Tag: Foreclosure Defense Attorney

COVID-19, Foreclosures, Kingcade Garcia McMaken

Evictions Pile Up as DeSantis’ Moratorium Set to Expire in Florida

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Both landlords and tenants are waiting with bated breath to see what will happen when it comes to the current moratorium on evictions in Florida. With the hold on evictions set to expire at the end of this month, no official statement has come from the Florida Governor’s office regarding whether Gov. Ron DeSantis intends to extend the moratorium through the end of September. In the meantime, the number of eviction cases are piling up, waiting to proceed once the freeze on evictions is lifted.

The moratorium on evictions related to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic originally took effect on April 2, during the height of the epidemic. As the hold on evictions now enters its fifth month, landlords are demanding the stay be lifted, allowing them to proceed with business, while tenants are requesting the hold on evictions be extended, giving them additional breathing room to get back on their feet during this difficult time. However, many landlords argue that the individuals taking use of this moratorium do not actually need the assistance but are simply taking advantage of the statewide ban.

Coronavirus, COVID-19, Foreclosure Defense, Foreclosures

Governor DeSantis Issues Amended Executive Order on Foreclosures and Evictions

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The statewide moratorium on evictions and foreclosures during the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis has been extended via an executive order issued by Gov. Ron DeSantis. However, critics are questioning the language within the order itself as to just what it means for Florida residents facing evictions or foreclosures.

The executive order was signed and announced on July 29. However, the amended language in this new executive order does not prevent all evictions and foreclosures like the previous one did.

Foreclosure Defense, Foreclosures

Florida Homeowners Struggle to Pay PACE Home Improvement Loans

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Florida homeowners who have financed home improvements through help of an energy loan program are now struggling to pay back those debts. The program, named Property Assessed Cleaning Energy, also known as PACE, is a financing program used to fund improvements to property owner’s homes in Florida over the past three years.

PACE is offered only in three states throughout the country. For some South Floridians, the PACE program has been a blessing, but it has unfortunately ended up being more of a curse for many of them as they struggle to pay back their loans. This money meant the ability to install a new roof, solar energy systems, an air conditioning system or even hurricane-resistant impact windows. Through PACE, all of this would be financed with nothing down and no credit check. The applicant simply would need to show that he or she had equity in the home, had a good history of making mortgage payments on time, and could show that he or she had enough money to make payments on the PACE loan.

Foreclosure Defense, Foreclosures

Mortgage Foreclosure and Eviction Relief Extended by Governor DeSantis

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The order issued by Gov. Ron DeSantis offering Floridians facing eviction or foreclosure relief has been extended through July 1, 2020. The order was issued at the start of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic to help individuals facing financial stress. Given that the economic fall-out from COVID-19 is ongoing, Governor DeSantis has extended this relief into mid-summer.

This news comes at a good time, as unemployment is still at a record high. Florida’s unemployment system has still been failing many who have applied for benefits. Thousands of individuals are still waiting to receive their unemployment so that they can pay necessary living expenses, arguably the most important of these being rent and mortgage bills.

Foreclosure Defense, Foreclosures

Foreclosure Scams to Beware of

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When someone is at risk of losing his or her home, that person may be willing to take any offer, even one that sounds too good to be true. Many foreclosure scams exist, built on false promises and deception. It is important that consumers be aware of these scams and recognize the red flags in advance.

While the types of foreclosure scams vary, they do have one thing in common. They are built on false promises, and prey on financially distraught homeowners who fear losing their homes. These companies swoop in and take advantage of someone when they are at their most vulnerable and are desperate for any type of assistance.

Foreclosure Defense, Foreclosures

Steps to Take to Keep Your Home and Avoid Foreclosure

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When someone is facing a difficult financial situation, one of the main concerns that person may have is losing his or her home. If a person is not able to pay day-to-day expenses, one of the biggest bills that will go unpaid is the mortgage bill. However, if the mortgage is not paid on time for more than 180 days, the lender may decide to proceed with a foreclosure action. The key is to respond quickly to avoid losing your home through foreclosure.

