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.
Saturday, August 04, 2012
Fla. Casualty Insurer Begins Yanking Homeowner Discounts For Hurricane Protections; Some Suspect Effort A Pretext To Jack Up Rates & Dodge 10% Cap
The South Florida Sun Sentinel reports:
Citizens Property Insurance's push to inspect homes and revoke discounts for hurricane-resistant features has drawn fire and questions.
Premiums went up for nearly three-fourths of the 225,502 homeowners who have had the inspections. About 7 percent had decreases, and there was no change for 18 percent. The average inspection resulted in a $598 increase.
State-backed Citizens is the largest property insurer in Florida with 1.4 million policies.
We answer common questions about the inspections.
Why is Citizens doing the inspections?
Citizens found many forms used to verify discounts weren't filled out correctly and it appeared some customers were getting discounts they didn't deserve. Citizens plans to conduct about 138,000 more residential inspections this year.
Some people think Citizens is using the inspections as a back-door way to raise premiums more than 10 percent a year – a cap set by state law. Citizens estimates premiums increased by $137 million based on inspections done so far. The insurer has spent $35 million on the inspections.
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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