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- Cleveland Levels Foreclosed Homes to Revive Neighborhoods
All around Cleveland, foreclosed properties are being torn down, rebuilt, or used for other purposes. This is an excellent video to see what Cleveland neighborhoods are doing to fight the aftermath of foreclosure. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1tYz5PkWGv4[/youtube] - Foreclosure Negotiations Settlement Scheduled Target is July
Some of the biggest banks in the United States are about to settle state and federal claims over faulty, and fraudulent foreclosures. The target date for the settlement with Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, and Ally Financial is Wednesday, July 13, 2011. The settlement is expected to exceed $20 billion, forming state and federal funds to provide relief to mortgage borrowers. The case has been focused on how banks treated customers during the rise in mortgage defaults. This case is just one in many cases regarding issues of negligent, faulty, and possibly criminal activity related to mortgage and foreclosures. Some of the issues that are related include compensating people whose homes were improperly seized. Other issues include the institution of funds for states including Ohio to resolve civil mortgage complaints as well as a separate federal account that would require them to provide a specific amount of mortgage relief to borrowers. I will - JPMorgan Chase Has to Pay Ohio and Other States Over Bid Rig
Ohio has been caught up in another case involving JPMorgan Chase which affects our economy and the ability for the state and local municipalities to create jobs and income for Ohio residents. JPMorgan Chase is going to pay out in total $211 million, a number that is so high I can't even imagine what that amount is, after admitting that one of its divisions rigged dozens of bidding competitions to win business from state and local governments. Unbelievable! Bid rigging means that the bidder has a chance to see competitors bids before the final bid is cast, giving the bidder an unfair advantage on the bid. Why is this bad for states? Banks help municipalities invest the money they raise from bond offerings to earn interest before they use the money for various projects. Competition allows the municipality to earn the best yield possible. By bid rigging, the competition is not real, and it denies the municipality the best yield resulting in less income earned. Compla - Ohio Home Sales Delayed by Stricter Policies at Fannie Mae a
One of the largest impacts on the economic recovery of states including Ohio are the new stricter rules governing government mortgage agencies like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Many people who would have fit the borrowing criteria 5 years ago to buy a home in Ohio are no longer considered qualified by the much stricter new rules. This affects both the buyer and the seller in both ends of a deal in selling homes, whether they are Ohio foreclosure homes, or just regular homes for sale. Sellers who are selling homes at a fraction of what they paid for them, are not even able to get a buyer approved to pay for that amount. Buyers who normally would have qualified for a loan through a mortgage lender, are not being approved even if they have good credit. Their circumstances are just not good enough. This causes a huge delay in the Ohio economic recovery that we all need to get back to better paying jobs and also to get back on the road to a more prosperous future. Many of the - Sesame Street Elmo Helps Explain Job Loss and Foreclosure to
Due to the large amount of families facing financial crisis due to foreclosure and bankruptcy, Sesame Street has come out with a series of 5 videos to help explain your family's financial difficulties to your children in a way that won't frighten them, leading to more issues. Sesame Street calls the series Families Stand Together: Feeling Secure in Tough Times and they also have a website that has other activities and links for families facing job loss, foreclosure, and bankruptcy, or just having to move because of financial issues. Children are well aware when parents are not happy, are arguing, or are under stress which losing a job or a home definitely qualifies for. As usual, Sesame Street does an excellent job of providing help through characters that your children already trust through their television shows, videos, and books. Sesame Street - Families Stand Together: Tough Times [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nAzmSGTtCc[/youtube] - Argent Employees Should Be Indicted
