Tag Archives: mortgage

The “Home Affordable” Scam

home affordability scam We can debate endlessly the political and economic ramifications of the bailout given to the major banks to pay them out for their greed and bad deeds.  Many historians believe that the government’s decision to take the opposite course of the Hoover administration in the late 1920’s was the right move, regardless of how distasteful it was to most of us.

However, regardless of your opinion here, one thing was clear.  The bailouts approved by the Bush administration and followed up by the Obama administration came with strings attached.  Those same major banks were told to bend over backwards to work with home owners in foreclosure and/or bankruptcy to stay in their homes.  The deal was that the banks got the money but had to implement programs to help people lower their monthly payments via lower interest rates and forgiven non-payment.  One option for folks is the “Home Affordable” (HAMP) program.

Sadly, as many of the clients working with The Mark Bamberger Co., LLC are finding out the hard way, HAMP and the other programs is a shell game.  The banks have apparently colluded in their efforts to make success in these programs virtually impossible.  In so many cases, paperwork is lost…over and over.  Information has to be updated…over and over.  Then in the end most clients are denied anyway.  In the alternative to working with clients, the banks seem even more obstinate and contrarian and our clients are suffering more than ever.

What can be done?  More and more stories are being written and reported about this scan and the pressure is building on these greedy multi-national corporations.  The Mark Bamberger Co. LLC has implemented a number of civil lawsuits against these banks for fraud and other bad-faith dealings. Further, TMBC is ever-more vigilant at checking mortgage documents to look for fraud and confirm the validity of the signing documents.

The bottom-line is this; the mortgage lenders are NOT your friends.  They should be viewed with constant skepticism and viewed as enemies; be cautious and be vigilant!

Mark J. Bamberger, Esq.

The Mark Bamberger Co., LLC

Foreclosure Defense

Many homeowners, especially those who were enticed to sign sub-prime mortgages, can no longer afford their mortgage payments, even if the mortgage is current. That makes a Chapter 13 bankruptcy impossible. Even if you are behind on your payments, and cannot afford the current monthly payment for your home, you should definitely contact The Mark Bamberger Law Co. LLC to fight the foreclosure.

While you are litigating the foreclosure case, you are not required to make your normal monthly mortgage payments. The legal process will afford you time to reinstate the mortgage, sell your home, file a bankruptcy or move out. You may be able to force the lender to completely rewrite the terms of your note and mortgage, enabling you to actually keep your home.

This may sound too good to be true, but you may actually have valuable defenses and counterclaims against your mortgage company that could actually prevent foreclosure and even require your lender to pay you damages. All across the US, judges are harshly punishing mortgage companies for incomplete record keeping and for violations of the Truth In Lending Act. You may be able to allege valid defenses including fraud and Truth In Lending Act violations.

Are you aware that your mortgage company is probably not the same company that actually loaned you the money to buy or refinance your home? How do you know if the mortgage company suing you has been properly assigned your note and mortgage? Your mortgage company may have failed to properly assign the note and mortgage before initiating the foreclosure. Does your foreclosure complaint even have copies of the note, mortgage and purported assignment attached?

Most likely, these documents are not attached, and may not even be in the possession of your mortgage company. Your mortgage company may be attempting to substitute your original note and/or mortgage with a purported copy. This is called a “Count to Establish Lost Documents.” There are strict legal requirements to establish a lost note or mortgage, and your mortgage company may be unable to meet the requirements if challenged.

If your current mortgage company is not your original lender, it probably has never read your mortgage. Your mortgage may require that the plaintiff accelerate (i.e. demand) the entire balance of the note. Your mortgage company probably failed to do that, which may entitle you the opportunity to cure the mortgage by paying the reinstatement amount. It is also very common for mortgage companies to inflate the balance due on the mortgage by charging homeowners junk fees, such as Broker Price Opinions (BPO), property inspections and other “property preservation expenses.” We know how to ferret out these tactics and hold your mortgage company accountable.

Essentially, your mortgage company may have filed an improper foreclosure lawsuit, but your time to contest this is limited. You have or will be served with a copy of the foreclosure complaint by a process server. You typically have only 20 days to respond to the mortgage company’s complaint, so you need to see an attorney immediately if you wish to defend against the foreclosure. If you are beyond the twenty days, there are still defenses that can be raised.

Please don’t wait. Contact The Mark Bamberger Law Co. LLC right away so we can begin to defend your rights!