According to a published report, the number of delinquent mortgages decreased by 16% between February and March 2014 to reach their lowest level since October 2007. In a related report, Black Knight Financial claims that only 10 percent of homeowners are underwater on their loans, as compared with 34 percent in 2010. The financial analysts...Read More
In April 2014, a lawsuit was unsealed that accuses OneWest Bank, formerly known as IndyMac Bancorp, of abusing the 2009 Home Affordable Modification Program (U.S. ex rel Fisher v. OneWest Bank FSB, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No. 12-09352). The program gives mortgage lenders financial incentives to perform loan modifications to qualified homeowners....Read More
An increasing number of cities are turning to the power of eminent domain to reduce the number of residential home foreclosures. Cities in New Jersey, New York, Minnesota and California are exploring the possibility of “friendly condemnations” in which the city buys the mortgage of an underwater homeowner. If the investor refuses to sell, the...Read More
Many New York and Tri-State-area residents are still struggling with the aftermath of 2012’s Superstorm Sandy. The storm made landfall in October 2012 and caused an estimated $65 billion in damages. While many neighborhoods and homes have been rebuilt, others are virtually untouched. Residents cite such things as property value disputes in these cases. Storm...Read More
