foreclosures in Florida Archives

Foreclosure Filings Increase Following End of CFPB Restrictions

Posted on March 4, 2022by Admin

Foreclosure filings reported in January 2022 were up by nearly 30 percent from a month prior and up by over 139 percent from a year ago, according to figures from the U.S. Foreclosure Market Report. A total of 23,204 U.S. properties were reported as having foreclosure filings.

The fact that foreclosure filings were on the rise does not come as a surprise for financial experts who have been keeping an eye on the housing market. Normally, foreclosure filings slow down around the holidays, picking up again after the first of the year. However, this year, the filings were a little more than in previous years, showing more of a spike in filings than a slow increase.

Foreclosure Defense, Foreclosures

South Florida Foreclosure Filings Increase in the Third Quarter

Posted on November 16, 2021by Admin

South Florida foreclosure filings increased during the third quarter of 2021, shortly after the federal moratoriums on evictions and foreclosures were lifted. Housing experts anticipate that this upward trend could continue well into the fourth quarter of 2021.

The moratorium on foreclosures expired for most homeowners on July 31, 2021. It was created in an effort to help struggling homeowners stay in their homes during the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, now that the moratorium has been lifted, many mortgage lenders are moving forward with foreclosure proceedings.

Foreclosures

Experts Warn of New Foreclosure Crisis in South Florida

Posted on July 23, 2021by Admin

With the federal moratorium on evictions and foreclosures set to expire, housing experts are predicting a new foreclosure crisis in South Florida.

The crisis began for many last year as COVID-19 forced thousands of Floridians out of jobs. It was not until April 2020 when the Trump Administration and many states hit the pause on all foreclosure and eviction proceedings on federally backed loans. States and the federal government extended these moratoriums throughout 2020 and into 2021. These extensions allowed individuals to remain in their homes and postpone the foreclosure process.

Foreclosures, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Mortgage Delinquency Rates Decline Nationally, But Florida Shows Increase Due to Irma

Posted on August 7, 2018by Admin

Mortgage delinquency rates have declined on a national level, as reported by the monthly Loan Performance Insights Report published by CoreLogic. However, despite the national decrease, Florida residents have seen an increase, which is attributed mostly to Hurricane Irma and the 2017 hurricane season.

According to CoreLogic’s report, as of April 2018, 4.2 percent of mortgages nationwide are in some stage of delinquency. A delinquency means that the mortgage is 30 days or more past due and includes those mortgages that are already in foreclosure. This number shows a 0.6 percentage point decrease in the overall delinquency rate as compared in April 2017. At that time, the percentage was at 4.8 percent.

The report also provided information on the foreclosure inventory rate, which measures the share of mortgages that are in some stage of the process of foreclosure. The rate as of April 2018 was at 0.6 percent, which is down 0.1 percentage points from where it was in April 2017. The foreclosure inventory rate has been steady at the rate of 0.6 percent, which is the lowest rate that has been reported since June 2007, when the rate was last reported at 0.6 percent. The April 2018 rate is the lowest that it has been in the past 11 years.

The purpose of measuring delinquency rates during the early stage of the process helps in analyzing the health of the mortgage market. CoreLogic’s report looks at all stages of mortgage delinquency and transition rates, including the percentage of mortgages that are reported as moving from one stage of delinquency to the next step in the process.

Early stage delinquency occurs when a mortgage payment is 30 days to 59 days past due. This early-stage delinquency was reported at being at 2.2 percent in April 2017 and was reported at 1.8 percent in April 2018. The figures in the early-stage delinquency category can be volatile, so it is for this reason that CoreLogic looks at the transition rates, meaning the number of mortgages that transition to the next stage. The transition rates for mortgages reported in the early-stage to later stage went down from 1.2 percent in April 2017 to 0.8 percent in April 2018. To provide some perspective, at the start of the financial crisis the early-stage delinquency transition rate was at 1.2 percent in January 2007 and 2 percent in November 2008.

