Friday, September 16, 2011
Homeowners Foreclose On Bank of America
Homeowners Foreclose On Bank of America
Call it poetic justice, or even
karma. . .
During the past few years Bank of
America has been at the subject of harsh criticism for business practices that range
from the mean-spirited (such as doubling
credit card interest rates without notice, up to 28% for cardholders in
good standing), to irresponsible (such as foreclosing
on the wrong homes), to even fraudulent (such as the recent robo-signing
scandal involving mortgage documents).
Bank of America is the nation’s largest servicer of mortgage loans, and
the second largest mortgage loan originator. You’d think good record keeping
would be important to such a large company, but apparently mistakes abound at
Bank of America.
Take for example the case
involving Florida couple Warren and Maureen Nyerges. In 2009 the couple moved
from chilly Cleveland, Ohio, to warm Naples, Florida. They purchased a
foreclosed home from Bank of America and paid $165,000 cash. However, in February
16, 2010, Bank of America filed a Complaint to Foreclose
on Mortgage against them, claiming the Nyerges owed almost $141,000 in
unpaid mortgage debt.
Warren Nyerges, 46, a former
sheriff’s deputy in Ohio, spent months trying to dismiss the suit and clear up
Bank of America’s error. In April of 2010, the lawsuit was dropped, and in
December the Nyerges were awarded $2,534 in attorney fees. The bank did not
respond to the repeated requests to pay the court judgment. Warren
called the bank, sent certified letters, called the bank’s attorney, but
nothing worked. Then, in January, he hired an attorney to pursue the case. The
attorney sent letters and made phone call, and still Bank of America failed to respond or pay the judgment.
On June 3, the attorney for the
Nyerges, accompanied by Collier County deputy sheriffs and a moving company,
arrived at a local branch of Bank of America and presented the bank manager
with a writ of execution to seize assets: either pay up or the movers will
start taking things. An hour later checks were cut to satisfy the court
judgment.
This may seem to be an extreme example
of one case that has fallen through the cracks, but the truth is that banks
make errors regularly. In Utah
and Nevada
courts issued foreclosure injunctions against Bank of America for improper
practices. Other banks have also had their share of problem in producing
mortgage documents and verifying that the bank is the rightful holder of the mortgage.
If you are facing foreclosure,
don’t get steamrolled by the bank! You have legal options to negotiate a lower
payment or possibly strip away a junior mortgage. Call today and discover how
the federal and state laws can help you save your home and protect your rights.
Beware Of Debt Settlement Company Promises
Beware Of Debt
Settlement Company Promises
In theory debt settlement is
simple: the debtor negotiates with the creditor to reduce a debt to an amount
that is regarded as payment in full. It sounds honest enough: the debtor cannot
afford to repay a debt, so the creditor agrees to accept a reduction. The
creditor is paid something and the debtor avoids bankruptcy.
In practice debt settlement is a nasty
game of chicken. The debt settlement company advises the debtor to stop making
monthly payments to the creditor. In response, the creditor pressures the
debtor to pay through harassing telephone calls, damage to the debtor’s credit
report, mounting interest and fees, and perhaps legal action. The resolution
comes when one side blinks: either the creditor is convinced that it better
take a settlement or risk discharge in bankruptcy; or the debtor realizes that
his or her credit is ruined and actually files bankruptcy.
Debt settlement is big business,
but many debt settlement companies have caused big trouble for their clients.
Take for example Debt Relief USA. This company, like many debt settlement
companies, advised its customers to stop paying its creditors and instead
deposit money into a Debt Relief USA settlement account. This money, held by
Debt Relief USA, was to be used as settle funds for the individual’s debts.
Customers were assessed fees for services including burdensome “administration
fees” and monthly “maintenance fees” that further damaged its customers’
financial situations. When a debt was settled, the Debt Relief USA charged a 13
percent “negotiation fee.”
In 2009 Debt Relief USA filed a
Chapter 11 bankruptcy and claimed that it owed its clients $5 million from
these settlement accounts. In December
2010, the bankruptcy court approved a $3.7 million disbursement to Debt Relief
USA’s clients. The case was also converted to Chapter 7 and Debt Relief USA is
no longer conducting business.
Bankruptcy attorneys regularly
see the damage caused by debt settlement companies. In some cases money is not
returned to debt settlement customers, or the company itself files bankruptcy,
or the individual’s credit is destroyed. Before agreeing to any debt relief
program, discuss your financial situation an experienced bankruptcy attorney.
There are powerful federal laws that can protect you from overwhelming debt,
and a bankruptcy attorney can review your legal options without risking your
cash.
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