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Bankruptcy Law, Credit, Debt Relief, Foreclosures, Timothy Kingcade Posts

New Home Sales Surge to Seven-Month High in February

Posted on March 30, 2017by Admin

Last month, new single-family home sales jumped to a seven-month high. The hike suggests the housing market recovery is stable despite the challenges of high prices, increased mortgage rates and tight inventories. According to the Commerce Department, new home sales increased 6.1 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 592,000 units last month, the highest level since July of last year.

New home sales were up 12.8 percent when compared to February of last year. Economists believe the hike in sales is partially due to the unseasonably warm weather across most of the country. In the Northeast region, new single-family homes dropped 21.4 percent. However, in the Midwest, sales were up 30.8 percent and in the South sales were up 3.6 percent.

Fortunately, high mortgage rates have not had a negative impact on home sales this year, largely due to a tightening labor market that is improving employment opportunities for young adults. The market is also benefitting from a shortage of properties for sale in most areas.

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Choosing the right attorney can make the difference between whether or not you can keep your home. A well-qualified Miami foreclosure defense attorney will not only help you keep your home, but they will be able to negotiate a loan that has payments you can afford. Miami foreclosure defense attorney Timothy Kingcade has helped many facing foreclosure alleviate their stress by letting them stay in their homes for at least another year, allowing them to re-organize their lives. If you have any questions on the topic of foreclosure please feel free to contact me at (305) 285-9100. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade & Garcia website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.

Credit, Debt Relief, Foreclosures, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Foreclosure Activity Hits 11-Year Low

Posted on March 20, 2017by Admin

During the month of February, foreclosure activity dropped to an 11-year low, according to new data from ATTOM Data Solutions. This was the lowest point since November 2005 and the 17^th consecutive month of annual decreases.

Although the nationwide average significantly dropped, there were 10 states that experienced an increase in foreclosure activity in February. States that saw the largest increase include: New Jersey with an increase of 16 percent, Delaware with 14 percent, Louisiana with 12 percent, Alabama with 10 percent and Hawaii with eight percent.

Foreclosure starts were also down 13 percent from February of last year, however some states experienced an annual increase including: Alabama with an increase of 40 percent in foreclosure starts, Texas with an increase of 26 percent, New Jersey with an increase of 24 percent, Florida with an increase of 12 percent, Illinois with an increase of 11 percent and Arizona with an increase of nine percent.

ATTOM Senior Vice President Daren Blomquist said there are two major reasons why some states are still seeing an increase in foreclosure starts. The first reason is due to the backlog stemming from the housing crisis. States such as Florida and New Jersey are still experiencing distress from the bubble-era. The second reason is due to the newly relaxed lending standards in some areas.

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Credit, Debt Relief, Foreclosures, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Why You Shouldn’t Panic about Rising Mortgage Rates

Posted on December 20, 2016by Admin

Although mortgage rates have been on a steady rise in recent months, buyers should not panic because rates are still historically low. According to Freddie Mac, the average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rose to 4.16 percent, up from 4.13 percent last week. This is up from 3.97 percent last year. This means buyers will pay approximately $21 more per month compared to a year ago on a $241,000 mortgage with a 20 percent down payment.

According to economists, the rise in interest rates should not deter potential buyers. In 1996, the average rate was 5.67 percent and in 1990 it was 10.13 percent. However, for the past ten years rates have been under five percent.

Mortgage rates are forecasted to gradually increase throughout 2017. As a result, home prices are also expected to rise.

“The era of ultra-low interest rates is over,” said Lawrence Yun, chief economist of the National Association of Realtors. “The short-term rate hike will be followed by several additional rounds of increases in 2017 and 2018. Despite these moves, mortgage rates will not rise alarmingly.”

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Credit, Debt Relief, Foreclosures, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Law Firm Sues Wells Fargo over Foreclosure Work

Posted on November 3, 2016by Admin

A New Jersey law firm has filed a lawsuit against Wells Fargo, claiming that the bank’s delayed efforts to fix its robo-signing problems led to the law firm’s demise. The law firm, Zucker, Goldberg & Ackerman, claims to have helped the lender foreclose on thousands of homeowners.

