Foreclosure – Page 10 – Miami Real Estate Attorney Blog

Fla.’s Attorney General Investigates Whether 3 Prominent Foreclosure Law Firms Secured 1,000’s of Foreclosure Judgments by Fraud in Miami and Around the State

The economic crimes division of the Florida attorney general’s office is investigating whether possible wrongdoing by three law firms may have played a role in obtaining thousands of mortgage foreclosure judgments.

Banks and law firm firms are coming under greater scrutiny each and every day. It is therefore important to consult, and hire, an experienced foreclosure defense attorney to defend your rights. An experienced foreclosure defense attorney will be able to assess and evaluate what defenses you may have during the foreclosure process, and aggressively advocate your positions in the foreclosure. And when given an opportunity to defend these cases properly, we have actually not only won those cases, but we have secured attorney fees in our favor.

Thousands of final judgments of foreclosure against Florida homeowners may have been the result of the allegedly improper action of the bank’s law firms. Whether the law firms may have created affiliated companies outside the United States where the allegedly false documents are being prepared and then submitted to the law firms for use is also being investigated.

Law firms are certainly not immune to Florida’s a deceptive and unfair trade practice laws. This investigation appears to be aimed at curbing many of the practices that many foreclosure mills engage in on an almost daily basis. Indeed, many judges have become very frustrated with these law firms, and their practices. As a result, they have started to bash many law firms.

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We have been successful in defending many foreclosure cases when given an opportunity to develop a plan to properly defend the foreclosure.

If you are on the brink of foreclosure, need a real estate attorney, or just need to assess your legal rights, please contact our office today.

Alleged Foreclosure Fraud Leads to Lawsuit Against Prominent South Florida Foreclosure Mill Seeking Billions of Dollars

According to a recent report by the American Bar Association, David Stern, and his law firm, have been sued for fraud and violating racketeering laws. The Plaintiff is seeking billions of dollars in the class action lawsuit.

Mr. Stern’s law firm is one of the leading foreclosure mill law firms in the State of Florida. Also named in the lawsuit is a bank created company that purportedly owned a criminal enterprise which was established to do nothing more but violate homeowner’s legal rights by intentionally failing to reveal the true holders of mortgages under the guise of running a “registration” company that purportedly kept track of mortgage ownership.

The lawsuit was filed in the United States District for the Southern District of Florida. The lawsuit alleges that Mr. Stern, and his law firm, violated federal RICO statutes by fraudulently pursuing tens of thousands of foreclosure actions on behalf of lenders who did not hold the original notes and mortgages on the properties at issue as required by law.

Prior to this recent filing, several Florida Judges have bashed foreclosure mills for their unethical practices, and sloppy legal work. As a result, it seems that banks, and their law firms, are coming under greater judicial scrutiny with each passing day. Especially in light of the growing concerns for so many Americans that they may lose their home. It is therefore important to consult, and hire, an experienced foreclosure defense attorney to defend your rights. An experienced foreclosure defense attorney will be able to assess and evaluate what defenses you may have during the foreclosure process, and aggressively advocate your positions in the foreclosure. And when given an opportunity to defend these cases properly, we have actually not only won those cases, but we have secured attorney fees in our favor.

As for the lawsuit filed against David Stern, and his law firm, central to the purported fraud is an innovative company called Mortgage Electronic Registration Corp. (MERS). That company purported to be both the mortgagee and to be acting solely as a nominee for Lender and Lender’s successors and assigns in numerous form documents. Such “intentionally ambiguous verbiage,” as alleged in the complaint, was part of a conspiracy involving Stern, his law firm and defendant Merscorp Inc. that used MERS “so that to the average consumer, or even legal professional … who or what was or is ultimately receiving the benefits of any mortgage payments” cannot be determined.
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We have been successful in defending many foreclosure cases when given an opportunity to develop a plan to properly defend the foreclosure.

If you are on the brink of foreclosure, need a real estate attorney, or just need to assess your legal rights, please contact our office today.
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Miami Foreclosure Defense Lawyers See a Rise in Real Estate Sales

According to the South Florida Business Journal, homes sales were up in June. Sales of single family homes in June rose by 23.6% from May. However, new home sales nationwide were down 16.7% from the same period a year ago.

