Posts tagged as:

mortgage bankruptcy

Treasury Says Cramdown Is Still Off the Table, Even Though Loan Modifications Aren’t Working

by Moe Bedard

As Mike pointed out today, the slow pace of loan modification progress has prompted some lawmakers to once again call for mortgage cramdown legislation that would allow bankruptcy judges to modify loans and keep borrowers in their homes.

But the Obama administration is signaling clearly that while it may be open to some new tactics, cramdown [...]

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Wealthy Families Face Bankruptcy on Real Estate Crash

by Moe Bedard

More individuals or families with at least $1,010,650 in secured debt and $336,900 unsecured are using Chapter 11 of the U.S. bankruptcy code typically associated with business reorganizations. Falling U.S. home prices leave them unable to refinance or sell properties when they drop below the value of the mortgage, said Joseph Baldi, a Chicago bankruptcy [...]

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Top Dems Renew Call for Cramdown: YAWN

by Moe Bedard

More mortgage bankruptcy puffery in Washington for your intertainment. Is this all just for show Main Street? Are these politicians really fighting for you to keep your home or are they out to just fool you long enough until the 2010 elections?
 “Waiting for banks to ‘volunteer’ to end this foreclosure crisis is a waste of time,” Durbin said in [...]

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Barney Frank threatens mortgage bankruptcy, yet again

by Moe Bedard

Barney Frank is threatening yet again to bring the bankruptcy cram down bill to life again. The same Senate opposition is speaking up against it. Rep. Spencer Bachus of Alabama, “Bankruptcy cram down would seriously prolong our housing recovery by decreasing mortgage credit,” he said in opening remarks at the hearing. 
I am sorry Mr. Frank, but [...]

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Durbin Gives Bailed Out Banks ‘Cramdown’ Ultimatum

by Moe Bedard

“The voluntary efforts by some banks to slow the foreclosure crisis and stabilize America’s housing market have not worked,” Durbin said during a housing forum at the Center for American Progress Action Fund. “Whether the bankers and mortgage servicers are failing because of intransigence or incompetence doesn’t matter … They have to do much better.”
Read [...]

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Barney Frank – Can he save homeowners?

by Moe Bedard

Looks like Barney Frank may come to rescue homeowners. Mr. Frank is in the media again threatening lenders with bankruptcy reform because he wants more loan modifications and they are just not happening.
Is this just more hot air from Washington and how long can we pose empty threats at an industry that just does not seem [...]

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Cram Down or Sham Town?

by Moe Bedard

OK, this Washington bankruptcy cram down BS is getting soooooo old. I have heard the same BK lip service for the last two years and it looks like I better get my homeowner boots on because here it goes again folks.
Yet another attempt in Washington to revisit the bankruptcy cram down has begun. Yawn…. I think [...]

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Band of House Dems Revisits Cramdown

by Moe Bedard

The Obama administration has all but abandoned it, and the Senate has already voted it down. But a proposal to allow struggling homeowners to escape foreclosure through bankruptcy got a boost Thursday from a small band of House Democrats convinced that voluntary mortgage modifications aren’t alone solving the housing crisis.
They have a point. Despite White [...]

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Will filing bankruptcy stop foreclosure?

by Moe Bedard

Unfortunately, many homeowners simply don’t know what to do when they are in foreclosure. I get many emails asking me, “Will filing bankruptcy stop foreclosure?”
Well, yes and no!
Many homeowners will file for Chapter 13 specifically to stop their sale date. Only to find out later, that their mortgage is not included and now they may [...]

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Remove Your Second Mortgage in Bankruptcy

by Moe Bedard

Current bankruptcy law allows judges to approve the loan modifications of the terms of certain debts. But is it possible to remove your second mortgage in bankruptcy?
As most of us know, your first mortgage is not allowed to be claimed. But not everyone knows that in the case of second mortgages, if the value of [...]

