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Key California Assembly Committee to Receive Testimony Urging Passage of Foreclosure Moratorium Where Financial Institution Fraud Occurred

By Robert Gnaizda
General Counsel
The Greenlining Institute
[Editor’s note: The Assembly Banking and Finance Committee holds an informational hearing tomorrow on California’s Mortgage and Housing Crisis. Ted Lieu, former Chairman of the Assembly Banking Committee (presently Chairman of the Rules Committee) and the Speaker Karen Bass recently sent a letter to Bank of Americqa urging them to declare a moratorium on foreclosure for borrowers who were fraudulently induced to secure mortgages they could not afford.
Attorney General Jerry Brown has alleged in a lawsuit against Countrywide/Bank of America that Angelo Mozilo, the CEO of Countrywide, engaged in a conspiracy to commit fraud against hundreds of thousands of Californians who secured adjustable rate mortgages at excessively high rates and onerous terms that they could not afford. And on July 23rd, the City Attorney for San Diego filed an even bolder class action alleging fraud and potentially seeking the return of over 800 million dollars in stock option proceeds from Angelo Mozilo and three other top executives.
The following is testimony the committee will be hearing from Robert Gnaizda a tireless consumer advocate. It will be interesting to see if the legislature passes any bills in this area that are opposed by the banking industry as many in this important policy area to California have fallen by the wayside, primarily in the Senate.]
No efforts by the banking industry, by the federal regulators or Secretary of the Treasury Paulson will protect the vast majority of those who live from paycheck-to paycheck from foreclosure. Hope Now’s failures are a classic example of the failure of voluntary action without the threat of effective action via either class action law suits or sweeping legislation to prevent most foreclosures.
The proposed legislation we are requesting today will create an incentive for the nation’s largest home originator, BofA/Countrywide, to take immediate effective action to prevent the vast majority of foreclosures created through Countrywide’s senior executive conspiracy to commit fraud by inducing borrowers to purchase homes on terms they could not afford.
The legislation is simple. It would prevent any foreclosures where the Attorney General brings a statewide class action alleging fraud. Prior to the foreclosure, the financial institution subject to this legislation would have to notify all borrowers of their rights if the borrower believes the mortgage instrument was fraudulently induced. The borrower would then have the right to seek mediation and until the mediation was completed, would need to make only those payments he/she could afford. This legislation initially applies to the BofA/Countrywide acquisition but would also be applicable should the Attorney General file comparable suits against any other financial institution.
The City Attorney of San Diego recently filed a class action (July, 23, 2008) against BofA/Countrywide and on July 31st sent a letter to the BofA informing them that they would seek a preliminary injunction seeking the above remedies unless BofA voluntarily agreed to the above terms. Attorney General Jerry Brown is now negotiating with the BofA but has not yet threatened to bring a preliminary injunction as a follow up to his fraud suit against Mozilo and Countrywide filed at the end of June. Similarly, leadership of the California legislature is now engaged in discussions with the BofA leadership to achieve a voluntary ban on foreclosures based on fraud.
Recent Congressional action providing up to $300 billion in FHA backed loans is an important first step but it is voluntary. It is unclear that the BofA will aggressively use this legislation to assist distressed borrowers. State anti-foreclosure legislation will be an inducement for all financial institutions to participate in the FHA program.
Greenlining met with the President of BofA/Countrywide mortgage company on July 28th. Based on the meeting, Greenlining believes that legislation is required. In the alternative, the BofA is likely to slowly approach the problem of resolving mortgage terms that were fraudulently induced. It is unlikely to do so in a systemic way, as urged by FDIC Chair, Sheila Bair or as done by Sheila Bair in the IndyMac takeover.
Robert Gnaizda is a public interest attorney who helped co-found three major public interest institutions: California Rural Legal Assistance (1966), then the nation’s largest legal service program; Public Advocates (1971), the first public interest law firm in the West; and the Greenlining Institute (1994), the largest multiethnic public policy and advocacy center in the West. Gnaizda is a graduate of Yale Law School and Columbia University. He is presently General Counsel for the Greenlining Institute.