This may be a good time to consult with an experienced real estate attorney, and foreclosure defense attorney, to determine your best course of action if you are looking to either sell or buy your home at this time. The changing real estate market requires you to consult with a professional that knows this market, and is prepared to guide you through the ups and downs of the ever changing market.

In Miami-Dade County, in June, 33% more condominiums were sold than in June of 2009. As for single family homes, June saw a 1% increase of sales as compared with June of 2009. However, median sale prices for both condos and single family homes were down for the year.

In June of 2010, median sales prices, in Miami-Dade County, was down 9% compared to June of last year, but up 2% from May of this year. For instance, the median prices for a condo was $128,800. For single family homes, the median sales price for a single family home was $203,000, down 4% for the year, but up 3.4% for the month.

Statewide, sales prices were also down. For instance, median prices were down 5% for single family homes, and 16% for condos. Nationally, June sales of existing homes were down 5.1% from May, but up 9.8% from June of 2009.

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We have been successful in defending many foreclosure cases when given an opportunity to develop a plan to properly defend the foreclosure.

If you are on the brink of foreclosure, need a real estate attorney, or just need to assess your legal rights, please contact our office today.

The Lebron James Signing – the Stimulus Needed to Curtail Foreclosures in Miami

Lebron James could be the stimulus many South Florida home owners, real estate professionals, hotels, restaurants, and other local establishments, have been waiting for to hopefully get out of the economic doldrums. Our firm is very bullish about Lebron James’s impact on our local economy given the likely yearly prospects of having the Miami Heat competing and winning championships for the next 5 to 7 years. And that will keep Miami in the national spotlight for years to come.

Our firm’s very own Francis Suarez, the current commissioner for the City of Miami, was on hand to personally give Lebron James the key to the City of Miami during the Miami Heat’s exciting welcome party held at the American Airlines Arena in front of thousands of local fans and broadcast live on national TV.

Aside from the obvious impact on the hardwood, what impact will the Lebron James signing have on Miami? If nothing else, the Miami Heat will earn an extra $10 million a year in playoff revenue. But what about the real estate market and other segments of our local economy?

Miami is an event town, and very dependent on tourism. The signing of Lebron James plays to both of Miami’s economic strengths. It will further fuel a desire for many to come to Miami.

Many will be lured to Miami after watching Lebron James play on TV and noticing the swaying beautiful palm trees on a warm brisk January day while they sit at home snowed in from yet another nasty winter storm. Others will be lured by the active night life on South Beach, and the chance of running into a celebrity, or two, at such notable celebrity hotspots like Prime 112. All of this will only fuel an increased desire to come to Miami.

But will this increased desire to be in Miami be enough to curtail the ongoing foreclosure crises in South Florida? While some are already reporting the positive impact the Lebron James’s signing has had on local real estate prices, his signing alone probably won’t do much to curtail the current foreclosure crises. But if the economy starts to improve, banks start to unload their growing inventory of REO properties at a faster pace, and companies to start to hire again, then the foreclosure crises may come to a halt. And who knows, the Lebron James signing may serve as the catalyst to push the local economy in the right direction.
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It becomes important to consult with an experienced foreclosure defense attorney to understand your rights. We have been successful in defending many foreclosure cases when given an opportunity to develop a plan to properly defend the foreclosure.

If you are on the brink of foreclosure, and need to assess your legal rights, please contact our office today.

Surge in Miami Foreclosure Activity

Florida’s foreclosure rate remains the third highest in the country. But in terms of foreclosure filings, Florida had the second highest rate in the country. During the first six months of the year, there were 277,073 foreclosure filings in Florida. That is a 9% decrease from the prior 6 months, but a 3% increase for the first 6 months of 2009.

Locally, Miami-Dade County had 38,395 foreclosure filings. That amounts to 1 in 26 residences being placed in foreclosure. Miami-Dade County had an 11.5% increase of foreclosure filings in the first 6 months of this year as compared with the first 6 months of 2010.