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A Solution to the Cramdown Impasse?

by Moe Bedard

The subject of cramdown legislation is widely attended to by consumers and corporate executives alike. Consumers are paying careful attention as the bill, if passed, could give desperate homeowners another exit strategy from serious hardships caused by the worsening economy.
Corporate executives argue that the legislation would result in higher interest rates for borrowers, however, most [...]

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Mortgage Bankruptcy Bill Passed by Congress

by Moe Bedard

After almost two years, it now looks like bankruptcy judges will soon be allowed to offer loan modifications through bankruptcy court as a last resort for a homeowner to stop foreclosure.
The process of claiming bankruptcy on your mortgage has been dubbed “cramdown.”
Under current BK laws, bankruptcy courts may reduce many forms of debt for struggling [...]

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Mortgage Bankruptcy Cramdown = Washington Showdown

by Moe Bedard

It looks like the controversial home mortgage bankruptcy bill will be delayed because of a severe snow storm that covered Washington D.C. today, forcing the U.S. House of Representatives to push back their bankruptcy votes to a later date.
The bankruptcy provision, known as a “mortgage cram-down,” would empower Federal Courts to write down the interest [...]

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Legislature May Pass Bill Modifying Bankruptcy Providing Judges Wide Reaching

by Moe Bedard

Following the trends of bankruptcy law over the last year the subject of “cramdowns” has made some lenders tremble and others, like me, anxious to see what our legislature will do to empower homeowners nationwide. If this new legislation makes it in to the senate and passes, I’m hoping President Obama will sign the new [...]

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Loan Modification Can Stop the Foreclosure Crisis

by Moe Bedard

If we can spend $700 billion to bail out the brokers on Wall Street, the very least we can do is allow working Americans who are willing to repay their debts as best they can, under court supervision, the dignity of staying in their homes. With one in 10 homeowners behind on their mortgages, and 10 million foreclosures expected over the next several years, the time for meaningful action is now.

Mr. Conyers, a Democrat from Michigan, is the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee.

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U.S. House Approves Mortgage Bankruptcy Measure

by Moe Bedard

The House Panel passed a measure yesterday to allow bankruptcy courts to modify loans on primary residences for troubled borrowers.

The controversial legislation that has remained stagnate in Washington for more than a year seemed to be gain serious momentum as Obama took office and the Democrats gained more power on the Hill. The new mortgage bankruptcy rules being proposed would mean a huge victory for struggling homeowners who have had little to no protection when dealing with their lenders and mortgage servicers.

Loan modifications and mortgage “cram downs” AKA “principle reductions” would be eligible in bankruptcy court and allow judges to whack the values and mortgage balances on thousands and possible millions of homes.

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Mortgage Bankruptcy: Can Bankruptcy Save Your Home?

by Moe Bedard

I have been writing about mortgage bankruptcy for quite sometime and the how it would benefit struggling homeowners. So, I thought I would condense some of bankruptcy basics for you to study and get educated on the subject.

Please remember that Citi is the only lender that has agreed to cooperate with the new bankruptcy deal and it is with conditions. The bankruptcy bill has not been passed and conditions must be met to qulaify.

In a statement, Citigroup said it would support Durbin’s legislation provided that it applied only to mortgages in effect before passage of the act. To be eligible, borrowers would have to contact their lenders and try to work things out before filing for bankruptcy.

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Lender Loan Modification Lip Service Part 2: Senator Schumer Says It’s All BS

by Moe Bedard

Fannie, Freddie, Countrywide, Bank of America, Chase and now Citi have all jumped on the proverbial billion dollar loan modification train. It makes me wonder if this has to do with Barack Obama becoming President and his “proposed” solutions for the mortgage and housing crisis…
Earlier today I wrote a post title, ‘Lender Loan Modification Lip [...]

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Principle Reductions: Wipe Out Your 2nd Mortgage With Bankruptcy

by Moe Bedard

Millions of American homeowners are now upside-down on their home mortgage and they are looking for a way out. In some areas like the Inland Empire of California, local homeowners have seen values drop 30-50% and many are making a “business” decision to walk away without ever exploring ways to save their home. If you [...]

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