Loansafe petition to d.c.

[pygmypa]

Far be it from me to think I would have the skill to organize or draft such a letter or petition, but has Loansafe ever considered drafting a petition/letter to Washington DC - Senate, Congress, Whitehouse and all large lenders/servicers stating the obvious. More importantly demanding action. Foreclosure moratoriums etc. How about some senate hearings from those who are being most affected by this YOU and ME! For God's sake they have hearings over steroids in the MLB - You would think this may be a little more important.

Just an Idea inspired by most of you like AZowner, etc.

[Believe]

Very well said, pygmypa. Steroids in the MLB vs. millions of foreclosures? We at LoanSafe are gaining momentum. Stay tuned and stay active. Your comments are excellent! I'm sorry for your mortgage troubles.

[pygmypa]

Does anyone know the number of members Loansafe has? I suspect enough signatures to get someone's attention in Washington / banking community.

[Believe]

21,000+ members, not all of whom are active. At any time of the day, there are at least 2,000 people reading the posts on this site. You can see all of these stats on the home page of the forum. Take a look. It's unbelievable.

[AZOwner]

I fully support this.

Believe - would you draft something, or would you like me to?

[Citigrope]

If someone does write a petition, please consider asking the gov't to change the HAMP to make the NPV test done by a party other than the banks. And if the banks want their data considered for that NPV calculation they need to submit that data with proof to that third party. OR at least make the banks publish their NPV assumptions and data so it may be verified.

I am sick of Citi telling me I don't prequalify for HAMP. Then, when they finally admit I do prequalify, they tell me I don't pass due to an error in their system. Then they say there is no error, I don't pass the NPV. I ask for the assumptions/calculations used in the NPV. No, that's confidential. WHY?! No one at Citi can or will tell me why I cannot get the HAMP. When I call Citi I feel like I'm calling Santa hoping I've been nice enough to be given something... This is meant to be a government program! You are either eligible or not. And if not, you should have the right to know why you are not eligible.

It seems to me that when the gov't invented the HAMP they made a secret handshake with the banks by allowing them to have their personal, private NPV calculation. The gov't got their positive publicity and the banks got to continue denying mod applications as they please.

[pygmypa]

I JUST LOCATED TESTIMONY from Mr. Bryan Bolton, SR. VP of Citi Loss Mitigation. Perhaps the author of the letter / petition could include some of it as impeachable.

United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs : Hearings

[heidi79]

[QUOTE=Citigrope;141875]If someone does write a petition, please consider asking the gov't to change the HAMP to make the NPV test done by a party other than the banks. And if the banks want their data considered for that NPV calculation they need to submit that data with proof to that third party. OR at least make the banks publish their NPV assumptions and data so it may be verified.

I totally agree, the math should be simple to the 31%! What they are doing is outrageous, Wells Fargo insists 31% of 4400 is 1700, then they say the calculation is on the net income, pure incompetence!

[caldwell02]

Hi all - check out this site and help evaluate it.

iPetitions: Start a free online petition

I would be willing to help us start crafting the petition. Some of the elements:

1. That loansafe has 20,000 + members
2. that NACA has thousands of other people attending their STD events
3. That the new regulations are not strong enough.
4. they are not simple enough
5. Lenders are making their own rules
6. Lack of consistency in working with homeowners
7. Lenders need to be held accountable. Trial modifications are often misinterpreted on paper. Very often they do not lead to permanent modifications. There should be no rewards for trial mods. If there are rewards, only for the permanent mods.
8. The guidelines should be a simple 31% of NET (quite frankly that's what I believe) or if it has to be gross, then also take out mandatory taxes, FICA, etc and use THAT figure. Nothing more. And it would be best if the servicers were not the ones who do this math.
9. There should be a clear guidelines about the time between requesting and getting a mod.
10. This should not be an option for any bank, and most particularly for those that took TARP funds (whether they gave them back or not).

Okay. These are just the points I'm brainstorming right now. What other points? Then we can put it into a readable petition. If this online site works, we can post it there and then ask everyone at loansafe and everyone on all of our mailing lists to sign it.

What do you think?

[mimirayo]

I read on the aol home page the the reason HAMP and other mdifications are not happening is
"However, most homeowners have failed to take advantage of the program. A recent report shows that although 9 million homeowners potentially qualify, only 85,000 homeowners have refinanced and taken advantage of the substantial benefits offered by the program.
There are a number of reasons why the plan has come up short. One is lack of awareness. Experts say that 50% of foreclosures victims never contact a bank or servicer in an attempt to save their home. In order to spread word about relief opportunities the government launched a campaign highlighting the benefits or refinancing with MHA."