In Broward County, there were just under 38,000 foreclosure filings, amounting to 1 in 21 homes in foreclosure. Broward County also experienced a 4% increase of foreclosure filings in the first 6 months of this year as compared with the first 6 months of 2010.

In Palm Beach County, there were 18,083 foreclosure filings, or 1 in 35 homes in foreclosure. Palm Beach County also experienced a 26% increase of foreclosure filings in the first 6 months of this year as compared with the first 6 months of 2010.

Banks also moved aggressively to repossess property in South Florida during the first 6 months of the year. During that time, banks took back an average of 4,000 South Florida properties, up 83% from the first half of 2009. In Miami-Dade County, there was a 125% increase in bank repossessions during the first 6 months of this year as compared with the same time period last year. Indeed, all these home repossessions are contributing to the continued decrease of prices in South Florida.

Strategic Defaults are Under Assault by Bank of America, and others, and May Lead to a Rise in Deficiency Judgments

Many financial institutions, including Bank of America, are planning on getting tougher with those who do not try in good faith to work out a deal with the bank but who have the capacity to pay.

Proposals that are currently floating around, and being pushed by Fannie Mae, and others, include trying to encourage distressed homeowners to find alternatives to foreclosure by banning those who walk away from their home from getting new loans to purchase a home for seven years. Put differently, if it is determined that you stopped making mortgage payments despite having the capacity to do so, you may be banned from getting a new loan for up to seven years.

A strategic default is a decision by a borrower to stop making payments on a debt despite having the financial ability to make the payment. A Wall Street Journal report recently estimated that 1 in 5 mortgage defaults are “strategic”. Indeed, many are anticipating that the next wave of foreclosures will consist of more and more individuals seeking to walk away from homes that are currently underwater.

Another weapon that many financial institutions have in their arsenal to combat strategic defaults is the pursuit of a deficiency judgment. A deficiency judgment occurs when the financial institution has not only taken the home back, but has also sold the home. However, the proceeds of the foreclosure sale were not enough to cover the full amount of the original mortgage. That difference between the foreclosure sale, and the original mortgage, is often referred to as the deficiency.

If a bank, such as Bank of America, suspects that the borrower simply walked away from the mortgage despite having the financial capacity to pay, the bank will likely have an increased incentive to pursue the borrower and seek recovery of the deficiency by way of a deficiency judgment. It should be emphasized that if a deficiency judgment is properly recorded, it could remain in effect for up to 20 years in the state of Florida. That means that the bank could have up to 20 years to recoup each and every penny, plus interest, of the deficiency judgment.

It becomes important to consult with an experienced foreclosure defense attorney to understand your rights. We have been successful in defending many foreclosure cases when given an opportunity to develop a plan to properly defend the foreclosure.
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If you are on the brink of foreclosure, and need to assess your legal rights, please contact our office today.

Miami Foreclosure Defense Lawyers: How the Foreclosure Process Is Initiated & Developing a Plan to Defend the Foreclosure

In Florida, unlike many other states, banks must utilize the court system in all foreclosures. In other words, if a bank wants to take your home, they must file a lawsuit against you. As a result, the foreclosure process may actually afford the homeowner with additional opportunities, and time, to remedy the situation.

It should be noted that many Florida banks hired several high-priced lobbyists recently in an effort to persuade our legislators to implement non-judicial foreclosures in Florida. Fortunately, the high-priced assault on homeowners, and their legal rights, in Florida failed. Therefore, foreclosures in Florida will continue to move through our judicial system.

It is therefore important to consult, and hire, an experienced foreclosure Defense attorney to defend your rights. An experienced foreclosure Defense attorney will be able to assess and evaluate what defenses you may have during the foreclosure process, and aggressively advocate your positions in the foreclosure.

For instance, the very first thing that a bank must do to formally initiate a foreclosure proceeding against you is to properly file a foreclosure complaint. Recent changes to our Florida Rules of Civil Procedure mandates that the banks must provide certain verification, under the penalty of perjury, that they actually own the note in question in order to properly file a foreclosure complaint. Failure to do so may result in the dismissal of the bank’s case against you.

