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The recent drop, according to the firm, is partly a result of guidance from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), which established minimum standards for handling borrower files subject to a foreclosure sale within 60 days. "As a result of the letter, several of the largest banks—Bank of America, Citi, JPMorgan, and Wells Fargo Bank—either slowed or stopped their foreclosure sales in May," according to Schnapp. It appears, however, that the large banks have resumed foreclosure sales in the state, which means foreclosure sales are likely to pick up again in July, Schnapp noted. Even though distressed sales are way down, PropertyRadar says they still account for 30 percent of California's total home sales—a percentage that is three times historic averages. Though, a year ago, distressed sales accounted for 50.5 percent of sales. MCT Recognized for Growth MCT Trading, Inc., a risk management and advisory services company, was named among the top 100 fastest-growing companies by the San Diego Business Journal. Companies recognized on the publication's 2013 list must be based in San Diego County and have revenue of at least $200,000 starting in 2010. Revenue is then calculated as a percentage over a three-year period ending in 2012. Out of the 100 private companies, MCT was No. 24 on the annual ranking. MCT president Curtis Richins attributed the company's growth to increased demand for its services and the value clients find in MCT's solutions and customer service. "There are a lot of quality firms in the greater San Diego that are doing great things and experiencing rapid growth," Richins said. "We're honored to be among the top 100." The company also earned a spot on the Inc. 5000 list for two straight years and most recently made the Inc. 500 list. FROM THE BENCH Court Rules Borrowers Can Fight Bank's Decision to Deny Modification Homeowners who are denied a modification under the Home Affordable Modifica- 112 tion Program (HAMP) after completing a trial period plan (TPP) have legal standing to sue their lender, the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco ruled. The ruling reversed a lower district court dismissal that concluded Wells Fargo was not required to offer borrowers a modification if the bank did not send a signed modification agreement. The federal appellate court's decision, however, ruled that Wells Fargo actually was contractually required to offer the plaintiffs a permanent mortgage modification since the plaintiffs submitted accurate financial documents and completed their TPP. "The panel held that the district court should not have dismissed the plaintiffs' complaints when the record before it showed that the bank had accepted and retained the payments demanded by the TPP," the court opinion stated. The ruling was based on two lawsuits from borrowers who filed separate actions against Wells Fargo. In Corvello v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. and Lucia v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., the plaintiffs alleged the bank offered them a trial period plan with the promise of a permanent modification, but after they completed the trial, the bank did not grant them permanency for the mod or send them a notification of ineligibility. The panel of the federal appellate court also cited a prior case, Wigod v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. In Wigod, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals found Wells Fargo's interpretation of the TPP could allow banks to avoid obligations to modify borrowers simply by deciding not to send a signed modification agreement even if the borrower submitted accurate financial documents and the required trial payments. KNOW THIS Per capita, California had the highest number of suspicious activity filings related to mortgage loan fraud in 2012, according to the U.S. Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. Colorado rank: 48 90+ Day Delinquency Rate Foreclosure Rate June 2013 1.4% Unemployment Rate 0.9% 7.0% year ago 1.8% 1.6% 8.2% year-over-year change -22.5% -45.0% -14.6% Top County Las animas CounTy 90+ Day Delinquency Rate Foreclosure Rate June 2013 2.9% 3.2% year ago 2.7% 2.0% year-over-year change 8.5% 60.1% Top Core-Based statistical area PueBLo, Co 90+ Day Delinquency Rate Foreclosure Rate June 2013 2.2% 1.5% year ago 2.4% 2.1% year-over-year change -8.2% -28.7% note: The 90+ day delinquecy rate is the percentage of outstanding mortgage loans that are seriously delinquent. The foreclosure rate is the percentage of outstanding mortgage loans currently in foreclosure. State rank is based on the June 2013 foreclosure rate. All figures are rounded to the nearest decimal. The unemployment rate reflects preliminary June 2013 figures released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. All other data courtesy of LPS Applied Analytics. Colorado Re/Max Alliance & The Haas Team ZAC BROWN 303-456-7790 Direct || 303-619-4803 Cell www.zacbrownrealestate.com www.thehaasteam.com zaclbrown@aol.com IN THE NEWS Morgan County in Colorado Adds CSC as eRecording Vendor Morgan County in Colorado partnered with Corporation Service Company (CSC) to expand its electronic document recording services. Although Morgan County has offered electronic document recording services since early 2006, the addition of CSC as an

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