If they were to take 10 minutes on this site, they would see IT"S NOT THE HOMEOWNER!

[caldwell02]

miramayo - who does the aol home page quote re: the above?

[BobandArlyn]

Hi all - check out this site and help evaluate it.

iPetitions: Start a free online petition


What do you think?

Caldwell, checked out the link above....it's GREAT. I love your start to the Petition. Must be kept under 1,000 words. Take some crafting for sure. We have a talented team here though.

[nativelasvegan]

How about rewriting the guidelines to include "MUST" instead of "MAY". We can certainly refer to the Fannie Mae publications that contain these words and give the banksters the loopholes they need NOT to do the modifications. The rules need to be changed. Plain and simple. REQUIRE the banks not merely to participate in HAMP, but rather REQUIRE them to provide the relief the President intended. I do realize that a lot of people are not eligible candidates for the program. Simplify. Where is Freddie Mac in this? They have been appointed as the regulator of this program and yet they have failed. If the main investors of loans are Fannie Mae, Dueche Bank, etc., then a representative from each of these main investors needs to send someone to the servicers headquarters for onsite approval or denial of modifications. If the investors cannot be physically present at the servicer locations, then a direct line or sorts (2009, modern technology with emails, internet, etc.) should be had.

In my opinion, the regulations MUST be rewritten or things will not change. The people who put the regulations in place probably did not have the time to read them or could not careless about the end result. As American taxpayers who funded the bailout, we need to hold the government responsible for writing guidelines that REQUIRE banks to do more than merely participating. Great find on the ipetitions, Barbara. As always, good work. I would vote you in as the new lead in this forum. I have learned more from you here than I could have ever accomplished on my own.

[caldwell02]

OH native thank you but please don't make me lead. I'm part of the team!!!!!! Gawd I couldn't stand the pressure. I'm an Executive Director of a nonprofit and I do not need another place where the buck falls eventually on me.

That said, I agree with your ideas about the "must" vs "may." Also like the ideas of direct links with investors. 1000 words will be a trick. I'll work on it - as I hope you all do - this weekend. The sooner the better. Loan mods for all as our Christmas presents!!!!!!!!!

[caldwell02]

I'm thinking we should also - if space permits - talk about reducing principal when the house is underwater significantly.....

[nativelasvegan]

You know I am just dumbfounded at the banks refusal to reduce the principal. Sure, it is not in their best interest, but if they don't, more people will walk because they will always be underwater. This is such a domino effect and the people who are able to make their mortgage and think they are immune to the effects of declining properties better wake up and smell the coffee. If they had any brains at all, they would be involved in this plight as well. I can certainly understand you not wanting to take the lead. If someone needs to step up, I will definitely volunteer. The buck can stop here anytime. In fact I need about 2400 bucks to stop here soon so I can make a mortgage payment before they take my house. HA!
We must get to the root of this problem. Simply cutting the branches back is not going to do it.

[caldwell02]

Native - are you that close? If you are that close to them taking it, even though I'm not a Huge NACA fan, I would say contact them. They may be able to put the brakes on the sale....

[AZOwner]

Native - I completely agree. 56% upside down in my home's equity right now, that does not include the 40 thousand of my cash that I put into it.

I can pay my mortgage. I am walking away. Every month I flush 4 thousand dollars down the drain. All done with that.

I could hire an attorney to fight the bank and keep my house. I would win, lol, probably.

I am not going to bow to the anyone financially again. Frankly, I will happily live in a one room appartment, or my car if I have to. As long as I have my family and can feed my children and my husband, somehow, I will wake up each day with a smile. Of that I have no doubt, they are all that I need for my heart to be whole and my life to be full.

The American Dream and my Dream Home were so wonderful, while they lasted. I am finished.

Amen.

GOD Bless the United States and my fellow Americans

[davephx]

I read on the aol home page the the reason HAMP and other mdifications are not happening is
"However, most homeowners have failed to take advantage of the program. A recent report shows that although 9 million homeowners potentially qualify, only 85,000 homeowners have refinanced and taken advantage of the substantial benefits offered by the program. In order to spread word about relief opportunities the government launched a campaign highlighting the benefits or refinancing with MHA."

If they were to take 10 minutes on this site, they would see IT"S NOT THE HOMEOWNER!