Foreclosures

Florida Sees a Sharp Increase in Foreclosures

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While the nation is seeing a drop in the number of foreclosures, Florida is seeing the opposite. For the 12th month in a row, Florida has seen a double-digit annual increase in foreclosure filings.

These figures come from a study published by ATTOM Data Solutions, which reviewed foreclosure starts from May 2018, comparing these figures to those reported in May 2019. On a national scale, foreclosure filings were down nine percent when compared to figures from May 2018. Florida, on the other hand, saw an increase in foreclosure starts of 23 percent when compared to the previous year.

As of May 1, 2019, one in every 1,238 homes had a foreclosure filing in Florida. These numbers are the third highest in the country, behind New Jersey and Maryland. Of the metropolitan areas in Florida, Jacksonville reported the second highest foreclosure rate, reporting that one in every 764 homes were involved in some stage of foreclosure proceedings.

Since January 2019, these numbers have been increasing incrementally. One of the contributing factors for these high foreclosure numbers has to do with the fact that while the cost of living in Florida has gone up, wages have stayed stagnant for several years. Not only have the cost of purchasing a home gone up, but so have insurances and taxes that come with owning a home.

Other factors leading to higher foreclosure rates could have to do with natural disasters that hit the sunshine state more than others, namely hurricanes. Depending on the severity of the storm, homeowners could lose their jobs or even their homes after a hurricane. Insurance can also skyrocket following a natural disaster, also making it difficult for the person to maintain payments on the home.

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 McMaken website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.

Related Resources:

https://miami.cbslocal.com/2019/06/17/florida-bucks-trend-sees-increases-in-foreclosures/

 

 

Foreclosures, Timothy Kingcade Posts

5 Steps to Slow Down the Foreclosure Process in Florida

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Receiving a notice of delinquency in the mail does not automatically mean that you are going to lose your home. Florida has what is called a judicial foreclosure process, which means that every homeowner is entitled to a hearing before the court to determine whether or not the bank is entitled to foreclose.  The most important thing to remember is that the homeowner has rights. There are things you can do to slow down the foreclosure process and even keep your home, while getting your financial life back on track.

  1. Educate yourself. Read over everything you have received from the lender, including the mortgage itself. Many notices will contain information on foreclosure prevention options. It is only after you have not paid your mortgage for a period of 90 days that foreclosure proceedings will start.  Remember, Florida is a judicial foreclosure state, meaning the lender must file a lawsuit against you before moving forward with the proceedings.
  2. Contact your lender. The lender will likely be willing to work with you as the foreclosure process can be lengthy and costly in Florida. There are different options they may extend to you, which include: refinancing, a repayment plan, forbearance or a loan modification.
  3. Contact a HUD approved housing counselor. There are federally funded agencies in each state that work with a variety of lenders to secure affordable repayment options for struggling homeowners. But with this option, beware that there are many non-legitimate companies looking to scam borrowers.  Research these options carefully and use caution. Make sure you are working with a free, federally approved agency.
  4. Consider doing a short sale. If you do not see yourself being able to repay your mortgage with a loan modification or repayment plan, a short sale may be a good option.
  5. Consider filing for bankruptcy. Filing for bankruptcy will not only eliminate your unsecured debt, but as soon as you file for bankruptcy an “automatic stay” goes into effect, which stops all collection attempts and halts the foreclosure process.

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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 McMaken website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.

Foreclosures, Timothy Kingcade Posts

National Mortgage Delinquencies on the Decline While Foreclosure Rates Spike

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Mortgage delinquencies are on the decline nationwide, according to the most recent Black Knight First Look report. The mortgage delinquency rate fell 3.75 percent for all loans in the month of January, which is down 3.45 percent from December 2018. While that decrease may not seem significant, it is when compared to one year ago. In fact, mortgage delinquencies are down nearly 13 percent from January 2018.

