Welcome to The Home Equity Theft Reporter, a blog dedicated to informing the consumer public and the legal profession about Home Equity Theft issues. This blog will consist of information describing the various forms of Home Equity Theft and links to news reports & other informational sources from throughout the country about the victims of Home Equity Theft and what government authorities and others are doing about it.
Friday, July 27, 2012
Suit: Lawyer Letter Demanding Back Rent, Failing To Include Required Disclosure In Connection w/ F'closed Homeowner's Eviction Violates FDCPA
In St. Louis, Missouri, Courthouse News Service reports:
Deutsche Bank and a Missouri law firm evict people from their homes illegally, a couple claims in a class action in City Court. Sonja Lawson and Ross Schuman sued Boyd Law Group, of St. Peters, Mo., and Deutsche Bank National Trust. They claim the defendants evict people in violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
Lawson and Schuman say they got a letter from the defendants on March 19, threatening legal action for back rent.(1) They say the letter failed to disclose that it was from a debt collector trying to collect a debt, and that though trustee's deeds claim their home was bought at a foreclosure sale, that was not the case.
"Thus contrary to the express representation in defendant's form letter, Deutsche Bank National Trust did not purchase the plaintiff's home, but was assigned an illegal credit bid," the complaint states.
"This representation by defendant is grossly misleading in that it not only conceals the true nature of the foreclosure sale from plaintiff, but also actively covers up the whole process of the credit bid being assigned by representing that Deutsche Bank 'purchased' the property."
(1) According to the lawsuit, the Defendants had earlier obtained a final judgment on the merits in an Unlawful Detainer action, and that said judgment was entitled to res judicata effect. The lawsuit then alleges that, six days after obtaining the final judgment, Defendants sent a letter to the foreclosed homeowners threatening to commence another action for back rent. The suit claims that, because Defendants threatened an action barred under principles of res judicata, they threatened an action they could not legally take. See lawsuit, paragraphs 8-14.
CBC News: Betrayal of Trust (A CBC investigation reveals how lawyers across Canada have misappropriated and mishandled clients money, to the tune of tens of millions of dollars, or sometimes even charging vulnerable people top dollar for shoddy services)
Land Contract/Contract For Deed/Rent-To-Own Rackets
The New York Times: The Housing Trap (In the wake of the housing crisis, low-income families have turned to seller financing to buy homes but these deals can be a money trap)
Beware The Fine Print: Consumers Forced To Sign Away Their Rights To Use Court System
The NY Times: Arbitration Everywhere, Stacking the Deck of Justice(Part 1 in series examining how clauses buried in tens of millions of contracts have deprived Americans of one of their most fundamental constitutional rights: their day in court)
Foreclosure Mills' Abysmal Record In Complying With New NYS Foreclosure Requirements
Justice Deceived: How Large Foreclosure Firms Subvert State Regulations Protecting Homeowners
MFY Legal Services Report On Questionable Practices By Process Servers In Debt Collection Cases
Justice Disserved: A Preliminary Analysis of the Exceptionally
Low Appearance Rate by Defendants in Lawsuits Filed in the Civil Court of the City of New York
Mortgage Mess Redux: Robo-Signers Return (A Reuters investigation finds that many banks are still employing the controversial foreclosure practices that sparked a major outcry last year)
CNN Video: As Foreclosures Mount, Florida Court Turns To 'Rocket Docket'
The Wall Street Journal: A Florida Court's 'Rocket Docket' Blasts Through Foreclosure Cases (2 Questions, 15 Seconds, 45 Days to Get Out; 'What's to Talk About?' Says a Judge)
"Produce The Note" Strategy When Dealing With Missing Promissory Notes In Foreclosure Actions
ABC Video: Fighting Against Foreclosure (Some homeowners have found a new tactic to keep the banks at bay)
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