Note this talks about the REFINANCING program which very few people even qualify for since you have to have less than 100% loan-to-value ratio. Most folks are under water and only mods work not refinancing that his talks about.

Obviously agree read this forum to find out the real world problem is the servicers/investors not zillions of homeowners trying so hard to get HAMP mods not refinance.

[Believe]

This is a great thread. Excellent points, Caldwell, and you're a better writer than you think. Great suggestions, also, Native (praying for you and your dad). Would this petition be the place to vow to support only those candidates who pass our "in support of Main Street" test? Or, do we simply state the improvements needed to the current modification programs? I don't want to sound too selfish, but my lender hasn't even signed on to HAMP. They did not directly take US bailout dollars. Instead, they were a secondhand beneficiary by getting billions from AIG's bailout. I can't even get to Step 1.

[AZOwner]

Believe - we need to represent everyone here. I think that you definately need to make clear that people are continuing to mobilize and that our votes will be for those that demonstrate that they represent Mainstreet -- regardless of party affiliation.

My 2 cents.

Just throw it out there! Your contribution is exceptionally valuable.

[pygmypa]

Excellent discourse. I am not trying to damper any of it; However, do we have an author for the petition? We need to stay the course and keep this thread's eyes focused on the goal of generating a petition/letter to those in Washington.

The link to Bryan Bolton's testimony needs to be referenced - it is impeachable by the experiences collectively held by those of us here at loansafe.

[caldwell02]

Hi all. I said I would draft something and this weekend was the time - but I didn't do it. I will be working on it this week. I have never drafted a petition myself before. So I will be posting a draft here.

I would like for this group, if you would, to checkout the online petition site I referenced above and make a decision whether this would be the way to go.

We also need to figure out how to make the petition a "sticky" or whatever so that it stays at the top of the list for everyone here to see, or else we need a plan to reference it (once it's done) on very current thread.

I hope to have a start to the group by Wed.

[caldwell02]

Hi all. Okay I have a draft here. I want it to reflect what we need, and do not take editing personnally at all, so have at it. Then when we get it done we need to figure out what we are going to do with it.

Here is the draft:


We the undersigned strongly urge the Federal Government to create immediate, stricter, and more equitable regulations for the banking industry regarding home loan modifications and mortgage foreclosures, particularly as regards HAMP and 2MP. Tens of thousands of homeowners across this nation have been foreclosed upon, threatened with foreclosure, and/or have spent hundreds of hours each dealing with mortgage servicers who have little incentive to actually help them/us achieve permanent loan modifications.

We recommend an immediate halt to all foreclosures until new, mandatory guidelines are established, and we recommend that these guidelines be overseen by a new Consumer Protection Agency, which was recently recommended by President Obama and endorsed by Sheila Blair, chair of the FDIC. We also recommend that these guidelines include a simple 31% of the borrower’s gross income; and that there be clear and enforceable guidelines regarding the time between the initial request for a modification and the achievement of a permanent mod. We also recommend that there be no reward to the bank for a trial modification; the rewards, if given, should be only for successful permanent modifications.

There is visual evidence that the current system is not working, as reflected in the rising foreclosure rates across the nation and the thousands of people who attend NACA “Save the Dream” events in an attempt to get their loans modified. There is ample written evidence that the current HAMP and other modification guidelines are being interpreted differently by each bank, reflected in many places including the scenarios described by the 20,000+ members of the loansafe.org community. Additional written evidence can be found in hundreds if not thousands of complaints and requests for assistance sent by struggling homeowners to Senators and Congressmen across the country, as well as the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and other agencies that regulate these banks.

Mr. Bryan Bolton, SVP of CitiMortgage, has stated that “modifying within HAMP guidelines is in the best interests of our borrowers, our country and our company. With or without fees, it’s almost always in the best interests of the servicers to modify.” He and his CEO are, however, in the minority regarding their approach to modifications, and tougher pressures need to be placed on other banks who are simply not modifying loans at the rate they could. Homeowners are not the ones not complying with the rules; it is the banks who are consistently and with regularity “losing” paperwork, denying modifications for unjustifiable reasons, and foreclosing on homes after trial modifications, though successfully paid by the homeowner, have been completed.

The American Dream is being abused by the banking industry who are taking a cavalier approach to the stress, heartache and nightmares caused by the current lack of enforcement of home loan modifications. The time is of the essence for the power to be taken away from Wall Street and given back to Main Street.