The percentage of mortgages at the 60 to 89 days past due remained the same during this time. The mortgages that were reported in the serious delinquency stage at more than 90 days past due were down from 2.0 percent in April 2017 to 1.9 percent in April 2018. It should be noted that this is the lowest the serious delinquency rate has been since 2007 when it was reported at 1.6 percent.

However, despite these decreasing numbers, two states were reported as showing significant gains in the serious delinquency stage. These two states, Florida and Texas, were showing serious negative effects from the 2017 hurricane season. Of the two states, Florida has the most densely populated areas and the longest coastal area. This long coast leads to more exposure to storm surge flooding, putting almost 2.7 million homes at risk during hurricane season. After Florida, Louisiana is second to Florida with 817,000 homes in the “at-risk” area. Texas is right behind in third with 543,000 at-risk homes. Of these three states, Florida and Texas are the ones currently still struggling following Hurricanes Irma and Harvey which hit in 2017. Both states are finding themselves with higher mortgage default rates due to the natural disasters that have hit those states. The percent of mortgages that are in the serious delinquency category with loans that are 90 days past due are doubled than what they were reported in the previous year. In Puerto Rico, another area hit by hurricanes in 2017, the foreclosure rate or 90-day delinquency rate has quadrupled.

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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

Banks Propose $25 Billion Deal to U.S. State Officials to help Victims of Deceptive Foreclosure Practices

Posted on January 29, 2012by Admin

The five major mortgage lending banks, Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Citibank and Ally Financial have proposed a deal to U.S. state officials that could re-shape the structure of mortgage lending and better protect homeowners from foreclosure malpractice.
Since the housing market crash of 2007, almost eight million American homes have been foreclosed on. A reportedly 11 million homeowners in America owe more than half of what their home is currently worth. Under the proposed deal, those who are eligible will receive a check for approximately $1,800, but it is doubtful they will get their homes back. The purpose of the reserve accounts will be to help those who have been victims of deceptive foreclosure practices.
Under the proposed $25 Billion deal:
• $17 billion would go toward reducing the principal that struggling homeowners owe on their mortgages.
• $5 billion would be placed in a reserve account for various state and federal programs; a portion of that money would cover the $1,800 checks sent to those homeowners affected by the deceptive practices.
• $3 billion would be to help homeowners refinance at 5.25 percent.
To read more on this story visit: http://abcnews.go.com/Business/wireStory/25b-nationwide-mortgage-deal-states-15421108#.TyGfg5jl1SU
Choosing the right attorney can make the difference between whether or not you can keep your home. A well qualified attorney will not only help you keep your home, but they will be able to negotiate a loan that has payments you can afford. 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, P.A. website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.

Foreclosures, Timothy Kingcade Posts

The Obama Administration Announces Modifications to the Home Affordable Refinance Program to Help Underwater Homeowners

Posted on November 29, 2011by Admin

South Florida has embraced the new modifications being made to the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP), which include eliminating some appraisals and loosening underwriting requirements, making it easier for underwater homeowners to alleviate their mortgages. To qualify homeowners must be current on their payments, and the mortgages must be backed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.
These revisions are projected to help tens of thousands of South Florida homeowners who have not qualified for other government relief programs. The government is doing away with a cap that prevented borrowers whose mortgages exceed 125 percent of the value of their homes from being eligible for the program. Other changes include reduced risk for lenders and lower fees for borrowers. Nearly half of all single family homes with a mortgage in Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties are worth less than what is owed, according to third-quarter data from real estate website Zillow.com. People who otherwise may have been tempted to walk away from their homes will be able to qualify for some of the lowest mortgage rates on record and possibly pay off their homes faster.
To read more on this story visit:
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/business/fl-harp-revisions-20111115,0,4175968.story?track=rss

Choosing the right attorney can make the difference between whether or not you can keep your home. A well qualified attorney will not only help you keep your home, but they will be able to negotiate a loan that has payments you can afford. 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, P.A. website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.

