One Mans Battle With Fannie
Matt’s Take on the News
February 16, 2012
One Mans Battle With Fannie
A friend of mine sent me an article that highlights the
journey that an individual has been on since the 1990′s. It involves lending abuses that have been
going on for years.
Gretchen Morgenson from the New York Times chronicles the
journey that Nyle Lavalle has undertaken.
Mr Lavalle was foreclosed on, improperly. While all of us have heard this before, he
seems to have acquiesced based on principle.
To quote from the article, “Then he tried to pay off a loan on a
home his family had bought in Dallas in 1988. The balance was roughly $100,000,
and the property was valued at about $175,000, Mr. Lavalle said. But when he
combed through figures provided by his lender, Savings of America, he found
substantial discrepancies in the accounting that had inflated his bill by
$18,000. The loan servicer had repeatedly charged him late fees for payments he
had made on time, as well as for unnecessary appraisals and force-placed hazard
insurance, he said.
Mr. Lavalle refused to pay. The bank refused to bend. The
balance rose as the bank tacked on lawyers’ fees and the loan was deemed
delinquent. The fight continued after his mortgage was allegedly sold to EMC, a
Bear Stearns unit.
Unlike most people, Mr. Lavalle had the time and money to
fight. He persuaded his family to help him pay for a lawsuit against EMC and
Bear Stearns. Seven years and a small fortune later, they lost the house in
Dallas. Back then, judges weren’t as interested in mortgage practices as some
are now, he said.
And there, apparently, is where it ended. There is little
evidence that Fannie Mae’s management or board ever took serious action. Known
internally as O.C.J. Case No. 5595, in reference to the company’s Office of
Corporate Justice, this 2006 report suggests just how deep, and how far back,
our mortgage and foreclosure problems really go.”
“In 2006, based on Mr. Lavelles actions and lawsuits,
Fannie Mae investigated the issue and produced a “confidential” 147
page report that confirms the widespread abuses that took place. The problem is, that they did nothing about
it! Ms. Morgenson points out that the
report states that, “It is axiomatic that the practice of submitting false
pleadings and affidavits is unlawful,” said the report, a copy of which was
obtained by The New York Times. “With his complaint, Mr. Lavalle has identified
an issue that Fannie Mae needs to address promptly.”
Even so, the report didn’t conclude that Mr. Lavalle was
wrong on the legal issues. It simply said that few people would have the
financial resources to challenge foreclosures. In other words, few people would
be like Mr. Lavalle.
Courts are unlikely to unwind foreclosures unless borrowers
can demonstrate that the foreclosure would not have gone forward with the
correct pleadings, which is a difficult burden for most borrowers to meet,” the
report said. “Nevertheless, the issues Mr. Lavalle raises should be addressed
promptly in order to mitigate the risk of exposure to lawsuits and some degree
of liability.” Mr. Cymrot declined to comment for this article.”
Did you catch it? Ifyou didn’t I highlighted it in BOLD. The
authors of the report acknowledged the issues but felt that most Americans
didn’t have the legal resources to go after the offenders!
Do you think it’s wise to utilize a seasoned foreclosure
defense attorney based on what you just read?
I do! Call me or email me if you
are serious about short sales.
The entire article can be viewed at: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/05/business/mortgage-tornado-warning-unheeded.html?pagewanted=1&_r=2&src=busln