We urge your swift and immediate action.

[pygmypa]

HIT THE BRAKES ON THE BOLTON THING!

The petition surely is a good start. I would caution you about citing Bryan Bolton as a "GOOD REFERENCE" Although his testimony before the senate said he was concerned, etc, etc CITI remains to be the #1 offender of good faith with respect to saving homes. If you were to cite his testimony it would need to reference it and then ask why his words are empty. Why do the execs tell the senate what they want to hear when we have a completely different experience. In other words. Mr. Bolton's testimony is completely dishonest. I have been in constant contact with Mr. Bolton via email on my loan and he is completely unyielding and unwilling to seek any options for resolution unless mandated to by a government program.

ALSO - I would retract the 31% issue or reword it. There are countless families in jeopardy of losing their homes who do not meet the 31% NPV guidelines. Banks need to look at real expenses and not use the gross income standard as a barricade from which they can hide behind.

Thank you so much for taking the time to start this draft. I am sure that with the input of other members we should be able to hone an effective message to those who say they are looking out for Main St. America.

Semper Fi

[caldwell02]

I just reread my petition and I need a Citi person to give me some data. I think Bolton says one thing, but Citi is not following and I am too soft on Citi in this petition.

I'm on fire with this right now and I hope you guys can give me some better, clearer language. Remember we can't have the petition be too long.

[caldwell02]

pygma - we were writing at the same time. I'll rework the Citi thing, and see what I can do with the 31%.

Any other ideas?

[pygmypa]

Caldwell,

I feel you passion - pace yourself. Harness the passion and stay committed. I commit to support you as the other members will too. You are truly leading right now. What you are doing, what we are doing is so important - AND TAKE NOTE what we are all witnessing is the birth of a grass roots movement.

[caldwell02]

We the undersigned strongly urge the Federal Government to create immediate, stricter, and more equitable regulations for the banking industry regarding home loan modifications and mortgage foreclosures, particularly as regards HAMP and 2MP. Tens of thousands of homeowners across this nation have been foreclosed upon, threatened with foreclosure, and/or have spent hundreds of hours each dealing with mortgage servicers who have little incentive to actually help them/us achieve permanent loan modifications.

We recommend an immediate halt to all foreclosures until new, mandatory guidelines are established, and we recommend that these guidelines be overseen by a new Consumer Protection Agency, which was recently recommended by President Obama and endorsed by Sheila Blair, chair of the FDIC. We also recommend that these guidelines include not only a simple 31% of the borrower’s gross income, but that additional guidelines be formulated that would open the door for modifications at even a lower rate in significant hardship conditions. We also recommend there be clear and enforceable guidelines regarding the time between the initial request for a modification and the achievement of a permanent mod and that there be no reward to the bank for a trial modification; the rewards, if given, should be only for successful permanent modifications.

There is visual evidence that the current system is not working, as reflected in the rising foreclosure rates across the nation and the thousands of people who attend NACA “Save the Dream” events in an attempt to get their loans modified. There is ample written evidence that the current HAMP and other modification guidelines are being interpreted differently by each bank, reflected in many places including the scenarios described by the 20,000+ members of the loansafe.org community. Additional written evidence can be found in hundreds if not thousands of complaints and requests for assistance sent by struggling homeowners to Senators and Congressmen across the country, as well as the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and other agencies that regulate these banks.

Mr. Bryan Bolton, SVP of CitiMortgage, has stated that “modifying within HAMP guidelines is in the best interests of our borrowers, our country and our company. With or without fees, it’s almost always in the best interests of the servicers to modify.” Unfortunately, these are empty words, because he, like so many other CEO’s, tells congress one thing while the banks are doing the opposite. Tougher pressures need to be placed on these banks who are simply not modifying loans at the rate they should. Homeowners are not the ones not complying with the rules; it is the banks who are consistently and with regularity “losing” paperwork, denying modifications for unjustifiable reasons, and foreclosing on homes after trial modifications, though successfully paid by the homeowner, have been completed.

The American Dream is being abused by the banking industry who are taking a cavalier approach to the stress, heartache and nightmares caused by the current lack of enforcement of home loan modifications. The time is of the essence for the power to be taken away from Wall Street and given back to Main Street.


We urge your swift and immediate action.

[pygmypa]

Its coming along nicely caldwell. I will be out for the next 5 days but look forward to getting caught up then.

Semper Fi

[caldwell02]

This comment is being made to keep this as one of the top posts. PLEASE READ DRAFT NUMBER TWO, above, and comment. Thanks!