Foreclosures, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Law Firms Nationwide Descend on Florida to capture Growing Foreclosure Business

Posted on November 14, 2011by Admin

Law firms from Atlanta, North Carolina, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Philadelphia are heading south to take over files from the Law Offices of David J. Stern and Ben-Ezra & Katz, previously two of Florida’s largest foreclosure firms. David J. Stern and Ben-Ezra Katz’s law offices abandoned business after being investigated for possible foreclosure fraud, leaving tens of thousands of cases in need of representation. The new law firms are being handed between 3,500 and 5,000 transfer files at $1,200 to $1,400 per file, according to a legal headhunter. Many of these foreclosure firms are placing their South Florida central offices in the Fort Lauderdale area. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s plan is to spread out the cases among more firms, instead of a few large ones, preventing any streamlining.

Since being under the congressional spotlight, Fannie Mae is being proactive to ensure firms maintain proper procedures and are even sitting in on lawyer interviews at firms. Fannie Mae is using new criteria when choosing new firms to contract with. This new criteria requires firms to be in good standing with the Florida Bar and local bar associations, demonstrate experience in handling foreclosures, provide quality and cost-efficient work, posses diversity and overall capacity to handle the foreclosure volume, among other considerations. Despite new legislation to monitor foreclosure firms, without some sort of program in place to teach young lawyers how to conduct themselves properly– the same problems will exist.

Foreclosures, Timothy Kingcade Posts

President Obama Announces New Program to help ‘Underwater’ Homeowners Reduce their Monthly Mortgage Payments

Posted on November 3, 2011by Admin

The Obama administration recently unveiled a new government program aimed to provide assistance to ‘underwater’ homeowners who owe more than their properties are worth and help reduce their monthly mortgage payments. The goal of the program is to keep families in their homes and lower interest rates for responsible lenders. Those who qualify for the program will be eligible to refinance their mortgages at a new low rate, near 4 percent.

This plan is part of what the Obama administration calls the “We Can’t Wait” campaign. In order to be eligible for the program homeowner loans must be backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Final details will be published in mid-November 2011. The plan comes as an official revision to the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP), which began at the start of Obama’s term. It was initially designed to provide assistance to as many as 5 million homeowners; of which only 822,000 (one-tenth) have been helped by the program.

However, HARP had several barriers that resulted in its lack of success. These barriers included: limiting the program to lenders owing 25 percent more than the worth of their home, upfront fees, and banks concerns that they would be ultimately responsible in the case of a default. Officials backing Obama’s new program hope this will reallocate money and help stimulate economic growth and development.

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, P.A. website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.

Foreclosures, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Trend Alert: Decline in Foreclosure Activity in U.S. Metro Areas

Posted on August 11, 2011by Admin

It has been reported that the nation’s largest metropolitan areas are seeing a sharp drop in foreclosure activity as banks take longer to move against homeowners who are behind on their mortgage payments. According to Realty Trac Inc. in the first half of this year, 84 percent of metropolitan areas with a population of at least 200,000 saw their foreclosure rate drop versus the same period last year.

In total, foreclosure activity declined in 178 of the country’s 211 largest metropolitan areas during the first six months of the year. The decline is due to delays in the foreclosure process as lenders work through foreclosure documentation problems that first surfaced last fall. Those problems prompted them to resubmit paperwork on many properties that had been slated for foreclosure and led to a slew of government investigations of the mortgage industry. Mortgage banks also have put off taking action against newly delinquent borrowers in order to try loan modifications or other tactics aimed at avoiding foreclosure.

This has resulted in some 1.7 million potential foreclosures being held up. The slowdown in foreclosure activity has been pronounced in states like Florida, New York, Maryland, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Illinois, where courts play a major role in the foreclosure process and are only beginning to sort through the backlog of cases.