My DIL is stalled...what can/should I do?

[jamby]

Hello,

I apologize if this is not the best place to post this question--if it's better suited to another forum, please let me know.

I own a home in one in SW Florida, in one of the top markets affected by foreclosure. The home was rented for about six months and then my renter defaulted on his lease, so the home is vacant. The house has been on the market for about six months, listed at more than 100k less than what I owe on the loan. Since there has been literally no interest in the house and therefore no potential buyers, my attorney suggested I try for a DIL. We submitted the paperwork and in June, I received a letter from the lender stating that they accepted the DIL and to sign the letter and return by July 1, which I did.

Six months later, the DIL still is not complete. My name is still on the home. I have called the lender repeatedly to get an update on where the DIL is in the process; I have been told time and time again that they are "reviewing" the DIL and to keep calling back to check. Now I'm at a point where I can't even get a person to discuss my account with me; I call, I get bounced from department to department (customer service to foreclosure, foreclosure to "short sale"), and ultimately I end up in someone's voicemail. Of course I leave a voicemail but I have yet to receive a return call. I have politely demanded to speak to an actual person but am always denied and told that my only option is to get forwarded to the voicemail of the one and only person who supposedly handles ALL DILs for the entire company.

Is this typical? My attorney too has been trying to contact the lender, with no success. I assume that since I am no longer paying on the house, this means that each month that passes is another month that shows me as delinquent on my credit report. Once the deed in lieu is resolved (if it ever is!), will it retroactively go back and show that the DIL went through in July, when we signed the paperwork, and take away the delinquencies for each subsequent month? I'm guessing that is wishful thinking.

At this point, I just don't know what to do. I want to be done with the whole thing but no matter how many times I call, or who I ask to speak to, I simply cannot get a live person to talk to me and tell me what is going on with my loan.

Is it possible that the lender will completely disregard the agreement we made, and proceed with foreclosure anyway? Or even if they do complete the DIL, will my credit be almost just as trashed as though I had done a foreclosure, because of six months of no payment?

Any advice is appreciated. I'm starting to panic here and I've read some very unsavory things about this lender/servicing company, and I have a bad feeling about this.

Thanks in advance.

[Moe Bedard]

HI jamby,

Welcome to the forum and thank you for joining.............

Who is the servicer on the loan?


Did the property have one loan or two?

[jamby]

Originally Posted by *** Damiano

HI jamby,

Welcome to the forum and thank you for joining.............

Who is the servicer on the loan?


Did the property have one loan or two?

Thank you for asking.

It's Litton Loan Servicing. Wasn't sure if I was allowed to post names here but I guess I can.

The property has one loan.

After I posted earlier.....I called them yet one more time. Was super sweet yet persistent and firm in speaking to a person who can explain what is going on.

The guy I spoke with in the foreclosure department informed me that yes, they received my signed paperwork back in early July; but that nothing has happened with the DIL since, and he has no idea why.

So basically, I went through the whole process of the DIL for nothing, since I am in the middle of a "foreclosure" process right now. I was trying to salvage my credit somehow as well as spare myself and the company the drawn-out process of foreclosure....but it seems that even though I did everything they asked (signed the letter they sent me, the property was vacant, secure, no outstanding liens, etc.), within their timeline, they just dropped it. I just don't understand.

I have a voicemail in to my attorney but I don't know how much help he is going to be.

I'm so upset. I thought this was resolved.....and every time I called them for the past six months, they kept saying, just wait, we're backed up, your DIL is "under review", etc.

I don't understand what the problem is, or what I could have done differently.

Anyway--the guy I talked to was FINALLY the first person who offered me ANY reassurance that I will eventually get an answer. He sent an email to the person who is supposedly in charge of my file (the one I've been leaving VMs for), that person's manager, and the VP for the foreclosure department. So supposedly I'm supposed to hear something back within 5 days. We'll see--I'm not holding my breath.