The lawsuit alleges that Wells Fargo took several years to comply with a 2010 New Jersey Supreme Court order that called for lenders to show that they were properly submitting mortgage details before foreclosing on a property. The law firm has since laid off most of its 335 employees within the last year.

According to the law firm, Wells Fargo’s delay in responding to the 2010 court order caused significant financial problems for the firm. The lawsuit states that under the bank’s agreement with mortgage lenders, the law firm would advance most of the foreclosure-related expenses and be reimbursed later. The lawsuit also states that the lender has refused to pay more than $2.5 million for work that Zucker, Goldberg & Ackerman did for the bank.

The firm was hired to file court pleadings, ensure compliance with state and federal regulations and research information such as ownership, payment history and title history for each case, according to the lawsuit.

Wells Fargo’s spokesman Tom Goyda released a statement that said the bank disagrees “with the claims regarding fees owed to the firm” and said that the lawsuit’s other allegations “should not be viewed as credible.”

U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Christine Gravelle scheduled a hearing on December 21^st.

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Credit, Debt Relief, Foreclosures

Florida Offers Homeowners Facing Foreclosure a Free Assistance Program

Posted on October 6, 2016by Admin

According to CoreLogic, Florida had the highest number of completed foreclosures of any state last year, with a total of 57,000 foreclosed homes. South Florida led the state with 9,603 in September alone. As a result, the Florida Housing Finance Corporation is offering a free statewide assistance program designed to help homeowners facing foreclosure called the Foreclosure Counseling Program.

The program provides struggling homeowners with one-on-one counseling and financial education services. Residents in all 67 counties are eligible.

“Foreclosure is still an issue facing thousands of homeowners in every county of our state,” said Florida Housing Communications Director Cecka Rose Green. “As a participant in the FCP, homeowners can expect to receive extensive housing and financial counseling services that can help them save their homes and become more financially stable.”

The Florida Legislature allocated $10 million from the state’s National Mortgage Settlement funds to implement the program. More than 40 agencies are available to assist interested homeowners across the state.

Click here to read more on this story or click here to visit the Florida Housing website for a full list of participating agencies.

Bankruptcy Law, Credit, Debt Relief, Foreclosures, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Wells Fargo’s Bogus Accounts, Echoes of Foreclosure Abuses

Posted on October 4, 2016by Admin

Wells Fargo’s Chairman and Chief Executive, John Stumpf, sat through hearings with the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs on Capitol Hill last month. During the hearings, Stumpf was drilled about the bank’s years long practice of opening bogus accounts for customers and charging fees to do so.

Throughout the hearings, many members of the Senate Committee took an opportunity to scold Stumpf. Senator Jon Tester of Montana told Stumpf, “You have done something I’ve never seen in 10 years, you have united this committee – and not in a good way.”

Financial experts are now saying that Wells Fargo’s latest scandal where they opened fake accounts and charged unknowing customers fees to do so is similar to the some of the elements in the foreclosure scandal. For example, both scams consisted of improper fees and forgeries.

A major difference between the two is that Stumpf has apologized to customers who were affected in the “account opening charade,” however, no such apology was made after the foreclosure scandal.

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If you are in financial crisis and considering filing for bankruptcy, contact an experienced Miami bankruptcy attorney who can advise you of all of your options. As an experienced CPA as well as a proven bankruptcy lawyer, Timothy Kingcade knows how to help clients take full advantage of the bankruptcy laws to protect their assets and get successful results. Since 1996 Kingcade & Garcia, P.A. has been helping people from all walks of life build a better tomorrow. Our attorneys’ help thousands of people every year take advantage of their rights under bankruptcy protection to restart, rebuild and recover. The day you hire our firm, we will contact your creditors to stop the harassment. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade & Garcia website at www.miamibankruptcy.com

Bankruptcy Law, Credit, Debt Relief, Timothy Kingcade Posts

What to do When Debt Collectors Call

Posted on August 12, 2016by Admin

According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), collectors have reached out to one-third of all consumers over the past year in an attempt to recover a debt. Although there are many laws in place to protect consumers, the CFPB reported that approximately 25 percent of all grievances the agency has received are complaints about debt collection practices. The CFPB recently proposed new rules to better protect consumers against illegal or unethical debt collection practices.