Additionally, often times banks are required to send you written notification of the default at least 30 days prior to the filing of the foreclosure lawsuit against you. Failure to adhere to this condition precedent may result in the dismissal of the bank’s lawsuit against you.

When a foreclosure lawsuit has been filed, a process server will typically come to your home to serve you with the necessary legal papers. Often times, the process server may leave the papers on your doorstep when no one was home, or leave it with a housekeeper, or other person, that does not reside at your home. While the aforementioned circumstances certainly present the opportunity to raise a valid defense that you were not properly served with the foreclosure complaint, it is of critical and paramount importance that you respond within 20 days nonetheless. Even if you believe that the papers were not properly provided to you, if you fail to respond within 20 days you will be in a default situation where your defenses may be all waived and it will be difficult for you to assert any valid defense that you may have to defend the case.

Therefore, and upon receipt of the foreclosure complaint, irrespective of the manner in which you received it, it is critical to consult with an experience foreclosure Defense attorney to begin the process and developing a plan to defend the case and save your home. We have been successful in defending many foreclosure cases when given an opportunity to develop a plan to properly defend the foreclosure.
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If you are on the brink of foreclosure, and need to assess your legal rights, please contact our office today.

Miami Foreclosure Defense Attorneys Win Case Against the Bank and Get Attorney Fees Awarded to them too

Our firm recently prevailed in a contested foreclosure dispute after having litigated the case with the bank, and their lawyers, for three years. Not only did we win the case, but we were also awarded several thousands of dollars in attorney fees in doing so that the bank now has to pay our law firm.

The Judge assigned to the case awarded our firm 100% of the attorney fees we requested, and found our attorney fees to be reasonable given the complexities and issues raised in this case. This is just another example why it is important to hire an experienced foreclosure defense law firm to represent your interests.

This victory is also the latest in a growing trend for many homeowners that are actually winning their cases against the banks. Many judges are frustrated by the deliberately slow, and often times sloppy, pace of many banks that are attempting to foreclose. Indeed, the Florida Attorney General Office’s is currently investigating many law firms that actively file foreclosures on behalf of many Florida banks. The investigation centers on allegations of purported fraud.

Moreover, the bank’s efforts to move foreclosures out of the court system, and into a bank friendly, and bank created, foreclosure process, was rejected by our legislators. Additionally, recent changes to the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure that require banks to verify, under penalty of perjury, that the bank filing the lawsuit actually owns the mortgage, coupled with higher filing fees, and mandatory early mediation, all means that the banks have to be much more careful and precise when trying to foreclose on a property.

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If you are on the brink of foreclosure, and need to assess your legal rights, please contact our office today.

Saving Your Home: Alternatives to Avoid Foreclosure

Hugo V. Alvarez will be a speaking at a Foreclosure Clinic sponsored by the Florida Bar’s Consumer Protection Law Committee, in conjunction with the Legal Aid of Palm Beach County. The clinic is scheduled to take place on June 24th from 6pm to 8pm at the Boca Raton Community Center.

Mr. Alvarez will be speaking on alternatives to foreclosure, and specifically discussing (a) options to retain one’s home, while avoiding foreclosure, and (b) options to dispose of one’s home, and avoid foreclosure.

Options to Retain Your Home

1. Payment or Repayment Plan – the quickest method of avoiding foreclosure is to come up with the necessary money to bring the delinquent loan current. In some instances, banks are willing to provide the delinquent borrower with a repayment plan in an effort to bring the mortgage current. This will typically involve an agreed upon time frame in which to make the regular payments, plus a little extra, to repay in the delinquent amount in full over time.

2. Refinance – in the event that you actually have equity in your home today, you may be in a position to refinance your mortgage. Refinancing your mortgage may actually provide you with a lower interest rate, and a lower monthly payment. If you do not qualify for a government-sponsored loan modification, you may also be eligible for a government-sponsored re-financing plan (HARP – Home Affordable Refinance Program).

3. Forbearance – some banks may offer you a forbearance plan. This option typically provides for a temporary reduction or a suspension of monthly payments for a specified length of time, and with an agreement that the amount that was forgiven will be paid back at a later date.