Black Knight, Inc., provides integrated technology services in addition to data and analytics to mortgage and real estate industries. They provide this First Look report annually to review where statistics are nationally and from state-to-state when it comes to foreclosures and mortgage delinquencies.

According to the report, approximately 1.945 million properties were 30 days or more past due in January 2019. This figure is down 68,000 from December 2018. When compared to January 2018, the numbers are down by approximately 257,000.

Additionally, Black Knight reported that 504,000 homes were at the point where they were considered “seriously delinquent,” which means the mortgages were more than 90 days past due but were not yet in foreclosure. This figure is down 7,000 when compared to December 2018 but 203,000 from January 2018.

Homes that were reported in the pre-sale inventory category, meaning homes that were in some stage of the foreclosure process, were down approximately 60,000 from December 2018 and down 72,000 from January 2018, which is in line with the rest of the trends reported. The foreclosure inventory rate was 0.51 percent of all homes still holding a mortgage. This figure shows a 2.20 percent decrease from the prior month and a 22.43 percent decrease from January 2018.

Interestingly enough, Black Knight did report that approximately 50,200 foreclosures were started in January 2019 nationwide. This figure is actually an 8.42 percent increase, as compared with December 2018. It is still down 19.42 percent, however, when compared with the previous year.

The rate for monthly prepayment was at a 10.15 percent decrease in January, as compared to December 2018. It also showed a decrease of about 25 percent from January 2018, which was also the lowest level reported since before the end of 2000.

Why is the decrease in the monthly prepayment rate significant? A prepayment is a settlement of a debt or installment payment made before the payment’s due date. It can be made for either the entire balance owed or for an upcoming payment that is paid in advance of the due date. The fact that these prepayments have gone down is unusual since prepayments are typically more common when delinquency rates decrease. It would go along with the trend for the prepayment rates to go up rather than the other way around.

Black Knight does not believe this is cause for concern since housing turnover tends to go down in January and February traditionally. Prepayments could pick up again throughout the spring so long as delinquency rates remain low or where they are.

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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 McMaken website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.

Related Resources:

https://www.blackknightinc.com/black-knights-first-look-at-january-2019-mortgage-data/

 

Foreclosures, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Call Being Made To Halt Foreclosures During Government Shutdown

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Now in its fifth week, an estimated 800,000 government employees have been caught in the political crossfire of the government shutdown. Roughly 380,000 federal workers have been furloughed and 420,000 are working without pay. Many of these individuals, who are now facing an extremely stressful financial situation due to the lack of income, were already in a difficult financial situation prior to the shutdown.

Housing advocates are urging that it is only fair that the foreclosure process is shut down while the federal government remains on a partial shutdown. In fact, 15 organizations across the U.S. are now asking the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to pause all foreclosure proceedings during the shutdown for its home loans where borrowers are behind.

This request was made this week in a letter submitted to the USDA. The USDA operates a home loan program that focuses on rural home ownership.

The USDA lending program offers options for borrowers who fall behind in their mortgage payments in an effort to avoid foreclosure. However, one of these alternatives is a servicing center that has now stopped operating during the shutdown, thus leaving these homeowners in a major bind. Without the assistance and no end in sight, these homeowners are facing the possibility of foreclosure.

In response, the advocates who have reached out to the USDA believe that a stay on foreclosure is completely justified. However, until now, the USDA has not made any public statements regarding foreclosures during the shutdown, so it is hard to say how they will respond to this most recent request.

It is estimated that there are approximately one million individuals participating in the USDA direct home loan program, as well as another million enrolled in its insured loan program. These individuals are being hit hard during the shutdown, especially those employed by the federal government. If they were in the process of a foreclosure and working with one of these now closed servicing centers, these individuals are left without any other resources.

According to CoreLogic, approximately 4.1 percent of all mortgages are considered at least 30 days past due on their payments or are in foreclosure. However, foreclosures are said to be down at this point, although they still present a problem for many Floridians as delinquent payments on mortgages are on the rise.

Click here to read more on this story.

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 McMaken website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.