Mass AG Makes Mortgage Mod Deal With Owner Of 200 "Fremont" Loans Subject To Foreclosure Injunction & Lawsuit Alleging Unfair/Deceptive Practices

From the office of the Massachusetts Attorney General:

• Attorney General Martha Coakley has entered into an agreement with California based WMD Capital Markets, LLC that provides significant benefits to approximately 200 borrowers holding structurally unfair loans originated by Fremont Investment & Loan (“Fremont”). WMD Capital Markets recently purchased the Fremont-originated loans, which are subject to a preliminary injunction [original injunction, expanded injunction] restricting foreclosures, issued by Suffolk Superior Court in February 2008.

• The Attorney General’s Office and WMD Capital Markets reached an agreement to memorialize how Fremont-originated loans would be modified in order to avoid unnecessary foreclosures and account for Fremont’s unfair and deceptive lending practices that are the subject of the Attorney General’s law enforcement action against California-based Fremont.

Among the things WMD has specifically agreed to, according to the press release, are:

• Permanently reset the applicable interest rate to the borrowers’ introductory rate,
• In lieu of a loan modification, offer delinquent borrowers a relocation payment for one year after the agreement,(1) which is designed to help those borrowers who are unable to afford their mortgage loan, even after a downward adjustment of the monthly payment.

For the rest of the Mass AG press release, see AG Martha Coakley Enters into Affordable Loan Modification and Foreclosure Prevention Agreement with Purchaser of Fremont Loans.

See also, MarketWatch: WMD Capital Markets Purchases $65 Million in Massachusetts Mortgages (Deal Offers Homeowners New Financial Alternatives).

Go here for other posts on the battle between the Mass AG and Fremont Investment & Loan.

(1) The amount of the relocation payment was initially announced by the Mass AG's office as ranging from approximately $10,000 to $25,000. The reference to the relocation payment amount has since been removed by the AG's office. UndoMortgageLoans TILAdelta