Why Should You Defend Against the Foreclosure Lawsuit?

Why Should You Defend Against the Foreclosure Lawsuit? November 13, 2008, 11:02 am Every step of the process of owning a home and being foreclosed, from applying for the financing to being served with an eviction notice, is heavily regulated by the federal and state governments. While all of these laws are ostensibly designed to protect consumers and homeowners from lenders, the large amount of paperwork these laws create serve mostly to confuse borrowers and allow fraudulent bankers to prey o

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FDIC Plan Tests Limits of Leniency

NOVEMBER 1, 2008By MICHAEL M. PHILLIPS and RUTH SIMONANTIOCH, Calif. -- When the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. seized control of IndyMac Bancorp -- the nation's 10th-largest mortgage lender by loan volume -- the agency vowed to ease terms for many of its troubled borrowers. In doing so, the FDIC wanted to show the mortgage industry how it could slash home foreclosures by making decisions both sensible and humane.The new entity, called IndyMac Federal Bank, has become a laboratory test of wheth

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There Are No Secret Deals

There Are No Secret Deals Here are some tips from the book Foreclosure Myths: If you have found a foreclosure, others can find it too. There are no unexploited economic opportunities. That's one of the basics of micro-economic analysis that I learned at college. Developing valuable information takes time and requires that you tap experts. Deal with people you trust. Consider going partners on a deal. When you begin, be an information sponge. Soak up everything. You don't have

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Washington's $5 Trillion Tab

Elizabeth Moyer, 11.12.08, 5:15 PM ET For all the fury over Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson's $700 billion emergency economic relief fund, it seems downright puny when compared to the running total of the government's response to the credit crisis. According to CreditSights, a research firm in New York and London, the U.S. government has put itself on the hook for some $5 trillion, so far, in an attempt to arrest a collapse of the financial system. The estimate includes many of the var

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The Sliding Mortgage

The Sliding Mortgage Jack Cummings writes the book Real Estate Finance & Investment Manual: The sliding mortgage technique is when you slide a mortgage from one property to another. In essence, you replace the security to the debt with another asset. By moving that specific debt from one property, you are substituting collateral. The new collateral may be other real estate or some other asset. One situation would be when you want to assume a favorable existing mortgage because of its

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Peter Schiff, The Humpty Dumpty Economy

Yesterday’s commentary by Peter Schiff is a must read. In “The Humpty Dumpty Economy“, Schiff suggests that Treasury Secretary Henry Paulsen is both a liar and incompetent. He explains the moral hazard, or unintended consequences of all this new regulation. Before the current economic crisis became apparent to all, the most popular fable used to describe America’s uncanny economic resiliency was the story of Goldilocks. It was argued that our economy was skipping down a sunny path of moderate

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Perspectives on the latest Fannie/Freddie homeowner rescue plan - by Peter Schiff.

Perspectives on the latest Fannie/Freddie homeowner rescue plan - by Peter Schiff. Nov 16, 2008 U.S Hot Stocks Leave a comment No doubt prodded by the administration, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac announced a new attempt to stop the fall in home prices and foreclosures through a loan modification program that would cap mortgage payments so that a homeowner’s total housing expenses would not exceed 38% of household income for home owners who are 90 days delinquent. In a classic case of unintended

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Are You an Idiot to Keep Paying Your Mortgage?

In today's "You've Got to be Kidding Me" moment, the San Francisco Chronicle advocated that folks who owe more on their mortgages than their homes are worth should stop making payments so they can qualify for a government bailout. I'm not kidding. Disgustingly titled "Are You an Idiot to Keep Paying Your Mortgage," the article actually instructed readers upside-down in their real estate the ins and outs of how they can transfer responsibility for their own investment mistakes to others (emphasi

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Mr Mortgage: NO-SPIN October CA Foreclosure Report

he default and foreclosure scene in CA remains a mess. And now due to SB1137 that went into effect in early Sept and a yet new proposal that Schwarzenegger is pumping, performing meaningful analysis is difficult for most. However, due to my proprietary data and research I am able to shed a little light not available elsewhere on the happenings. SB1137 recap- CA Foreclosures Fall 90% Problem Solved? No Way! Given the interruptions that Schwarzenegger's efforts have caused, I have included man

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You are an idiot for paying your mortgage.

Nation: As pointed out by Kathleen Pender in the San Fran Chronicle, people who don't can game the upcoming welfare handouts. Should you keep paying your mortgage? If you have significant equity in your home, absolutely. If you don't, it's getting harder to answer that question, especially when our government keeps giving people who owe more than their homes are worth so many reasons not to pay. Last week, the government announced a program that will substantially lower payments for many hom

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The Humpty Dumpty Economy

by Peter Schiff November 16, 2008 Before the current economic crisis became apparent to all, the most popular fable used to describe America's uncanny economic resiliency was the story of Goldilocks. It was argued that our economy was skipping down a sunny path of moderate growth, low inflation and rising asset prices. However, a much better parable for our economy over the last decade would have been the story of Humpty Dumpty: a bloated, fragile shell perched on the top of a dangerously hig

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Should You Keep Paying Your Mortgage?