The CFPB recommends these four measures you need to take when debt collectors call:

Know your rights. Familiarize yourself with the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), this will help you better understand your rights as a consumers and how you are protected by the CFPB. When a debt collector contacts you, make sure you tell them you are aware of your rights under the FDCPA.
Verify everything. Under the FDCPA, debt collectors are legally require to follow up their call with a written notice detailing your debt. Make sure you ask for that information while you have them on the phone. You also need to verify the debt and the collector. Sometimes debt collectors try to collect “zombie debt” that is past the statute of limitations in your state.
Take detailed notes. Write down every time the collector makes contact with you. In your notes include: the agency’s name, the number they called from or the email address used, the time of the call and the name of the representative you spoke with. Also write down any threats that are made or unethical tactics the collector used to get you to pay the debt.
Complain to the CFPB. If you know your rights and you are aware that a debt collector has violated the FDCPA to try to collect debts, report the encounters to the CFPB.

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Bankruptcy Law, Credit, Debt Relief, Foreclosures, Timothy Kingcade Posts

New Mortgage Rules Aim to Stop Wrongful Foreclosures

Posted on August 10, 2016by Admin

Last week the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) approved new rules that will help prevent borrowers from being improperly foreclosed on by their mortgage lenders. The recently approved rules build on the current regulations that were created in the aftermath of the housing bust. The original rules required mortgage lenders to grant certain foreclosure protections to a struggling borrower once over the life of the loan. The new rules will require mortgage lenders to provide protections more than once, offering them to borrowers who make current payments after they have worked out an agreement to avoid foreclosure.

“This change will be particularly helpful for borrowers who obtain a permanent loan modification and later suffer an unrelated hardship – such as the loss of a job or the death of a family member – that could otherwise cause them to face foreclosure,” the CFPB said in a statement outlining the new rules.

In addition, the rules expand surviving family members’ protections and require mortgage lenders to give borrowers who have filed bankruptcy information about possible options. The rules also prohibit servicers from taking legal steps once borrowers have completed loss mitigation applications.

The rules come after a June report from the CFPB revealed that some servicers were giving homeowners wrong or outdated information or no information at all.

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Credit, Foreclosures, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Mortgage Rates Fall to Record Low

Posted on August 9, 2016by Admin

The national average 30-year fixed home mortgage rate fell to 3.36 percent last week. The number matches the record low reached in December 2012, according to Bankrate.com. It is down seven points from the last week in July. With a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage of 3.36%, a homeowner would pay approximately $441 per month in principal and interest for every $100,000 borrowed.

Financial experts believe low mortgage rates mean that now is the best time to re-finance. Many homeowners and homebuyers have both benefited from the drop in mortgage rates, according to Bloomberg.com.

The average 15-year fixed-rate mortgage is down four points from the previous week at 2.65%. With shorter-term loans such as 15-years, homebuyers pay more per month but save thousands of dollars in the long run.

If you are considering refinancing your home or purchasing a new home, make sure you get your paperwork in order beforehand. Mortgage lenders have strict requirements on paperwork including copies of proof of income, debts, assets, etc.

Related Resources:

http://www.bankrate.com/financing/mortgages/mortgage-rates-monday-august-1/

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-08-01/u-s-mortgage-rates-fall-to-lowest-on-record-chart

Foreclosures, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Foreclosure Attorney David J. Stern Faces Disbarment

Posted on October 29, 2013by Admin

Former foreclosure attorney David J. Stern may ultimately be disbarred for violations related to his role in the highly publicized “robo-signing” scandal. Stern is still a licensed lawyer in good standing with the Florida Bar. In April, two years after the scandal broke, the Bar filed an 80-page complaint that includes 17 counts that Stern violated the Bar’s rules of professional conduct. The Bar alleges that “Stern failed to properly supervise lawyers and non-lawyers at his firm and failed to halt regular violations of the Florida Bar rules.”

Stern earned the name the “foreclosure king” when his Plantation law firm rapidly expanded during the foreclosure crisis in 2006. He was a lead attorney for home mortgage provider Freddie Mac and several other big banks. Accusations were reported to the Florida Bar and local courts that the firm was filing false and inaccurate documents in those cases. Stern’s office was forced to close and thousands of employees were laid off.

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