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, February 19, 2016
Title Search Screw-Up At Center Of Controversy Leaving Recent Hombuyer-Couple Wrestling w/ Bank Over Ownership Of Home, Despite Never Having Missed A Payment
In Tampa, Florida, WFLA-TV Channel 8 reports:
Kris and Rebecca Kraft face losing their South Tampa Home, even though they’ve never missed a mortgage payment. They never even did business with the bank trying to take their home.
The Krafts bought their house, at 1508 S. Arrawana Ave., in 2013. Everything was fine, but then they started receiving strange mail from real estate professionals. The professionals offered to help the couple fight foreclosure or relocate to another home they could afford.
“It’s mind blowing that something like this could happen,” Kris Kraft told 8 On Your Side.
Then the situation got worse. They came home to find foreclosure notices taped to their front door and garage. Plus, a “relocation specialist,” hired by Nationstar Bank, started calling constantly, wanting to the Krafts to move out.
And then, the unthinkable happened. A friend in the real estate business called them to ask why their house was listed for sale on Zillow.com. The Krafts had no idea and panicked. It was late at night when they got the news.
***
Here’s a rundown of how thing unraveled:
The house first sold in 2004. That buyer took out two mortgages from two different banks and then lost the home to foreclosure in 2013. This is when things got weird. The second mortgage holder beat the main mortgage holder in a race to foreclose. That bank sold the home to an investor who then flipped it to the Krafts.
But no one caught the big title mistake. The home should have never been sold because of the clouded title. Then in December 2015 the first mortgage holder, now Nationstar Bank, decided to foreclose on its lien and take the title. Today, both Nationstar and the Krafts claim title.
For the Krafts, it’s a nightmare. They have a 4-month-old baby and gave a down payment of $80,000. They also stand to lose years of equity and improvement, such as new windows and a custom driveway.
A spokeswoman for Nationstar said the bank was not aware of the problems until contacted by 8 On Your Side. She vowed to get to the bottom of things and promised to take the Krafts’ home off of the real estate market until the issues are sorted out.
The Krafts did buy title insurance when they bought the home from Old Republic. 8 On Your Side went there for answers, too, but no one would come out of a fancy Tampa office to answer questions.
The title insurance could cover mortgage costs for the Krafts if they have to give their home back to Nationstar, but that doesn’t make the Krafts feel much better. They want this sorted out so they can keep their home.
“It makes me sick,” Rebecca Kraft said. “It makes me physically ill. I can’t tell you. Every time I walk by, there’s photos on the wall. It breaks my heart.”
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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