If you have significant equity in your home, absolutely. If you don't, it's getting harder to answer that question, especially when our government keeps giving people who owe more than their homes are worth so many reasons not to pay. Last week, the government announced a program that will substantially lower payments for many homeowners who have little or no equity, but only if they are at least 90 days delinquent. Critics say the plan, which applies to loans owned or guaranteed by governme

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Using A Fixed Rate Mortgage To Better Benefit Your Finances

by Chris Channing If you are seeking stability, then there is little that is more stable than a fixed rate mortgage. These loans have a set interest rate that does not change over the course of the loan. Unlike many other loans and mortgages, these are set in stone unless you modify them. Other mortgages change often due to interest fluctuation, which can be a problem for you and your finances. Interest rates are generally steady, but they do experience unpredictable rises, as well as lovely i

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Thus does Big Mother make gonophs of us all: How to keep your house by taking taxpayers for a ride

This is choice, from the San Francisco Chronicle: To qualify, you must be at least 90 days delinquent and live in the home as your primary residence. You must owe at least 90 percent of the home's value. It's fine if you owe more than it's worth. Your mortgage must be owned or guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac or held by one of the participating loan companies. If you meet these requirements and can document your income, your servicer will reduce your monthly mortgage payment - include

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Lenders Don't Want To Be In The Real Estate Business

Lenders Don't Want To Be In The Real Estate Business Here are some tips from the book Foreclosure Myths: Lenders are legally required to not be in the real estate business. Lenders just want to lend. They want to make loans and collect fees and payments. You can negotiate with lenders to get deals on REO properties. Whenever you bid for a property, no matter if it is at an auction or making an offer to a homeowner, you should decide on the maximum price you'll pay for the property

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On JP Morgan's "Mass Mods" for Residential Mortgages

In a move the stock market greeted with considerable cheer, JP Morgan announced that it was widening its program to modify mortgages. From the New York Times: JPMorgan Chase became the latest big bank to pledge to cut monthly payments, by lowering interest rates and temporarily reducing loan balances for as many as 400,000 homeowners. Early in October, Bank of America, which acquired the large lender Countrywide, announced a similar effort aimed at 400,000 borrowers as part of a settlement with

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DIY Loan Modification Kit

Sponsored Post: DIY Loan Modification Kit Posted by: admin in mortgage industry This is a sponsored review for Cody Sperber's Do-It-Yourself Loan Modification Kit from ForeclosureCounseling.com. If you're interested in having a review of your product or service written here on Blown Mortgage click here for more information or email me directly. Cody Sperber's DIY Loan Modification eBook is a solid primer for anyone who is looking to brave the loan modification world themselves. If you

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One in five homeowners with mortgages under water

One in five homeowners with mortgages under water November 1st, 2008 By Jonathan Stempel NEW YORK (Reuters) - Nearly one in five U.S. mortgage borrowers owe more to lenders than their homes are worth, and the rate may soon approach one in four as housing prices fall and the economy weakens, a report on Friday shows. About 7.63 million properties, or 18 percent, had negative equity in September, and another 2.1 million will follow if home prices fall another 5 percent, according to a report b

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Massive Effort to Save Mortgages

NOVEMBER 1, 2008 WSJBy ROBIN SIDELJ.P. Morgan Chase & Co. launched an ambitious plan Friday to modify the terms of $70 billion in mortgages for borrowers who are behind on their payments or soon could be.The move by the New York bank will cover as many as 400,000 borrowers. They'll be moved into loans carrying lower interest rates, smaller principal amounts or other more-affordable terms.The changes will particularly focus on a type of loan structured in such a way that the borrower's outstandin

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JPM Chase - Major Mortgage Loan Default Spike

As part of my day job at Field Check Group, Real Estate & Finance we analyze the entire housing & mortgage universe including extremely granular mortgage default and foreclosure data by lender, not available to most. While Chase's mortgage modification announcement today makes a whole lot of sense from the stand point of ridding themselves of WaMu's toxic Pay Option and Subprime loans at a better price than bulking them to the highest bidder, Chase has some problems with their own past

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Upside-down Mortgage? Look into a Mortgage Loan Modification

by Bradley Marmer Foreclosure is the process by which the lender regains the property that they have originally financed. Generally, this is due to the homeowner or borrower being behind on payments and unable to catch up. Naturally, when a foreclosure occurs, the homeowner must move out of the house, losing possession of all property and losing the equity that they have built up over time. Also, there is generally some damages inflicted to the credit rating of the borrower as well. Considering

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IndyMac is calling. Will you answer?

The L.A. Times goes out front today with the story of the difficulty IndyMac is having in its efforts to reach troubled borrowers to talk about loan modifications. (Hey, if I had lied about my income to get a mortgage, and a government-run bank wanted to talk to me about said mortgage, I probably wouldn't answer the phone either.) Seriously: ...when the FDIC, which is running IndyMac, mailed out 35,000 letters offering homeowners a chance to rework the terms of their mortgages, more than half

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Not Bothering To Respond To A Refinance Offer From IndyMac

Not Bothering To Respond To A Refinance Offer From IndyMac Here's the model that the FDIC head lauded but many of its own borrowers seem unimpressed. How are you going to assist borrowers if you can't get them to hear you? If they won't respond to your offers? The FDIC took over IndyMac in July. From the Los Angeles Times: The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s program to lower loan payments for struggling borrowers with mortgages from IndyMac Bank has been lauded by consumer advoca

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Debt Rattle, November 1 2008: Cold Turkey

Lewis Wickes Hine Toter April 1913 Columbus, Georgia. Eagle and Phoenix Mill. Hine: A 'dinner-toter' waiting for the gate to open. This is carried on more in Columbus than in any other city I know, and by smaller children. Many of them are paid by the week for doing it, and carry sometimes 10 or more meals a day. They go around in the mill, often help tend to the machines, which often run at noon, and so learn the work. A teacher told me the mothers expect the children to learn this way, lon

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A Hint Of The Nightmare To Come

“For four years the Neal family called a two-family house in New Haven, home. The Neals have had their house on the market for a year and a half. They’re frustrated but patient. They understand this is a tough time to sell. ‘You’re seeing more and more houses that are in the inventory — I mean there’s tons and tons of inventory,’ Neal said. ‘Everywhere you look there’s a house for sale.’”

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