Am I screwed? (Excuse my language.) Are they going to act like we never agreed to a DIL? Can I possibly get them to remove the negative marks to my credit report after July, since that was when I fulfilled their requirements for the DIL? I totally understand that a DIL is a negative on my credit report--but now, I have month after month of delinquency instead of one big black mark and I really just want to start to rebuild. I can't do that until this is RESOLVED and they execute the DIL.

And wow. I've spent most of the day reading this forum. Absolutely amazing what so many people are going through. I'm certainly not alone, that is for sure. This is just mind-boggling to me.

Thanks to everyone for your advice and support to not just me, but everyone who is going through such a stressful time.

--Jess

[Moe Bedard]

Keep us posted on the movement..............I am sorry that you have gone through this and had to wait so long for the final approval.
As far as the credit reporting.........that you would need to ask Litton.

Good Luck on the DIL final approval.

[jamby]

Originally Posted by *** Damiano

Keep us posted on the movement..............I am sorry that you have gone through this and had to wait so long for the final approval.
As far as the credit reporting.........that you would need to ask Litton.

Good Luck on the DIL final approval.

Thank you. If I don't hear back from one of the several people who were copied on the customer service guy's email, do you have any suggestions for how to get things moving again?

[Moe Bedard]

put your attorney in touch with the ERT.

Executive Resolution Team
Direct: 1-713-218-4592
Fax: 1-713-966-8852

[The Professor]

I think the key here is the language of their letter agreeing to accept the deed-in-lieu. If it is sufficient in its terms, that is it reflects your offer of a deed-in-lieu, basically spelling out the terms of acceptance which I presume include language that their acceptance is predicated upon no other liens on the property being junior to their loan (e.g. a second loan), they you would have an enforceable contract and they would be contractually bound to accept the deed. Perhaps a way to bring a quick conclusion to this is for your lawyer to prepare a deed-in-lieu, containing as identified consideration your no longer owing the subject debt (you could identify the debt by referencing the mortgage's information including recording date, document number, etc.).

Then simply sign and record the deed and send them a certified copy of the recorded deed.

Take care,

Daniel

[jamby]

Originally Posted by Professor Shays

I think the key here is the language of their letter agreeing to accept the deed-in-lieu. If it is sufficient in its terms, that is it reflects your offer of a deed-in-lieu, basically spelling out the terms of acceptance which I presume include language that their acceptance is predicated upon no other liens on the property being junior to their loan (e.g. a second loan), they you would have an enforceable contract and they would be contractually bound to accept the deed. Perhaps a way to bring a quick conclusion to this is for your lawyer to prepare a deed-in-lieu, containing as identified consideration your no longer owing the subject debt (you could identify the debt by referencing the mortgage's information including recording date, document number, etc.).

Then simply sign and record the deed and send them a certified copy of the recorded deed.

Take care,

Daniel

Thank you Daniel. My attorney told me today that there is something else required from the lender (not sure what?) before we can send them the deed. Then I finally got a return phone call today from the guy who is supposedly in charge of my file. It was almost hilarious; the conversation consisted of him saying, "OK, we sent you a letter telling you we approved your DIL...you signed it and sent it back....and....um.....that was in July....."....(silence). NO ONE can explain to me why this totally fell by the wayside and no action has been taken on it. This guy claims that he is going to talk to his manager and will get back to me within 48 hours. Why is this so difficult? What am I missing? I though the difficult part was getting them to agree to it, but they did already.....?

What is really, really upsetting me is that I thought that a DIL was going to be less damaging to my credit than it would have been if I went through the foreclosure procedure. So even though they informed me of their acceptance of the DIL in June, it hasn't happened yet, so that shows up as six months of me being delinquent while Litton was.......not doing anything with it, as far as anyone can tell me. Six months of "lates" on my credit report. Isn't that worse than if the DIL had been completed and recorded in June, and I could have started rebuilding my credit?

Does anyone know what the chances are of me getting whomever (the credit bureau?? Litton Loan Servicing?) to change my credit report to reflect that I didn't just not pay for the past six months, that a DIL was underway so I should not be penalized for anything more than the "normal" ding a DIL brings to your credit?

Again, thanks for any ideas and help.