Comments
Oceans away and hard to hear. Hi my names Mary and I'm a Countrywide victim. Problem is I live in Hawaii, yet the broker, the lender, the law suits, the restitution, the whole accountability process is taking place across the ocean. I know Hawaii is slow to catch on but....come on. I daily google Countrywide/Hawaii/Mortgage Fraud/ Is there no one but myself going through this in the islands?? I guess I'm pre-pre-mature, I saved my home from foreclosure singlehandedly, singlemotherly, a miracle sight to behold, back in May 2008. Just as you would expect, after all the extensive, excessive, fees and penalties and foreclosure attourneys etc. they also raised my mortgage which I specifically stated would not be acceptable and completely impossible for me to accomodate. Their game was to continually set you up to fail, over and over and over, at our expense of course. Sheer torture, of a diabolical sort, dangling the roof over your head and watch you squirm. Well here I am again, I knew it was just a matter of time. The good news is, I no longer have to kiss their sweet...cheeks and bite my tounge about justice, whats fair, whats ethical, whats professional, what simply makes sense. I spent 10,000. on prepay on a refi. with Countrywide plus all other fees etc. to end up in a loan which had a higher payment and no interest change. This was pre-stop foreclosure miracle!!!! I was one of the first to experience this, the people I spoke of this to thought I had gone mad, they didn't believe me. It's been one very long, very bad dream. I have two things left to say. To Countrywide...Time Wounds All Heels! You deserve every iouta of pandamonium and chaos and drama and expense and stress. Good on Ya. Second, Is there any mainland state I can connect up with and file my claims...California I suppose, my loan originator, my broker and what about her? She really needs to be held accountable also? When she did this, I just asked her "How do you sleep at night, consiously doing this to people?" She skirted my calls, skirted the issue, said my credit wasn't as good as she thought (all my fault) because the numbers on the final signing had changed drastically from the good faith estimate. Carrie Brown, B&B Mortgage, Sacramento?? Maybe it's time for us to meet again. I'de like to share with you my last 5 years and the challenges I've overcome, as a single parent, raising a child alone and being swindled by my sisters across the ocean.
Posted by: Mary Colton at February 25, 2009 05:54 AM
Oceans away and hard to hear. Hi my names Mary and I'm a Countrywide victim. Problem is I live in Hawaii, yet the broker, the lender, the law suits, the restitution, the whole accountability process is taking place across the ocean. I know Hawaii is slow to catch on but....come on. I daily google Countrywide/Hawaii/Mortgage Fraud/ Is there no one but myself going through this in the islands?? I guess I'm pre-pre-mature, I saved my home from foreclosure singlehandedly, singlemotherly, a miracle sight to behold, back in May 2008. Just as you would expect, after all the extensive, excessive, fees and penalties and foreclosure attourneys etc. they also raised my mortgage which I specifically stated would not be acceptable and completely impossible for me to accomodate. Their game was to continually set you up to fail, over and over and over, at our expense of course. Sheer torture, of a diabolical sort, dangling the roof over your head and watch you squirm. Well here I am again, I knew it was just a matter of time. The good news is, I no longer have to kiss their sweet...cheeks and bite my tounge about justice, whats fair, whats ethical, whats professional, what simply makes sense. I spent 10,000. on prepay on a refi. with Countrywide plus all other fees etc. to end up in a loan which had a higher payment and no interest change. This was pre-stop foreclosure miracle!!!! I was one of the first to experience this, the people I spoke of this to thought I had gone mad, they didn't believe me. It's been one very long, very bad dream. I have two things left to say. To Countrywide...Time Wounds All Heels! You deserve every iouta of pandamonium and chaos and drama and expense and stress. Good on Ya. Second, Is there any mainland state I can connect up with and file my claims...California I suppose, my loan originator, my broker and what about her? She really needs to be held accountable also? When she did this, I just asked her "How do you sleep at night, consiously doing this to people?" She skirted my calls, skirted the issue, said my credit wasn't as good as she thought (all my fault) because the numbers on the final signing had changed drastically from the good faith estimate. Carrie Brown, B&B Mortgage, Sacramento?? Maybe it's time for us to meet again. I'de like to share with you my last 5 years and the challenges I've overcome, as a single parent, raising a child alone and being swindled by my sisters across the ocean.
Posted by: Mary Colton at February 25, 2009 07:03 AM
Does anyone have information about European Solutions and whether they are a legitimate business or scam? They are taking thousands of dollars from people who are trying to keep their homes from foreclosing.
Posted by: Rosa Estremera at March 26, 2009 12:07 AM
Does anyone have information about European Solutions and whether they are a legitimate business or scam? They are taking thousands of dollars from people who are trying to keep their homes from foreclosing.