I have been closely following the news about the Cuyahoga County Grand Jury Indictment of the Argent Mortgage employees, and frankly, as far as I am concerned, they are just a drop in the bucket of all the fraudulent mortgage activity that had been allowed over the last few years. If this financial crisis had not happened, who knows how much more mortgage fraud would be going on right now. I find it insulting, to say the least to know that American banks are taking advantage of prospective buyers just so that their employees can earn a few extra bucks, when by their actions they can destroy the lives of numerous desperate families that are already on the edge. Did the banking crisis cause the recession, or did the recession cause the banking crisis? We will most likely never know, however, it is sure that the banking crisis is a factor, if not the cause of the long continuation of the problems facing the American financial system, and several specific states, Ohio being one of - Foreclosure Protection for Military Servicemembers and Depen
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development today announced a revised Notice of Disclosure form that emphasizes the rights of the active duty military and their dependents who are protected under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. The Act mandates that military personnel on active duty in wartime are entitled to mortgage relief, including a lower interest rate (not more than six percent) on their mortgages and foreclosure protection. It states that a foreclosure proceeding against certain military personnel, who are recalled to active duty, is not valid unless the creditor has obtained a court order approving it and further states that the courts may stop the proceedings for a time or adjust the debt. “We all stand behind the men and women of our military when they are called upon to serve,” said HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan. “The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act enables our armed forces to focus on their mission abroad, without worrying about their families at ho - Bank of America Will Pay $8.5 Billion to Repurchase Mortgage
A large fix for the banking industry was settled today. Bank of America announced today that it will pay $8.5 billion to settle claims related to sales of poor quality mortgage securities through its Countrywide division. Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan said that the settlement would minimize "future economic uncertainty" in the banking business and "clean up the mortgage issues largely stemming from our purchase of Countrywide." "We have said consistently if people are reasonable and can get to a reasonable assessment of their claims and it's in the best interest of shareholders, we will settle," Moynihan told Wall Street analysts in a conference call. The settlement is subject to court approval and covers 530 trusts with original principal balance of $424 billion. Citi analyst Keith Horowitz said the settlement, which amounts to only 2 percent of the original principal balance, removes one of the largest investor risks for Bank of America. Shares of Bank of - Big Banks Leaving Foreclosed Buildings in Ruins
Although most of this video takes place in Los Angeles, problems like this are being caused by foreclosures all across the United States, including Ohio. I have heard many complaints by local realtors that by the time they get a buyer for a house, the house is in such bad condition that it isn't saleable any more. The big banks are not set up to be caretakers or landlords of buildings. And the homes and condos stay vacant so long, that neglect alone is a problem, not even counting the possibility of vandalism. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nntsrTEZ0jc[/youtube] - Voluntary Repossession
For many people, voluntary repossession becomes the last (desperate) alternative prior to bankruptcy. Are they one and the same? No, they’re not. When you volunteer repossession to your mortgage lender, you’re still liable for the shortfall between what the property will be sold for and what you owe. Bankruptcy, a severe option for many, largely wipes out the debtors need to repay debt to creditors. This shouldn’t be viewed as the easy option as going bankrupt does have its negative consequences. However when there’s nothing more to lose (after all … you can’t get lower than ‘nothing’) it can become the more attractive alternative to remaining in debt for years to come. Voluntary Repossession Of A House The voluntary repossession of a house involves (pretty much) the handing over of the keys and ownership of your home. However that doesn’t mean that you can then walk away, worry free. You’re still expected to pay the mortgage until it’s sold. Repossessed hous - Ohio Real Estate Market Down | Columbus Down 25%
