Subprime Refinancing Leaving Some Homeowners Financially Strapped
The following links are to a collection of recent articles on homeowners who are now finding themselves in or near foreclosure as a result of signing mortgage refinance loan documents that they apparently didn't understand.
1) Jacksonville, Florida - A 70-year-old Atlantic Beach, Florida widow has retained the services of Jacksonville Area Legal Aid to fight the foreclosure of her home by Ameriquest, who refinanced her mortgage three times since 2001, promising to help her lower her interest rate and monthly payments. In fact, her original payment has more than doubled. She charges that Ameriquest took advantage of a sick widow who didn't finish high school and is unable to understand financial contracts. See Beaches woman caught in a foreclosure cycle (But her lawyer says Ameriquest took advantage of her).
2) San Francisco, California - A Bay Area man is nearing foreclosure as a result of an "Option Arm" refinance of his home mortgage through Countrywide, who allegedly told him that his payments would be cut by about half; the payments actually went up by about $300. Further, he charges that someone originating the loan inflated his stated income by double on the loan application, notwithstanding the fact that he only produced pay stub verification for half the amount. See Bay Area Complaints Pile Up Against Countrywide, or watch TV report, CBS 5 Investigates: The Mortgage Blues.
3) Marin County, California - A disabled Marin County woman has retained an attorney to fight a foreclosure of, what her attorney calls, "an outrageous subprime loan." All she wanted was some money to fix her home of 30 years, and now she's on the verge of losing it. She is currently suing lender New Century Financial and mortgage broker PrimeWest, among others, seeking damages for negligence and fraud. See Homeowners unwittingly face foreclosure.
4) Detroit, Michigan - The problem of subprime refinancing is illustrated by the story of one family who lost their home to foreclosure on a refinanced mortgage that they were reportedly told that the payments would start at $504 a month, and would rise no higher than $569. Despite the broker's reassurances, the family's house payments reached $900. See Risky loans rock area: Metro Detroit is No. 1 in subprime mortgages (High-interest loans tied to growing foreclosure rate).
5 - South Windsor, Connecticut - Another Ameriquest horror story. A couple who wanted some money to do kitchen renovations and pay down some debt say they ended up getting locked into a skyrocketing adjustable mortgage, in which their payment went from $1,600 per month to $2,200 in a little more than a year. See Family Struggles With Skyrocketing Mortgage (Nearly 2 Million Expected To Lose Homes To Foreclosure This Year), or watch WFSB-TV Channel 3 report.
6- Fort Worth, Texas - One more Ameriquest story; another refinance for some cash to do some home improvements. The homeowner reportedly wound up with a loan from Ameriquest that didn’t even give him enough money for the repair, but almost doubled his monthly payments over the next few years. The homeowner had sued Ameriquest for mortgage fraud. Currently, the homeowner is dead. His brother thinks that the worry over his bad loan with Ameriquest and its extremely serious consequences was a factor in his brother's demise. Apparently, the brother had overcome a serious drinking problem years before, but the problems he had with the loan and his house caused him to stumble again. He died about a year ago from cirrhosis of the liver, caused in part by excessive drinking. According to his brother, “He was a mess in his last few months of his life. This whole problem with his house physically drained him. It dragged on and on."
Reportedly, the case against Ameriquest is still pending, though it is in limbo, according to the attorney handling the case. The homeowner left no will and had no assets besides the house; the brother said he couldn’t afford the legal bills for court hearings that would be required for him to be appointed executor of the estate, so at this point there is no one to keep the case going. See Too Little, Too Late (Predatory lending action is helping some, but the worst may still be ahead).
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P.S. - Ameriquest has agreed pay out $325 million to borrowers across the country to settle class-action suits brought by attorneys general in 49 states and has gone out of business.
7) Suffolk County & Westchester County, New York - see The American Dream Foreclosed.
8) Metro Cincinnati, Ohio - see America's "most affordable" shows strain of tough times.
