and after a year of red tape and delays, the couple hired an attorney to help.
Their attorney successfully challenged the paper trail that allowed the lender to prove it held the note on the home. This successful challenge led the bank to agree to new loan terms that cut the couple’s monthly payments by around 15%, paid their legal fees and stopped foreclosure actions.
This couple’s case is like many others being filed around the country to fight back and challenge the documents and chain of ownership being used by lenders to foreclose. Many of these cases are based on robo-signing practices, when lenders or others they hired failed to properly review files and documents, though they swore under oath that they had done so.
Other title claims are due to alleged improper accounting, including unwarranted fees and payments that weren’t credited. There is a stringent paper trail required to prove that a lender owns a loan and has a right to foreclose. Sloppy underwriting is a part of the problem. The frenzy of loan underwriting during the real estate boom and subsequent sale of loans, sometimes many times, are also contributing to the problem.
Homeowners and their attorneys are now picking apart shoddy paper trails and procedures, and there are some who are succeeding in getting their homes back and others who are getting some type of restitution.
The effects of the robo-signing scandal that developed in 2009 through 2010 are still being felt. Foreclosure activity slowed almost to a halt for a while, and still hasn’t reached a normal pace, though banks are now beginning to file at a more normal rate. Shoddy underwriting and legal shortcuts in the foreclosure process are blamed for a great number of lost homes. However, some homeowners are now fighting back.
One couple depicted in an MSNBC story began trying to get a mortgage modification back in 2008 from Bank of America, after the husband’s job was lost. They were only a month behind on mortgage payments, and tried to work with Bank of America. However, they could get no action, and after a year of red tape and delays, the couple hired an attorney to help.
Their attorney successfully challenged the paper trail that allowed the lender to prove it held the note on the home. This successful challenge led the bank to agree to new loan terms that cut the couple’s monthly payments by around 15%, paid their legal fees and stopped foreclosure actions.
This couple’s case is like many others being filed around the country to fight back and challenge the documents and chain of ownership being used by lenders to foreclose. Many of these cases are based on robo-signing practices, when lenders or others they hired failed to properly review files and documents, though they swore under oath that they had done so.
Other title claims are due to alleged improper accounting, including unwarranted fees and payments that weren’t credited. There is a stringent paper trail required to prove that a lender owns a loan and has a right to foreclose. Sloppy underwriting is a part of the problem. The frenzy of loan underwriting during the real estate boom and subsequent sale of loans, sometimes many times, are also contributing to the problem.
Homeowners and their attorneys are now picking apart shoddy paper trails and procedures, and there are some who are succeeding in getting their homes back and others who are getting some type of restitution.