Real estate sales in Ohio are still quite low, which is confirmed by the May sales figures from RealtyTrac. One of the problems is that even when a buyer is interested in buying real estate, banks are reluctant to allow them to borrow, even when their credit scores are good. May home sales in Columbus were down 25% from May 2010, which is an echo of what is happening all over the state. There is nowhere in Ohio that has been spared from the foreclosure, short sale and price reductions in homes. Homes that once demanded a price only affordable to successful professionals are now going to auction for far less than $200,000. 3,405 home owners were were forced to move in Cincinnati after their homes were placed on the auction block this summer. Columbus also faces a large foreclosure problem with 4,099 homes recently listed as foreclosures. Smaller communities face the same issues as metropolitan areas, but do not have as many foreclosures and short sales. The southern Ohio cit - Sometimes the Mortgage Money Goes to the Right People
In an unexpected twist, lawyers from Dworken & Bernstein law firm insisted that any unclaimed funds in a settlement with Wells Fargo and CitiFinancial from a class action case regarding unreleased mortgage liens be turned over to charities instead of being returned to the defendants. Due to this "cypres" legal doctrine, 20 Ohio charities will be able to continue their work with new funding. The charities that benefited from this donation included Neighborhood Housing Services of Greater Cleveland, Project Love, The E Prep School, The Arc, Society for Rehabilitation, Malachi House, Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, University Hospitals, The Gathering Place, Cornerstone of Hope, Antioch Community Development, Ohio College of Podiatric Medicine, and Gordon Square Arts District. Many class action suits end up with unclaimed funds, and this doctrine can be applied to all of them, but often the unclaimed funds just go back to the defendants. Since they are being asked to give up the - Cuyahoga Country Grand Jury Indicts 9 in Fraudulent Home Loa
For the first time in Ohio, and one of the few times across the U.S., a grand jury has indicted 9 employees of a California based loan company, Argent Mortgage Inc., for their suspected roles in approving fraudulent home loans. So far it has been rare that any home loan companies have actually had criminal charges brought against them, whether they approved subprime home loans or not. Argent Mortgage, Inc. was one of the biggest originators of home loans in Cuyahoga County from 2003 to 2005, and was sold to Citibank in 2008. This particular case has been investigated by the Cuyahoga County Mortgage Fraud Task Force, and shows how the lending practices of Argent and other subprime lending companies were responsible for the foreclosure crisis that has decimated Cleveland, Ohio and many of its area suburbs. The indictment of the Argent employees alleges that they helped coach mortgage brokers about how to falsify loan documents so that they misstated the source or existence of d - Cleveland is Adding Jobs, But They Don't Pay as Much
Greater Cleveland, Ohio (which includes Cleveland and the outlying suburbs) has actually been doing an admirable job of adding employment opportunities for people out of work, even in a weak economic recovery. Unfortunately, the jobs that people are getting pay less than they did before the economic downfall. According to the Brookings Institution's MetroMonitor, which is a project measuring economic performance in the 100 largest metro areas of the United States, while the Cleveland-Elyra-Mentor area gained jobs in the first quarter of 2011, economic output in the area fell. This a common trend in the economic recovery patterns over and over again, in many areas. The report showed that Cleveland ranked second in terms of places that have brought down their unemployment rate, but is still struggling in economic output (the value of goods and serviced produced in the region). Part of the problem is how productivity is measured. Manufacturing jobs get higher points on the p - Ohio Home Sales Slipping Even Including the Short Sale of Fo
The Ohio housing market is still quite sluggish, even during the time of year when housing sales usually go up due to better weather and ease of moving. This trend is quite disappointing for real estate sellers, who are blaming part of the home sales slump on bad weather, high gas prices, and the difficulty in getting mortgage loans these days. Last spring, home sales were up due to a very popular home buyer tax credit, but that is not available for home buyers now, so there is less incentive to take a risk this year. Sales of homes in Northeast Ohio rose in May, however they were still behind May of 2010. This pattern was followed across the state of Ohio. Home sales were 20.8% lower than last year at this time (Ohio Association of Realtors). In Northeast Ohio, sales of new and existing homes rose 6.8% last month, but were down 17.3% from May 2010. Condo sales, however, jumped 35.7%, but were 4.6% lower than May 2010. Data is provided form the Northeast Ohio Real Estat - RealtyTrac Report Shows Ohio is the 13th Highest Foreclosure
