Archive for arizona loan modification lawyer
We are getting more and more calls from people who have decided to give up on the hopes of principal loan balance reduction (we have always told people principal loan balance reductions are like a bigfoot sighting) and instead seek to short sell their property letting the bank deal with the property, especially where the stubborn bank (that got their bailout) refuses to help the homeowner save their home by providing a reasonable and meaningful loan modification.
Now, in the context of shot sales, there are a few things to consider:
(1) Will you be liable for a deficiency judgment (meaning if the lender allows you to sell your home for less than its worth, can the lender come back against you for a deficiency judgment?
We have talked about deficiency judgments in Arizona on one of our other websites: Click here for more general legal information: http://www.arizonadeficiencyjudgment.com/
(2) Are there tax implications involved with the lender forgiving debt owed?
(3) Are you entitled to $1,500 relocation expenses following a short sale under the HAFA (Short Sales Incentives law)?
(4) Do you qualify for HAFA?
We outlined the general qualifications for HAFA and some of the general rules on our HAFA short sale blog which can be found here: http://activerain.com/blogsview/1546150/short-sales-overview-before-and-in-anticipation-of-hafa
(5) Can a forensic loan audit and letter to your lender help assist in them accepting a short sale over forcing you into foreclosure? Do you have any predatory lending violations that you can leverage? Is it better to file a lawsuit against your lender?
We have previously outlined some of the things we look for in an Attorney forensic loan audit on this website: http://vondranlegal.com/2009/08/15/what-is-a-forensic-loan-audit/
(6) What other options might you have if the lender refuses to accept your short sale? Options such as filing bankruptcy or pursuing a deed-in-lieu of foreclosure?
Our Arizona bankruptcy website can be found at www.ArizonaBankruptcyResourceCenter.com
THIS COULD BE OUR LAST CALL FOR WORLD SAVINGS AND WACHOVIA OPTION ARM LOANS…….
Posted by: | CommentsRUNNING OUT OF TIME FOR WACHOVIA AND WORLD SAVINGS OPTION ARM LOANS
This is an update for all of our Clients who have World Savings and Option Arm Loans. As you may have heard on our radio show www.LoanModRadio.com (The Foreclosure Defense Show), we have been successful helping many homeowners who have World Savings and Option Arm Loans get loan modifications without charging any advance fees. Please note, our program may only be last another month or so for reasons beyond our control.
We have documentable principal reduction (however this is no guarantee of such) in a good number of cases where the Wachovia or World Savings Homeowner was upside-down in their properties and a principal loan balance reduction was needed to make the modification work.
THIS MAY BE OUR LAST CALL FOR LOAN MODIFICATIONS FOR WORLD SAVINGS OPTION ARM LOANS AND WACHOVIA OPTION ARM LOANS. IF YOU HAVE ONE OF THESE TYPES OF LOANS CALL US TO DISCUSS OUR FANTASTIC LOAN MODIFICATION PROGRAM.
PART OF THE REASON FOR OUR SUCCESS ON THE OPTION ARM LOANS COMES FROM OUR UNDERSTAND OF THESE PREDATORY LOANS. YOU CAN LEARN MORE ABOUT NEGATIVE AMORTIZATION OPTION ARM LOANS AT WWW.OPTIONARMLAWYER.COM
Be careful who you let work on your Option Arm Loan – Loan Mod Scams Continue post SB94
Posted by: | CommentsAN UPDATE ON CALIFORNIA LOAN MODIFICATION SCAMS AND SB 94 – CONSUMERS MUST REMAIN ALERT AND VIGILANT
Well the last year has been pretty crazy in the loan modification business. We have seen lots of companies being shut down by the California Department of Real Estate and California State bar (ex. brokers, attorneys, “attorney-backed” and “attorney-based” law centers and fictional “law groups” etc.) who were found out as being nothing more than scams, shams, and ripoff artists.
