Archive for October, 2009

Wage Garnishment and Deficiency Judgment After Foreclosure

Homeowners are often worried about further collection attempts after a foreclosure has been completed. After losing their homes, they worry about seeing their car repossessed, bank accounts levied, or wages garnished. But in most cases, there is little chance of a deficiency judgment or future collection attempts due to the numerous obstacles in the path […]

Collection Agencies, Violations of the FDCPA, and Penalties

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) was originally designed to protect debtors against abusive actions taken by collection agencies when they are pursuing a debt. There are numerous violations that may cause penalties against the debt collector to be paid to the borrowers or applied to the balance of the account. Two of the […]

Hopelessly Corrupted — Credit Card Companies, Debt Collectors, and Mandatory Arbitration

One tool of the credit card companies has always been to force consumers into unfair arbitration proceedings, where very little is done to help strapped borrowers get back on top of debts. While most people who were involved in such negotiations had a feeling they horribly biased against the consumers, the full extent of the […]

Why are Property Taxes Rising as Property Values Crash?

What is most amazing about the real estate downturn and economic depression is that government seems to keep on growing. In fact, government at all levels does not seem to have missed a beat, as they all seem to be growing. The only thing that has changed is the reason for continued government growth.
During strong […]

How Nonjudicial Foreclosure Discourages Homeowners from Saving their Homes

In nonjudicial foreclosure states, homeowners who believe they can fight back against the process face an additional challenge that borrowers in judicial states do not have to deal with. In a nonjudicial foreclosure process, the bank is able to proceed with selling a home at a public auction with no involvement by the local court […]

Foreclosure Auction Occurs but Ownership is Not Transferred?

At the end of the foreclosure process, once all of the notices have been sent and published and the lawsuit has ended, a public auction is held to dispose of the property. This typically called a sheriff sale or trustee sale, and is the event during foreclosure where borrowers’ ownership interest is transferred to the […]

Foreclosure and How to Deal with a Bank Being Taken Over by the FDIC

From Washington Mutual to the local bank on the corner, the government has been busy since the financial crisis began shutting down banks almost every week. Many of these banks are becoming insolvent due to their exposure to the subprime mortgage market and other risky loans that they extended to consumers or invested in to […]

Attorneys Engaging in Loan Modification and Foreclosure Scams

There is an amazing story in the August 2009 issue of the California Bar Journal about the growing number of complaints against lawyers and law firms offering mortgage help to homeowners. From investigating nine such complaints for all of 2008, the California State Bar is now investigating 391 complaints against 140 attorneys. What is causing […]

How Credit Card Fraudsters Use Small Charges to Discourage Disputes

Identity theft is everywhere these days. No company or individual who has ever used a credit card online is safe from criminal hackers and social engineering thieves. And although large corporations may have the most information that identity thieves can target, smaller companies can still yield hundreds or thousands of credit card numbers.
One of the […]

Foreclosure and the FHA - Preforeclosure Requirements Lenders Often Violate

The US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has established requirements that lenders must meet in order to bring a legitimate foreclosure action against homeowners. These rules apply to mortgages that are insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and include a number of steps lenders and servicing companies must follow before foreclosing on […]

« Previous Entries