Category Archives: Real estate

Emerging Battleground on Mortgage Abuses: Foreclosure Mills

I’ve said that the efforts to clean up mortgage abuses will not have gone far enough until we see some foreclosure mill attorneys disbarred, and better yet fined and/or put in jail. And that is harder than it ought to be.

One of the frustrating issues in trying to rein in fraud is the way that essential accessories, namely, accounting firms and law firms, are close to beyond the reach of the law. For instance, if a law firm clearly permitted perjury or engaged in document fabrication that led someone to have their house foreclosed upon when they were actually current on their mortgage, the wronged homeowner could not sue the law firm. It could only sue the party that was the plaintiff in the suit (presumably a trust). Perversely, the only parties to a transaction that can sue banks and accountants are their clients, even when those firms were integral actors in scams.

Make Yourself Heard on Mortgage Abuses

One of the most frustrating parts of the financial reform game is how powerless most of us really are, most of the time. Take this story:

Top policymakers at the Federal Reserve are fighting efforts to rein in widely reported bank abuses, sparking an inter-agency feud with the FDIC and the Treasury Department. The Fed, along with the more bank-friendly Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, is resisting moves to craft rules cracking down on banks that charge illegal fees and carry out improper foreclosures.

“Summer” Rerun: Thin Gruel in Paulson Statement re Fannie, Freddie; Fed Opens Discount Window

This post first appeared on July 13, 2008

For those looking for some concrete action (which was what many market participants hoped for), Paulson issued a statement that amounts to hand waving.

The Wall of Worry for 2011 is a Big One, as usual

By Richard Smith These are things I’m keeping an eye on, or trying to find out more about. That isn’t a prediction that any of them will blow up, nor that nothing else will, just a round-up of the bees in my bonnet. If you’ve been following Naked Capitalism you are up to speed on […]

We Speak on Real News Network About Servicer Driven Foreclosures

This interview was taped earlier in the month and I didn’t know it had been edited and released until I saw it on Angry Bear!

A serious topic, but I nevertheless hope you enjoy the discussion.

More on the FDIC’s Fight Versus Other Bank Regulators on Servicer Abuses; Rep. Miller Backs More Aggressive Action

We’ve mentioned that the FDIC has been pushing to reform the securitization process, including imposing standards on servicers. That has put it at odds with the bank-friendly Treasury and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (the SEC has proposed securtization reforms but of a much more modest nature than the FDIC’s). This behind the scenes battle is heating up further because Dodd Frank calls on bank regulators to draft new rules to improve the operation of the mortgage securitization market. The FDIC intends to include mortgage servicer behavior in those provisions and want the rules ready in January.

Bank Break Ins Leading to Litigation

Even though banks piously insist that every one of their foreclosure actions is fully justified, evidence in the court system continues to prove that claim to be false. We pointed out this sorry development in October, that of banks entering and changing the locks on homes they had not foreclosed upon. This sorry trend continues, and some wronged homeowners are suing.

Please Visit StopServicerScams.com to Stop Servicer Fraud

To further the effort to curb servicer abuses, please visit the website, StopServicerScams, and sign the petition.

Another nasty surprise from Ireland’s Anglo and AIB, via the EC

Tucked away in the EC’s press release on aid for Irish banks, we find this little gem: Anglo Irish Bank will furthermore receive a guarantee covering certain off-balance sheet liabilities (derivatives, clearing transactions and transactional arrangements) that will ensure that Anglo Irish Bank can continue its daily activities as a going concern. There’s nothing here […]

Open Letter to Bank Regulators on Mortgage Securitization and Servicing Practices

Today, a letter urging fundamental changes in the mortgage securitization markets, signed by 50 individuals with expertise in this arena, was sent to the Chairmen of the FDIC, the Fed, and the SEC, and the Secretary of the Treasury and the Comptroller of the Currency.

Despite widespread evidence of failings, abuses, and outright fraud in the securitization process, reform measures have been halting at best.

Major Servicers Face Possible Suspension of Foreclosures in New Jersey Over Robo Signing

We had questioned the cheery assumption of the major banks regarding their robo signing abuses, namely, that they could simply resubmit their improper court documents and proceed as if nothing had happened.

Improper affidavits are a fraud on the court, and robo signing is the mass, deliberate production of fraudulent submissions. Some jurisdictions, like New York and Florida, are requiring that attorneys certify the accuracy of documents presented in foreclosure. New Jersey is going one step further by having a Supreme Court justice demand an appearance by six major servicers to explain why their foreclosure operations should not be suspended. I suspect the sort of sanctimonious explanations we’ve seen in Congressional hearings, “We act to correct mistakes as soon as they come to our attention,” would not go over well.

Fannie Increases Restrictions on Lender Processing Services, Other Technology Middlemen; LPS Document Shows Degree of Influence Over Law Firms

We’ve discussed Lender Processing Services, which serves as an outsourcer to the mortgage servicing industry, primarily via a software platform, as well as other companies with similar business models.

One of LPS’s major activities is acting as a middleman in the foreclosure process, reportedly hiring and firing foreclosure mills in the name of servicers. LPS is under fire in two national class action lawsuits for alleged impermissible fee splitting with foreclosure firms. A recent story in Reuters confirmed details we supplied in late October as to how LPS works with foreclosure mills, in particular, the very tight control it exercises over them.

Fannie Mae issued a directive today which effectively eliminates the payment of certain types of fees to firms like LPS.

Joseph Mason on the Myth of Good Servicers

By Thomas Adams, an attorney and former monoline executive, and Yves Smith Joseph Mason, the Hermann Moyse, Jr./Louisiana Bankers Association Professor of Finance, Louisiana State University, has a post up at Housing Wire that not only struck both of us as more than a tad off beam, but even elicited critical e-mails from real estate […]

Florida Judge Cancels All Foreclosure Sales in His Division Through Year End

Per the order below (hat tip Matt Weidner) a judge in Broward County appears to have cancelled all foreclosure sales in one of the foreclosure division from December 20 to December 31: Broward County Judicial Order Canceling Foreclosure Sales One might think this has something to with the Fannie and Freddie foreclosure halts, with run […]