Some of the reasons these companies were the subject of cease and desist (or desist and refrain) letters is the following:
-They held themselves out as loan modification specialists and loan modification experts when in fact they had no special skill, training, experience, or track record.
-They took advance fees without the proper advance fee agreement that received a letter of non-objection from the DRE.
-They collected advance fees but failed to properly place funds in a Client trust account.
-They failed to properly provide verified accountings as required by the California Department of Real Estate.
-They failed to have all of the loan modification advertising approved by the DRE.
-They took files that were in notice of default (this applies to the non-attorneys) in violation of the Foreclosure Consultant Law.
-The committed other acts of outright fraud, misrepresentation, deceit and false advertising.
-In the case of Loan Modification Attorneys they may have illegally partnered with non-attorneys (such as brokers and foreclosure consultants) that would not only tout the attorneys services – taking the form of an illegal runner or capper – but also illegally splitting what could be construed as a legal fee, and engaging in other shady conduct that violates an attorneys code of ethics.
In addition, Post SB94, some entities accepted an advance fee in violation of SB94 which prohibits both attorneys, brokers, and foreclosure consultants from accepting any type of advance fee for loan modification or foreclosure forbearance work.
- They failed to provide refunds when their contracts stated they would, or where verbal representations of 100% money back guarantee were given.
Yes, there were a whole lot of callous and cavalier people/companies raking homeowners over the coals for their own personal gain, and without any morals or scruples. I guess you could say there were a bunch of Bernie Madoff’s in the loan modification business.
From what we could tell, the Attorney loan mod scammers often were either the “newbie” Attorneys who had no clue what was going on and didn’t care (and may have had a hard time finding legal jobs in the tough economic climate following law school) and/or 20 or 30 year attorneys who could care less whether or not the State bar stripped their license to practice law (I think some of these attorney violators were racking up so much money, and trying to ship it off-shore for their retirement purposes). In fact, we heard one Southern California Attorney, who was disbarred for his loan modification shennanigans, had over 1,700 loan files that he had charged over $6,000 a piece to help modify their loans (yes, that is about 11 million dollars). This information was relayed to our office by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) who helped stopped the attorneys scam, and put the joker out of business.
QUIET TITLE ACTIONS IN CALIFORNIA – A BASIC OVERVIEW
The following is general legal information and is not to be construed as legal advice or a substitute for legal advice. The information below many not be complete, accurate, or up-to-date as law can, and does frequently change. For specific questions about your quiet title case, contact a real estate or foreclosure defense attorney to review the facts of your case.
Steve Vondran, Esq. practices Real Estate, Foreclosure Defense & Bankruptcy Law in Phoenix, Arizona, and California where he is licensed to practice law. He can be reached atsteve@vondranlaw.com or (877) 276-5084.
CALIFORNIA QUIET TITLE LAW – A GENERAL OVERVIEW
The statutory provisions for Quiet Title in California can be found in the California Code of Civil Procedure Sections 760.10-760.060. A Quiet Title action is basically a legal action that seeks to “quiet title” to property where adverse claims are made against the property. For example, where a lender wrongfully forecloses on a property and claims the property as their own, but the homeowner challenges this.
Here is the California Quiet Title Statutory Law (there are also cases interpreting these quiet title provisions). Bolded and italics material are provided by me:
760.010. As used in this chapter:
(a) “Claim” includes a legal or equitable right, title, estate, lien, or interest in property or cloud upon title.
(b) “Property” includes real property, and to the extent
applicable, personal property.
760.020. (a) An action may be brought under this chapter to establish title against adverse claims to real or personal property or any interest therein.
(b) An action may be brought under this chapter by parties to an agreement entered into pursuant to Section 6307 or 6357 of the Public Resources Code to confirm the validity of the agreement.
(c) Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the right of members of the public to bring or participate in actions challenging the validity of agreements entered into pursuant to Section 6307 or 6357 of the Public Resources Code.