4. Loan Modification – a loan modification is a permanent change in one or more of the terms of the mortgage. It also allows the mortgage to be reinstated, and results in a payment that the borrower can afford. This can include anything from a reduction in interest, adding years to the mortgage (from say a 30 year mortgage to a 40 year mortgage), reduction in the principal amount owed, or any combination of the aforementioned. It should be noted that many financial institutions are provided with financial incentives from the government to modify loans. Additionally, the current loan modification program is not designed to save every home, but only geared toward saving the homes of individuals that can still afford to be in that home.

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Options to Dispose of Your Home

1. Sell the Home – if there is sufficient equity in your home, you may be able to sell your home in today’s market for more than the amount you currently owe on your mortgage. If you can do this, you will actually reap a profit.

2. Short Sale – if your home is “underwater”, i.e. you owe more than the home is worth, then you will have to pursue a short sale if you are interested in selling the home. A short sale is when a bank allows you to sell the home for a contract price that is less than the amount owed on the mortgage. In many instances, however, banks may reserve the right to pursue the difference between the short sale contract price, and the amount owed on the mortgage, from the borrower directly. This is commonly known as a “deficiency”, or “deficiency judgment”. So when trying to sell a home via short sale, it is important to understand whether the bank will continue to pursue the borrower, for monies owed, even after the transaction is completed, especially if the home was “underwater” at the time of the short sale. Don’t assume that just because the bank approved the short sale that they won’t pursue you for the difference after the deal is done.

3. Deed in Lieu of Foreclosure – this is accomplished when the property owner voluntarily gives the property back to the bank in exchange for the bank canceling the mortgage. In other words, the deed is transferred from the borrower to the bank in an effort to shorten the length and costly process of foreclosing on the property. As with a short sale, the bank may reserve the right to pursue any deficiency against the borrower directly even after the deal is done.

4. Tax Issues – all tax issues should be consulted in great detail with a certified public accountant. However, if you lose your home to foreclosure or short sale, where you sell your home for less than you owe, the IRS won’t add insult to injury by counting the difference as income. At least until 2012.

However, there are four major exceptions to the rule:

A. You did a cash-out refinance and splurged.
B. You have a home-equity line of credit.
C. You lost your vacation home or investment property.
D. You owned a multi-million-dollar home.

But again, these are issues to be covered in greater detail with an accountant.

If you are on the brink of foreclosure, and need to assess your legal rights, please contact our office today.

Real Estate Market Losing Steam as Hurricane Season Approaches

Real Estate experts are anticipating that home sales will slow for the second half of the year. This is due in large part to the expiration of the $8,000 tax credit, for first time home buyers, that expired on April 30. However, those that signed purchase contracts prior to April 30th can still take advantage of that tax credit if they complete their transaction by June 30th.

Additionally, other factors will likely continue to contribute to the ongoing sluggish recovery in the housing market. For instance, the economic recovery that is currently taking place is largely a jobless one. In fact, since 2007, when the recession began, South Florida’s workforce has only recovered to about 90% of where it was before the recession began. Since South Florida’s economy was so dependent on the housing market, it will likely take some time for South Florida’s economy to recover given the ongoing real estate crisis that is impacting all of us on a daily basis here in South Florida.

Additionally, another potential problem for our local economy, an economy that is still very dependent on real estate development, is that many lenders are increasingly reluctant to make new construction loans to developers. Now that certain tax credits have expired, coupled with the increasingly sluggish real estate market, builders see stormy days ahead. Indeed, increasingly high unemployment rates, coupled with stringent mortgage lending guidelines, are keeping many prospective purchasers on the sidelines.

All of these factors contribute to the general consensus that our real estate market will continue to struggle to stand on its own without the assistance of government backed programs, like the tax credit for first time home buyers, or a sharp turnaround in the economy as a whole.

In South Florida, with the storm season under way, a natural catastrophe could tip the ongoing real estate crisis into further disarray. If high unemployment rates, and rapidly declining real estate values were not enough, then a strong hurricane directly hitting South Florida and causing extensive damage will only serve to worsen the ongoing real estate crisis here in South Florida.

If you are on the brink of foreclosure, and need to assess your legal rights, especially in light of the recent BP oil spill, please contact our office today.