Orlando Foreclosure Defense

by Justin L. Seekamp

Freddie Mac, a major player in the mortgage market and recipient of billions of taxpayer dollars, has both started a few new questionable policies and taken some, according to industry experts, “shocking” actions during the past year or so. Details of these actions come from an article from public-interest website Skanner.com and the entire story can be found here. The article details recently initiated policies by Freddie Mac as well as some investment decisions by the company which experts have stated, “…seemed so out of line with their mission.”

The first topic of discussion involves recent policy decisions initiated by Freddie Mac. One such policy change, that seems to be counter to one of Freddie Mac’s stated goals to “support and provide liquidity and stability to the mortgage market,” is Freddie Mac’s recent policy change that disqualifies any person, depending on their financial condition, seeking to re-finance their mortgage to take advantage of the lower interest rates now being offered if they have had a short sale in the last two to four years. Previously, Freddie Mac’s rules only prohibited some short sales from being considered for re-financing but in October 2010, the policy changed to include all short sales. In addition to this policy change, Freddie Mac has also recently initiated several new fee charges against those who obtain refinancing or their mortgage is serviced by the mortgage giant. One such fee was the one initiated by Freddie Mac near Thanksgiving of 2010 in which Freddie Mac announced that it was initiating a post-delivery settlement fee. The Federal Housing Finance Agency, which now basically controls the actions of Freddie Mac as part of the government bailout package Freddie Mac accepted, has taken action to eliminate the issuance of such fees but, it seems that Freddie Mac is still looking to make money even off of those affected by the economic downturn. In addition to these policy changes and fee implementations, Freddie Mac has also taken some “shocking” actions essentially betting against America’s homeowners.

The article also discusses at length Freddie Mac’s recent investments that seem to, again, be “…so out of line with their mission.” The trades, while perfectly legal, involve certain types of securities that Freddie Mac uses its mortgages to underpin that are divided into two categories. The first category are those that are backed by mortgage principal, which pay low returns, and is sold to investors who wanted conservative investments. The second category, called the “inverse floater,” is backed mainly by interest payments on mortgages coming from mortgages that Freddie Mac holds that have interest rates above the low rates currently offered of around 4 % and these portions of the securities are those which Freddie Mac has progressively become more and more involved in acquiring. From a period of late 2010 and continuing through 2011, Freddie Mac’s purchases of inverse floater securities rose dramatically, as was stated in the article. The risks involved with such securities are that; first, if the homeowners default, Freddie Mac pays the entire value of the mortgages underpinning the securities and these types of securities are harder for Freddie Mac to trade and sell-off in cases of emergency. The article closes its discussion by stating that, “It is unclear what kinds of hedging, if any, Freddie has done to offset its risks.

It seems like there continues to be confusion and chaos in the mortgage and foreclosure spheres even with those whom which the U.S. government has a controlling interest in. But, as always, should you be served with foreclosure paperwork and are looking for someone to fight for your rights as a borrower, then seeking representation from a qualified and experienced Florida foreclosure attorney may be the best way to do so.

by Justin L. Seekamp

After our post last week regarding Seminole County Chief Judge, Alan Dickey’s, three-hundred (300) foreclosure case week, reported in the Orlando Sentinel, we waited to see if there would be any commentary and it appears, that some of those actually caught up in the 300-case docket are the ones speaking out. In an article from ABC News, found here, several homeowners as well as Judges provided their own commentary on the happenings in Seminole County and Judge Dickey.

Florida homeowner, Blaize McMonagle, was one of those few to be included in Judge Dickey’s fast-paced docket. Mr. McMonagle’s story is like many other unfortunate Florida homeowners who lost his job which then resulted in him missing mortgage payments to the mortgage company. Mr. McMonagle came to court on Tuesday morning, the first day of Judge Dickey’s 300 case week, prepared to attempt to fight the foreclosure proceedings and wanted to point out that the bank had “not been willing to work” with him and his wife regarding a loan modification and that the bank whom had filed the foreclosure action against him did not own the loan, a principal requirement for any person to file such a lawsuit.  Instead, Mr. McMonagle states, “The judge asked me when the last time I paid was and then he gave a default judgment to my bank, without giving me an opportunity to defend myself.” McMonagle stated further, “I didn’t get a chance to speak, I have a constitutional right to defend myself and at least give the judge evidence and make my case, but he didn’t give me a chance to do that. He just ruled against me. I think it’s an abomination of the justice system.” Clearly Mr. McMonagle did not appreciate the Judge’s schedule.

Another party to the schedule for Judge Dickey had a bit of a different result and understandably a different take on the proceedings. Florida homeowner and attorney, Nhan Lee, had a similar story to Mr. McMonagle but Judge Dickey continued the hearing brought by the bank to foreclose on Mr. Lee and his wife’s Oviedo, Florida home. Perhaps this was due to the fact that Mr. Lee was an attorney or, maybe someone may have known that Mr. Lee’s wife of 20-years was in the final stages of lung cancer and decided that allowing the bank to foreclose on the Lee’s was too much. Mr. Lee, was relieved that the hearing was continued and commented that the continuance was a “small blessing” so that he, his wife, and his family could spend his wife’s last few days alive in their home. Clearly Mr. Lee’s take on the situation was a bit different but, it goes to show the inconsistencies with the overall foreclosure process in Florida.

As always, should you be served with foreclosure paperwork and are looking for someone to fight for your rights as a borrower, then seeking representation from a qualified and experienced Florida foreclosure attorney may be the best way to do so.