Tag Archives: Foreclosure Mediation

HOPE LoanPort has announced a partnership with the state of Maryland and GMAC Mortgage to deliver a direct-to-consumer foreclosure mediation portal. GMAC is funding development of the portal and will be the first mortgage servicer to use it. The portal, scheduled to go live in October 2011, will be the first statewide program in the nation to allow homeowners and servicers to exchange documents electronically prior to foreclosure mediation.

Washington Attorney General Rob McKenna and Assistant Attorney General Jim Sugarman have filed suit against ReconTrust Company, a subsidiary of Bank of America, for illegally foreclosing thousands of Washington homes. McKenna and Sugarman are requesting the court require ReconTrust to abide by state laws in addition to inflicting civil penalties of up to $2,000 per violation and restitution for affected homeowners.

Financial Literacy Solutions LLC (FLS) is providing a video solution for loan mediation to Consolidated Credit Counseling Services, Inc. FLS offers Web-based custom videos and automated forms and materials that enable the borrower to learn about the mediation process. Consolidated Credit says as more states across the nation enact regulations that require mediation as part of the default process, it has seen demand for counseling services rise dramatically.

Indiana has enacted a new foreclosure law surrounding the state's pre-judgment mediation program, outlining changes related to borrower notification and loss mitigation documentation. Senate Bill 582 passed both chambers of the state Legislature by a near unanimous vote, with only one senator casting a nay, and was quickly signed into law by Gov. Mitch Daniels. The law becomes effective for all new residential foreclosure filings as of July 1.

The nation's Capitol stands out as the ""shining star"" in nearly every market report that crosses the wire. Washington, D.C. has consistently resisted home price declines, sales activity bucks widespread trends, and foreclosure numbers, too, have been almost non-existent due to an unofficial moratorium. Is it the absence of foreclosure property that's behind D.C.'s defiant market performance and will it turn now that emergency mediation rules have been enacted to restart foreclosures? Local experts say no, D.C. is just a market to itself.

Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller wants lawmakers to extend a state law that requires creditors to provide notices of free, confidential mortgage counseling services to homeowners in the state facing foreclosure. Under a law that expires July 1, lenders must inform delinquent borrowers about Iowa Mortgage Help, a provider of counseling and mediation services for struggling homeowners to help them pursue an alternative to foreclosure.

According to a notice from Fannie Mae, all future foreclosures in Hawaii must be commenced as judicial foreclosures due to Hawaii's recently passed legislation, SB 651. In addition, the GSE directed servicers to dismiss and convert all pending Fannie Mae non-judicial foreclosures that have not proceeded to sale to judicial foreclosures. Some recent REO acquisitions may also need to be re-foreclosed due to potential title insurance issues.

Hawaii Gov. Neil Abercrombie has signed into law a measure aimed at stemming foreclosures in the state by bringing homeowners and their lenders together to negotiate an alternative resolution. Based on first-quarter foreclosure activity, RealtyTrac reports that Hawaii had the 11th highest foreclosure rate in the nation, with one in every 201 homes in the state receiving a filing during the first three months of this year.

A new mediation program to help ease those affected by residential mortgage foreclosures will soon be available in Peoria County, Illinois. The program's anticipated start date is June 1. The program, approved by the Illinois Supreme Court, is modeled after one that began last June in Will County. Both programs operate with no expense to taxpayers and are sustained by an increase in filing fees paid by lenders seeking to foreclose.

Washington Governor Chris Gregoire signed the Foreclosure Fairness Act of 2011 into law Thursday. The new law goes into effect July 13. It gives homeowners facing foreclosure access to housing counselors, including meeting with the bank and an independent mediator to review options to keep their homes. Support for such mediation will be funded, at least in part, by lenders, who will pay a $250 fee for every new notice of default they file.