Transcript FLORIDA ATTORNEYS SAVING HOMES

Pro bono Attorneys
Conference Call/Webinar
September 17, 12:00 p.m.
Moderator, Alice Vickers, Esq.
Florida Legal Services, Inc.
Call Directions
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Jimmy Midyette, Esq.,
Florida Legal Services, Inc.
Audio Suggestions/Issues
Chat/Questions Box
Virtual Hand-Raise
Welcome from the Real Property
Probate and Trust Law Section of
the Florida Bar
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Adele Stone, Esq., Vice-Chair of the Pro
Bono Committee of RPPTL section.
Welcome
Dionne Meyers, Esq., Coordinator of
Florida Attorneys Saving Homes
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How the program started
Goal of the program
Statistics on our cases so far
Mechanics of the program
Assistance we provide
Introduction of our first speaker
Counseling Clients
Cora Fulmore
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President, Mortgage and Credit Center, a forprofit counseling center in Winter Garden.
MCC provides pre-purchase, credit rebuilding,
debt management, and foreclosure counseling.
Ms. Fulmore is the former director of Housing
for the National Foundation for Consumer Credit
(NFCC) and does extensive training nationally.
Working With Housing
Counseling Agencies
September 17, 2008
Presenter: Cora R. Fulmore
Housing Counseling Agencies
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HUD Approved Counseling Agencies
Local CDC’s
Faith Based Organizations
Local Non-Profits
and
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Foreclosure Rescue Scammers
HUD.GOV
n
Services Provided
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1st Time Homebuyer Counseling and
Education
Fair Housing Counseling
Delinquency/Default Counseling
Predatory Lending Prevention
Debt Management Counseling
Why should we Partner
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Delinquency/Default Counseling
Why should we Partner
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Predatory Lending Prevention
County by County
HOUSEHOLDS IN FORECLOSURE
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Osceola County
1 in every 101 household
Broward County1 in every 127 households
Charlotte County
1 in every 187 households
Sarasota County
1 in every 192 households
Manatee County
1 in every 279 households
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National Average
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source: RealtyTrac
1 in every 501 households
Delinquency/Default
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Look at options available to homeowners
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Curable Options
Repayment Plan
 Forbearance
 Modification
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Principle Balance Reduction
Interest Rate Reduction
 Permanent or Temporary
Claim Advance
 VA Refund
 Reverse Equity
 Bankruptcy – Chapter 13
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Delinquency/Default
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When the homeowner does not desire to
save the home
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Incurable Options
Deed in Lieu
 Sale Property
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Pre-Foreclosure Sale – FHA
Compromise Agreement – VA
Short Sale – Conventional
Loan Assumption
 Bankruptcy – Chapter 7
 Foreclosure
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The Problem
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Identifying the owner of the debt
Agency Overload/Burnout
Getting through to the servicer
Consumer responsiveness
Servicer responsiveness
Foreclosure Scammers reach
borrowers first
Predatory Loans
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How to Determine?
What to Do?
CHECKLIST: IDENTIFYING A PREDATORY MORTGAGE
LOAN
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INDICATOR
Marketing & Sales
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Aggressive telephone or mail solicitations to targeted
neighborhoods
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Door-to-door solicitation by home improvement
contractor
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Kickbacks to mortgage brokers
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Steering to high rate lenders
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Promising specific terms, e.g., fixed rate loan; switching
at closing
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Property flipping
Check if
Included
The Application
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Structuring loans with payments borrowers can’t
afford
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Falsifying loan applications ( particularly regarding
income level)
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Adding “insincere” co-signers
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Making loans to mentally incapacitated homeowners
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Forging signatures on loan documents ( i.e., required
disclosures)
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Paying off subsidized mortgages or lower interest rate
loans
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Shifting unsecured debt into mortgages
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Loans in excess of 100% LTV
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Falsifying appraisals
The Loan
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High annual percentage rate
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High Points or padded closing costs
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ARM sold to borrower with limited/no ability to pay higher
payments
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Balloon Payments
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Negative amortization
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Bogus broker fees
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Requiring credit insurance
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Falsely identifying loans as lines of credit or open-end
mortgages
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Mandatory arbitration clauses
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Excessive prepayment penalties
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Rushed loan closing
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Back-dating documents, esp. the notice of right to cancel
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Failing to give copies of documents to homeowner at closing
After Closing
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Loan flipping ( repeated refinancing, often after highpressure sales tactics)
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Excessive late fees ( including daily interest)
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Deliberately posting payments late
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Abusive collection practices
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Incomplete or shoddy work by home improvement
contractor
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Shoddy installation of mobile home/damaged mobile home
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Failure to pay off debts as promised
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Foreclosure “rescue” scams
Q&A
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Questions from the volunteers
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“War Stories” from the front lines
Follow-up
Send critiques for this teleconfence and
suggestions for future teleconferences to
Dionne Meyers at:
[email protected]
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THANK YOU for joining us and for all the
work you are doing!