[Believe]

Excellent, Caldwell! You've done a great job of incorporating all of the main points into one document without being too long. In the paragraph, "There is visual evidence . . . ", would it be appropriate to mention that there are some mortgage companies who are not participating in any programs at all? See, that's my problem. HSBC hasn't signed on to HAMP, and didn't sign a contract with NACA, yet they received billions from AIG's bailout. They aren't regulated by the OCC because they're not a national bank. What do you think?

[Believe]

Fine-tuning, now. In the Bryan Bolton paragraph, capitalize "Congress". In the We Recommend paragraph, change "mod" to "modification".

Excellent, excellent petition!

[caldwell02]

I've incorporated pygma and Believe's ideas. I put the piece about some servicers not participating at the end of the first paragraph. Some lenders aren't either - good point. So we will fine tune and fine tune this. Give me more! And I hope someone is working on where/how many spots we post this on.


We the undersigned strongly urge the Federal Government to create immediate, stricter, and more equitable regulations for the banking industry regarding home loan modifications and mortgage foreclosures, particularly as regards HAMP and 2MP. Tens of thousands of homeowners across this nation have been foreclosed upon, threatened with foreclosure, and/or have spent hundreds of hours each dealing with mortgage servicers who have little incentive to actually help them/us achieve permanent loan modifications, including some servicers and lenders who actually refuse to participate at all.

We recommend an immediate halt to all foreclosures until new, mandatory guidelines are established, and we recommend that these guidelines be overseen by a new Consumer Protection Agency, which was recently recommended by President Obama and endorsed by Sheila Blair, chair of the FDIC. We also recommend that these guidelines include not only a simple 31% of the borrower’s gross income, but that additional guidelines be formulated that would open the door for modifications at even a lower rate in significant hardship conditions. We also recommend there be clear and enforceable guidelines regarding the time between the initial request for a modification and the achievement of a permanent modification and that there be no reward to the bank for a trial modification; the rewards, if given, should be only for successful permanent modifications.

There is visual evidence that the current system is not working, as reflected in the rising foreclosure rates across the nation and the thousands of people who attend NACA “Save the Dream” events in an attempt to get their loans modified. There is ample written evidence that the current HAMP and other modification guidelines are being interpreted differently by each bank, reflected in many places including the scenarios described by the 20,000+ members of the loansafe.org community. Additional written evidence can be found in hundreds if not thousands of complaints and requests for assistance sent by struggling homeowners to Senators and Congressmen across the country, as well as the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and other agencies that regulate these banks.

Mr. Bryan Bolton, SVP of CitiMortgage, has stated that “modifying within HAMP guidelines is in the best interests of our borrowers, our country and our company. With or without fees, it’s almost always in the best interests of the servicers to modify.” Unfortunately, these are empty words, because he, like so many other CEO’s, tells Congress one thing while the banks are doing the opposite. Tougher pressures need to be placed on these banks who are simply not modifying loans at the rate they should. Homeowners are not the ones not complying with the rules; it is the banks who are consistently and with regularity “losing” paperwork, denying modifications for unjustifiable reasons, and foreclosing on homes after trial modifications, though successfully paid by the homeowner, have been completed.

The American Dream is being abused by the banking industry who are taking a cavalier approach to the stress, heartache and nightmares caused by the current lack of enforcement of home loan modifications. The time is of the essence for the power to be taken away from Wall Street and given back to Main Street.


We urge your swift and immediate action.

[bloominga]

I am looking at it and will try to finish it after I feed my HH. You write an awesome petition!! Short and absolutely complete and to the point.

Thanks for doing this for us.

[Believe]

Yes, thank you, Caldwell. I'm going to research petition sites, and continue to bump this thread to the top.

[Big Booger]

caldwell, your dedication is awesome and your petition is of outstanding quality - I will direct everyone I can to this petition as soon as you have completed it

[nativelasvegan]

It sounds great. I will read it when I get home this evening and give you my comments this afternoon or tomorrow morning. We will fine tune it and I look forwarding to signing it. I hope all loansafe members will come together. I believe we have over 20,000 members. Let's step up folks!

[Riley18]

Caldwell, your petition is very well written and I cannot wait to sign it.

Thank you for all your hard work

[bloominga]

Thanks Caldwell!!! This is what I needed to knock my doldrums out the window!! You are outstanding. I also cannot wait to get it out to everyone.

Let's get on with it!