Go here for stories of other victims of subprime refinancing. victims subprime refinancing alpha
1) Jacksonville, Florida - A 70-year-old Atlantic Beach, Florida widow has retained the services of Jacksonville Area Legal Aid to fight the foreclosure of her home by Ameriquest, who refinanced her mortgage three times since 2001, promising to help her lower her interest rate and monthly payments. In fact, her original payment has more than doubled. She charges that Ameriquest took advantage of a sick widow who didn't finish high school and is unable to understand financial contracts. See Beaches woman caught in a foreclosure cycle (But her lawyer says Ameriquest took advantage of her).
2) San Francisco, California - A Bay Area man is nearing foreclosure as a result of an "Option Arm" refinance of his home mortgage through Countrywide, who allegedly told him that his payments would be cut by about half; the payments actually went up by about $300. Further, he charges that someone originating the loan inflated his stated income by double on the loan application, notwithstanding the fact that he only produced pay stub verification for half the amount. See Bay Area Complaints Pile Up Against Countrywide, or watch TV report, CBS 5 Investigates: The Mortgage Blues.
3) Marin County, California - A disabled Marin County woman has retained an attorney to fight a foreclosure of, what her attorney calls, "an outrageous subprime loan." All she wanted was some money to fix her home of 30 years, and now she's on the verge of losing it. She is currently suing lender New Century Financial and mortgage broker PrimeWest, among others, seeking damages for negligence and fraud. See Homeowners unwittingly face foreclosure.
4) Detroit, Michigan - The problem of subprime refinancing is illustrated by the story of one family who lost their home to foreclosure on a refinanced mortgage that they were reportedly told that the payments would start at $504 a month, and would rise no higher than $569. Despite the broker's reassurances, the family's house payments reached $900. See Risky loans rock area: Metro Detroit is No. 1 in subprime mortgages (High-interest loans tied to growing foreclosure rate).
5 - South Windsor, Connecticut - Another Ameriquest horror story. A couple who wanted some money to do kitchen renovations and pay down some debt say they ended up getting locked into a skyrocketing adjustable mortgage, in which their payment went from $1,600 per month to $2,200 in a little more than a year. See Family Struggles With Skyrocketing Mortgage (Nearly 2 Million Expected To Lose Homes To Foreclosure This Year), or watch WFSB-TV Channel 3 report.
6- Fort Worth, Texas - One more Ameriquest story; another refinance for some cash to do some home improvements. The homeowner reportedly wound up with a loan from Ameriquest that didn’t even give him enough money for the repair, but almost doubled his monthly payments over the next few years. The homeowner had sued Ameriquest for mortgage fraud. Currently, the homeowner is dead. His brother thinks that the worry over his bad loan with Ameriquest and its extremely serious consequences was a factor in his brother's demise. Apparently, the brother had overcome a serious drinking problem years before, but the problems he had with the loan and his house caused him to stumble again. He died about a year ago from cirrhosis of the liver, caused in part by excessive drinking. According to his brother, “He was a mess in his last few months of his life. This whole problem with his house physically drained him. It dragged on and on."
Reportedly, the case against Ameriquest is still pending, though it is in limbo, according to the attorney handling the case. The homeowner left no will and had no assets besides the house; the brother said he couldn’t afford the legal bills for court hearings that would be required for him to be appointed executor of the estate, so at this point there is no one to keep the case going. See Too Little, Too Late (Predatory lending action is helping some, but the worst may still be ahead).
-----------------------
P.S. - Ameriquest has agreed pay out $325 million to borrowers across the country to settle class-action suits brought by attorneys general in 49 states and has gone out of business.
7) Suffolk County & Westchester County, New York - see The American Dream Foreclosed.
8) Metro Cincinnati, Ohio - see America's "most affordable" shows strain of tough times.
Go here for stories of other victims of subprime refinancing. victims subprime refinancing alpha
posted by Home Equity Theft Reporter at 7:02 AM
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