Catherine,
This one's for you!
If you want to read the links, you'll have to go to Huff Post to read. Not sure how the link thing works.
What adds to the problem is distressed homeowners are an under-represented class. No money, no representation to fight these predators and the mortgage co.'s know it. Cases seem very win-able but go un-tried due to financial situation of the plaintiffs. As the article points out, atty's fees are not covered often times which would empower the average homeowner to initiate lawsuits to fight the good fight, as needed. So, these turkeys have been able to fly under the radar and rip off homeowners ad nauseam for years. I wish there were more lawyers willing to take on these predators for nominal or pro bono fees, until they win their cases and a good judge can then award fees or punitive damages that the homeowner can pay the atty w/. Seeing as America has more lawyers per citizen than any other country, you'd think there would be a few who could give up the mega-bucks lifestyle to help get their country back from these blood-thirsty leeches.
Unfortunately, where there's hope, there's no money. When no money, no hope.
Where's Gerry Spence when you need him? Remember him? He's the guy who took on the big insurance and medical establishments when they f'ked w/ average Joe's. He won every time. We need more Gerry's. Wyoming cowboys!
BANKRUPTCY JUDGES & DOJ RIP MORTGAGE COMPANIES
http://www.propublica.org/ion/bailou...-companies-811 Quote:
by Karen Weise, ProPublica HUFF POST Aug 12, 2009
"Systemic abuse." "Extraordinary incompetence." "Reckless." In a growing body of legal cases, judges and the Justice Department are breaking from legal jargon to starkly chastise mortgage companies.
As mortgage delinquencies rise, more and more homeowners are learning the central role that mortgage servicers play in their lives. The legal cases show that role can be distressing. Judges have found that major mortgages servicers regularly mess up basic accounting, improperly credit payments and charge unwarranted fees. They’ve "not done a very good job of keeping the records," said Judge Samuel Bufford of California.
Mortgage servicers — typically either bank subsidiaries or independent companies — handle the day-to-day work with homeowners, ranging from collecting monthly payments to determining when to modify or foreclose. Problems with servicing often, but not always, occur once homeowners start having trouble making payments.
Complaints to the government about mortgage servicers have soared in recent years. They’ve risen from 31 percent of the complaints that the Department of Housing and Urban Development received in 2006 to 78 percent in 2008, according to HUD spokesman Lemar Wooley.
Problems Exposed in Bankruptcies
Many homeowners in bankruptcy have legal representation and must settle claims with servicers. As a result, the process has revealed and documented a slew of servicer problems.
In many rulings, judges have shown frustration and even outrage. They’ve ruled that servicers have attempted to collect unjustified fees, charged homeowners for unnecessary insurance, failed to properly credit homeowners’ payments and failed to provide evidence to back up fee requests. In most cases, judges demand that servicers fix the problems and unwind the unjustified fees; sometimes, judges award damages and attorneys’ fees. In one extraordinary case, a judge issued $750,000 in emotional and punitive damages. (We’ve compiled five sample cases and rulings for you to see here.)
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read more here
http://www.propublica.org/ion/bailou...-companies-811
(See the mortgage chart/sample cases here.)
ProPublica is America's largest investigative newsroom.
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Good Article: Bankruptcy Judges Rip Mortgage Co.'s 
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