Settlement & Cash from Everbank

If you're mortgage is/was with Everbank, and you were in some stage of the foreclosure process in 2009 or 2010 (and there are approximately 32,000 of you), there may be some cash coming your way. As part of a settlement with the Office of the Controller of the Currency (OCC), similar to those reached with many of the nation's largest lenders, checks will be mailed to borrowers who had mortgages with Everbank and were in difficulty in the aforementioned years. Checks will range from a low of about $1050 to a high of $125,000, and will be mailed out "in the near future". No specific date was cited. Those eligible will be contacted directly. In addition to these payments, Everbank must evaluate borrowers in the foreclosure process for the possibility of doing loan modifications for them. As part of the program, the bank must also establish a complaint process to receive and resolve complaints from borrowers who feel wronged as part of their situation. If you have any questions, you can contact Everbank directly or the Office of the Controller: www.occ.treas.gov or by phone: (800) 613-6743. As always, Good Luck.

Mortgage Rescue Fraud Still Out There-BE CAREFUL!!

Well, even though, according to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, there were fewer reports filed in 2012 (latest available numbers) of mortgage fraud. But, what is more important to you if you're in difficulties with your loan, the number of mortgage rescue frauds is still on the rise. In the same period, fraudulent rescue scams rose to 4,427, up 58 percent from 2,799 in 2011. What does this mean for you if you're having trouble keeping your mortgage head above water? Simple! There are still vermin out there more than happy to take your money and/or home from you under the guise of helping you out of your trouble. The rules to avoid these scum are still quite simple. If a deal or offer for assistance sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Use common sense. Also, if someone approaches you with a 'guaranteed' plan to save your home from foreclosure, as for all information. Also, be prepared to run as fast as possible in the other direction when your 'mortgage savior' asks for an upfront fee for his services. That's a guaranteed clue that the only person he's interested in helping is himself--to your money or home, which, in the latter case, he'll try to add a mortgage to, or sell, and pocket the money in either case. If you suspect someone of attempting a mortgage rescue fraud, you can also do everyone else a favor by 'dropping a dime' on him. Call your local consumer fraud division of the local district attorney or your local law enforcement agency. Good Luck!

Making It Easier After A Foreclosure

In a letter just issued, the FHA has determined it will loosen the limits on borrowers who have previously had a bankruptcy, foreclosure, deed-in-lieu, or short sale. The rules will allow formerly foreclosed borrowers to get back into the market in as little as twelve months from the foreclosure. The twelve month period must evidence consistent good credit throughout this period. That can be by paying a mortgage on time, or such other obligations as rental payments. This is subject to a few qualifications. The borrowers must provide documentation that the cause of their prior credit problems was either a loss of income beyond their control or loss of employment. They must also show that the issue has since been fully remedied, and take housing counseling courses.These new lenient guidance rules cover all new FHA cases from August 15, 2013 through September 30, 2016. Questions? Contact the FHA. The web site is: www.hud.gov , and the toll free number is: (800) 225-5342. As always, Good Luck.

Court Sides With Borrowers On Loan Mods

In a decision last Thursday, the Federal 9th Circuit Court of Appeals took the side of borrowers denied a permanent loan mod by their bank. The court said that even if the rejection by the bank was after a trial mod had been completed, the borrowers have the right to sue the bank for denying the permanent mod. It DOES NOT say the bank must agree to the permanent mod, just that the denied homeowner may then sue if it feels it has been wronged by the denial of the permanent mod. However, the court reversed the trial court on the issue, and giving an idea of how it felt about the merits of the case, noted that once the borrower had provided all required documents and paid all of its fees, the bank was contractually obligated to provide the permanent mod. The ruling came in two similar cases combined for appellate purposes: Corvello v. Wells Fargo Bank, NA and Lucia v. Wells Fargo Bank, NA. So, if you're having problems with your lender over a permanent mod, and the lender has previously provided a temporary mod and collected fees from you for it, you may want to have a conversation with your attorney and consider litigating the issue.

Mortgage Scammers Get A new "Home"

As of yesterday, four mortgage relief scam artists are finding out that if caught, they'll be getting free rent in a cozy room with bars on the windows for six to eight months each. The men, all from California, Jacob John Cunningham, 26; John D. Silva, 28; Justin Dennis Koelle, 23; and Dominic Adam Nolan, 32; all pleaded guilty to felony counts of conspiracy to collect illegal upfront fees and conspiracy to commit theft by false pretenses. Cunningham, Silva, and Koelle all pleaded guilty to two felonies, while Nolan pleaded guilty to one. In addition to the jail time, they also were handed five years probation, and a ban on working on loan mods or consulting about mortgages. Additionally, they must make restitution, the amounts to be determined in future hearings. They had fraudulently taken more than $130,000 from hundreds of homeowners, promising that they would be able to obtain loan mods. They claimed a 95% success rate. After receiving the fees from the victims, they neither obtained the mods or returned the fees. Once this scam had more or less run its course, they began to offer refinancing deals. These cost the borrowers 2.8%, and once the fees were paid to the scammers, they would provide Letters of Conditional Approval on servicers' letterhead. The investigations were handled by the Inspector General's Office of TARP, assisted by the Secret Service and various local law enforcement agencies. If you were scammed by any or all of these four, you probably should get in contact with the Inspector General at TARP.

Good News From GMAC

If you had your mortgage with GMAC, and were in some stage of foreclosure action by GMAC that you thought was incorrect, until now you had to stand on the sidelines and drool enviously as borrowers in similar situations to you with other major lenders got compensated by the huge deal under the Federal and OCC with those lenders. However, now the same deal has been reached with GMAC. As part of the settlement, GMAC has agreed to pay a total of $230 million to homeowners in this situation who were incorrectly placed there by GMAC. That sum will divided up among 232,000 GMAC borrowers who were any stage of foreclosure in 2009 or 2010. If you have any questions, call Rust Consulting at 1-888-952-9105. These questions can include how much you may be entitled to and details on the timing of the payment. As always, Good Luck.

Help From Fifth Third Bank

Fifth Third Bank has established a way to help those who are now out of work from falling victim to foreclosure. As I mention in my book, Save Your House From Foreclosure!, loss of a job is one of the four major causes of foreclosure. However, 5th Third has set up a possible way to avoid this fate when you lose your job. Working with it partner, NextJob, the bank helps its mortgage borrowers locate a new job. This gets the borrower back to work and re-establishes his/her ability to pay the mortgage, thus avoiding foreclosure. For details, contact your local Fifth Third branch, or log on to NextJob's web site, www.next-job.com . As always, good luck.