The American judiciary is *the* problem. Even more so than the Ministry of Propaganda, Government Schools, Congressional Marxists, and the Entitlement Class.
Frowning takes 68 muscles.
Smiling takes 6.
Pulling this trigger takes 2.
I'm lazy.
Posted on 09/25/2010 4:47:21 AM PDT by Chunga85
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Last month, Palm Beach County Senior Judge Roger Colton opened his afternoon foreclosure session by telling homeowners that he'd heard all their stories before, and he would give them a maximum of five months before letting lenders take their homes.
"I know all about the Chinese drywall problems. I know all about sickness," Judge Colton said. "I know all about divorce. I know all about anything else as to why we find ourselves in this position today."
In the first case, Judge Colton signed a final summary judgment giving Everhome Mortgage Co. the right to foreclose on a Lake Worth couple's home despite their attorney's objections that Everhome had failed to prove that it owns the note. Foreclosure defense lawyers cite the case as an egregious example of Florida's so-called "rocket docket," the process of expediting foreclosure cases through the courts by siding with lenders.
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In the case before Judge Colton, attorney Loretta Bangor questioned the validity of affidavits submitted by Everhome's attorney, a lawyer with Shapiro & Fishman, one of three firms under investigation by the Florida attorney general for "unfair and deceptive actions" in foreclosure cases. Judge Colton, one of two retired judges hired to handle foreclosures under the new state program, did not ask to see the documents. Nor did he question Shapiro & Fishman about the validity of the documents.
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(Excerpt) Read more at palmbeachpost.com ...
This has turned into a judicial burlesque show.
Tell the DEADBEATS that it’s time to live in an apartment, and that they shouldn’t have taken out those INSANE loans.
I'm in Tampa Bay area, and was told by a reliable source that the backlog of foreclosures in our area is 20,000. The system has been overwhelmed by the sheer number of cases to process.
I hate it when I agree with the libs on something. But they’re right on this. Florida is a judicial foreclosure state. That means that a foreclosure is a civil court proceeding. It needs to be handled as such.
If the lender fails to prove that they own the note. The title has to go back to the home owner. Its the law. Banks cannot lose the paperwork...
I personally don’t think this is a liberal vs. conservative issue at all. It’s a matter of following the law.
If homeowners who are not in default sent Qualified Written Requests and/or Debt Validation Letters (as is their legal right pursuant to the Truth in Lending Act) to their alleged lender we would see how corrupt this has become.
Upon the alleged failure to address these requests one could make their mortgage payments to a court escrow account until the matter is resolved.
I have little patience for the banks that ignored their basic legal responsibilities because they wanted to play “leverage the derivative” to make a quick buck by playing games with “securities” they knew were toxic.
If a “lender” cannot produce the required documentation that they own the note, they should suffer the legal consequences of their negligence.
OTOH, most of the “homeowners” in these cases got into trouble because they also were playing out of their league and betting on prices continuing to go up.
A plague on both their houses, so to speak.
“It’s a matter of following the law.”
Exactly. And this incredibly lib newspaper happens to be right because of that. The banks clearly don’t like having to deal with the judicial process, hence their legislative efforts to make Florida a nonjudicial foreclosure state. That’s their right. Their efforts failed.
As for existing mortgages, the lenders knew or should have known the rules going in. The fact that debtors are using those rules was predictable.
This a major pucker factor for the lenders, because they’re coming to recognize how widespread the problem with jerry-rigged documentation is.
“A plague on both their houses, so to speak.”
Yes. But ultimately I think the lenders are going to be the losers here. Florida has a largely unlimited homestead exemption in bankruptcy.
The American judiciary is *the* problem. Even more so than the Ministry of Propaganda, Government Schools, Congressional Marxists, and the Entitlement Class.
Foreclosure Revolution Starts NOW!
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On August 17, 2010, attorney Susan Chana Lask filed a Federal Class Action Complaint on behalf of tens of thousands of New York State homeowners who lost their homes to an alleged foreclosure fraud orchestrated for years by a New York "foreclosure mill" attorney and major mortgage companies. The case is filed in the US District Court, Eastern District of New York, entitled "Connie Campbell against Steven Baum, MERSCORP, Inc, et al.", Case #10CV3800. It alleges RICO civil racketeering, RESPA, Fair Debt Collection Practices Act violations and that homeowners paid inflated foreclosure and other fees fictionalized by Mr. Baum who profited from the scheme since 2005.
The action seeks to return tens of thousands of foreclosed homes to their owners or the values thereof and hundreds of millions in punitive damages against Mr. Baum, MERSCORP and HSBC.
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The aforementioned false foreclosure filings potentially hit tens of thousands of New Yorkers who were foreclosed upon. "Courts have rules and laws are made to be followed. Corporate America needs to follow the rules and be accountable just like the rest of us, else we're all victims to one big Bernie Madoff scam," says Lask.
Courts blast Mr. Baum for his sloppy filings claimed to be deliberate to hasten foreclosures on unwitting homeowners and courts. On July 29, 2010 NY County Supreme court Judge Alice Schlessinger summed up a MERS foreclosure as "I am unable to say with any confidence that this was an honest transaction." (Index #109824/05). The Manhattan US Trustees office started an investigation of Steven Baum months ago.
His tens of thousands of filings hit innocent and desperate people victimized by the present economic crisis who don't know how to defend themselves nor have the money for an attorney, according to Susan Chana Lask and courts as referenced above. People lose their property for false filings.
This process allows banks to avoid recording loans in the proper name, which saves the banks county clerk recording fees and allows them to resell the mortgage under different names that are hard to trace if not recorded. "They profit at every angle, starting with all the fees they getfrom the initial mortgage closing, then reselling it on the market to investors, right down to taking someone's house away to sell it for more money on top of everything they already got", says attorney Susan Chana Lask.
If any of the cases he approved turn out to be a wrongful foreclosure, such as the increasing number of foreclosures of the wrong house, can he be impeached?
I hope so.
“It’s not just Florida..this is spreading like wildfire. California, Maine, Texas, New York...”
Yeah, pretty much any state where there is judicial versus nonjudicial foreclosure. This is “hugh and series”!
I’d argue it’s a bigger issue in states with largely unlimited homestead exemption in bankruptcy as the debtor could end up owning a free and clear house in short order for the price of a chapter 7 filing.
The problem is that we often have no documentation who the actual creditor is.
Banks are foreclosing because they “say” they own the mortgage on the property, rather than being required to prove they own the mortgage. Requiring all parties to follow the law is a root conservative principle.
There's part of the issue, even if you are of the opinion that the homeowner owes somebody the monthly mortgage payment and shouldn't get a free ride. Is the foreclosing bank even entitled to the property? This judge doesn't seem to care.
Escrowed payments while the true ownership is sorted out seems to be an equitable solution.
I do believe that's the point of the article. FL judges are refusing to hear evidence that this is the case. Just not interested. Not relevant.
Secondly, you don't have to own a debt to be able to enforce its terms, so long as you have authority from the owner/holder of the debt to act as the owner's agent in enforcing the debt.
Quite true. However, as I understand it, this chain of authority has often been broken or is unclear or undocumented.
You’re right. The foreclosure mills are producing bals, backdated documents to hide the true holders in due course of the note and deed of trust. You must have both to foreclose. MERS failed in their mission to track and record documents at county court houses, thus permanently putting a cloud on the title. In one recent case, a couple had their house sold in foreclosure, then, after they were evicted they were again foreclosed upon, again, by another bank: All due to faulty paperwork from MERS. In fact, backdated assignments cannot be used to claim standing, but judges overlook this simple point.
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