Yippee! Ohio is in the running to be the highest home foreclosure state in the U.S. Out of 50 states in the union, we are the 13th highest. This is not a race that we want to win, folks. We want to lose this race. RealtyTrac is a company that tracks statistics related to real estate issues, and in the last few years foreclosure stats have been highly tracked. Ohio's statistics for May show that one out of every 608 households in the state received a foreclosure notice. RealtyTrac's report went on to say that Ohio saw nearly 8,400 foreclosure filings last month. Filings include default notices, auction-sale notices and bank repossessions. So is there anything we can do to get our real estate crisis back on track, building instead of foreclosing? It all comes back to jobs. We need more good jobs in Ohio to help people get back to paying their bills on time. This will kick start the economy in all directions as people with jobs spend more money in stores which in - New Home Construction Cannot Compete with Short Sales of For
Home building in Ohio is coming off the worst 2 years on record dating back 5 decades. Data in from May suggests that the trend is continuing. The construction of single family homes is a significant economic indicator. 80% of all residential construction is single family homes, and that construction is still way down. Most of the housing permits for new construction are for apartments and condominiums which have become preferred housing with the relative ease of renting instead of investing in a new mortgage. For Americans who lost their jobs in the recession, and were forced to give up their homes due to foreclosure, renting is a safer, more secure option. The impact of new home construction is felt around the entire local economy, as the purchase of a new home generates approximately 3 new jobs and $90,000 in taxes for the community. New home buyers also tend to spend more on purchases for the home like new appliances, furniture, landscaping, and home improvements. - Three Years Later, Banks are Recovering From Foreclosure Cri
Not sure what this means for homeowners in foreclosure, but BauerFinancial Inc., an independent rating company, announced that 3 of the 14 largest banks operating in Greater Cleveland--Huntington, U.S. Bank, and Park View Federal Savings--saw their financial strength increase last quarter. This is significant news because the ratings do not change often. Out of the 34 banks that operate in Northeast Ohio, only 1 bank, Home Savings Bank of Kent, had their rating go down from 4 stars to 3.5 stars. In more good news, banks are getting healthier in the entire state of Ohio, 71% of them earning a 4 star or higher rating based on the first quarter of 2011. Banks with ratings of 4 stars or above are considered excellent, and are recommended to businesses. Ohio's banks are actually stronger than the overall rating across the United States. The nation's overall bank rating was 61% excellent. However, the bad news is that there are still plenty of troubled banks in the U.S., 5.9% - Cuyahoga County's FitzGerald Raising Standards for Appraiser
In an attempt to clean house at the Cuyahoga County's Sheriff's office, Cuyahoga County Executive Ed FitzGerald is changing the standards for contracted appraisers in the real estate unit. In Ohio, the county sheriff's office is responsible for overseeing the auction of foreclosed properties. The Cuyahoga County sheriff's office hires contractors to appraise the foreclosed homes to set the values for auction. Former Sheriff Gerald McFaul was found to previously give many of these contractor jobs to his political buddies, some of whom did not even have appraiser licenses. In order to meet requirements under the new rules, applicants must have the following qualifications: 5 years experience as an appraiser Ohio appraiser license preferred FitzGerald believes that requiring Cuyahoga County appraisers to have experience will make the county's foreclosed property appraisal unit the most qualified in the state of Ohio. Ohio state law dating back to 1831 requires only th - JPMorgan Chase Ousts Chief of Mortgage Bank Foreclosure Unit
In a move meant to help repair its reputation, leadership of JPMorgan Chase forced out David Lowman, head of their mortgage unit. As bank "fraudclosure" and bank blunders are coming to light during federal regulators' examination of bank practices surrounding foreclosure, someone had to take the hatchet. One of the biggest mistakes JPMorgan Chase made in their haste to foreclose on hapless lenders, was to overcharge military personnel on their mortgages, and to foreclose on the homes of 27 active duty military personnel. For those families who sent their husbands, wives, and children off to war, to protect our country, it is really too much to ask that they need to worry about the homes that they live in here. In most cases, military wives are almost single moms raising their kids here while their husbands are in active duty. While I don't know the personal circumstances for each of the 27 families that were affected, not to mention those who were overcharged, it is good t