Posted by: Rosa Estremera at March 26, 2009 12:07 AM
Does anyone have information about European Solutions and whether they are a legitimate business or scam? They are taking thousands of dollars from people who are trying to keep their homes from foreclosing.
Posted by: Rosa Estremera at March 26, 2009 12:09 AM
Hi,
While I am a former mortgage banker and broker, in Hawaii and my heart goes out to Mary, I saw too many unethical as well as unprofessional and even untrained as all it takes to get a Mortgage Solicitors License in Hawaii is a Mortgage Broker to sign the application, and they basically only need three years as a Solicitor to become a Broker, and a small bond, and no formal training, sign the application, oh and basically you cannot be a convicted of a felony, but then it seems the State of Hawaii relies solely on the application, rely solely on your answers on the form. Too often I saw people from 1980's on abuse the system, I left in the mid 1900's yet have followed it ever since and it just got worse. anyway, but two of my partners, and almost everyone they hired, they had control and revoked all my authority, were constantly over-charging and no they had no real idea how the over-all process worked. I hope she did not see Stars or the Loan "lady" or "gentleman", and I use the term with sarcasm, with lets use initials Y or H or R or H or D or D or m, among others, maybe not correct, but if so I have no doubt in her story is true, and Mary you are more than a Countrywide victim the mortgage broker got paid most likely a huge fee, check your HUD-1 settlement statement it will disclose (maybe POC Paid Outside Closing, the fees the mortgage broker received, maybe some inside closing as well and outside closing) to churn your account as well as not benefit you.
Now my problem, I have discovered one of the nations largest credit unions, along with with one the nations largest banks is violating everything from Regulation B, the National Credit Union Act, Regulation Z, RESPA, Bank privacy laws, misrepresentation, just to name a few. Since they have been doing this since at least 2003, I have records back that far, and have over $4 BILLION in mortgages, all made tainted from the start with Regulation B and violations of the National Credit Union Act, all violate RESPA, when they paid the third party fees for services not rendered, which then causes a Regulation Z error in the amount financed and the APR, maybe outside the 1/8 tolerance on fixed rates, Right of recession (runs for 3 years after closing if there is an error) on refinances of principal residences, and RICO violations I need a good class-action attorney, oh they say they do loans in all 50 states, i know they have violated in Hawaii and Florida for sure. SInce the mortgages were made illegally as well as violated so many federal laws, and there was also an active plan and agreement between the credit union, a major commercial bank, and two subsideries of the bank, to violate these laws that is also a RICO violation. Damages, how about ever member as if the loans are un-enforceable then it bankrupts the credit union, the NCUA and then the taxpayer's, as if they have not been hit enough by the banks, now their not for profit credit unions are also scamming them, how about every mortgage borrower as every loan is tainted from application to closing, how about illegal payment of fees for services not rendered in violation of RESPA, thus $4 Billion plus in bad loads plus all the fees, plus the damages. yet it is beyond most "foreclosure attorneys" as things like Reg. B, the national Credit Union Act, Reg. Z (Truth in Lending), RESPA (Real Estate Settlement Procedure Act), RICO, etc. have been violated, or as one said it was "Out Side his Comfort Zone" he only wanted simple to defend in State Court cases and not Federal Court cases or massive class action suits" even if the potential rewards were so high one case could retire him for life. So add the attorneys that do not want to defend a home owner unless it is "withion their comfort zone" yet even he said appeared there was a case, furtehr I was shocked he had no idea what Reg. Z (Truth in Lenad Act) was or RESPA, so much for attorneys to defend the public.
Hopefully I will soon locate a good attorney that wants to A) right a massive wrong and fraud, and B) earn a huge fee, most work on a percentage of damages, well I am sure most people would love to have their mortgage thrown -out or reduced by 60-70%, all fees refunded, see some people go to jail, and even if they have to refi to pay the attorney, refinancing to 30-40% of what you owe, regardless of the interest rate, is a huge drop in payments as well as a huge recovery in equity also. Excuse the typos I have a spinal injury, so cannot feel my fingers too well so make a few typos. I am hoping to interest a good class action attorney, I started out just wanting to clear the mortgage problems on the Estate of my Step-Father and illegal attempts to collect against my mother, not a borrower, but as I read the documents I got more and more enraged at such alleged massive fraud, [I think more than alleged, as very clear cut, but I got to be careful till this gets into court, if ever]. Anyone of the violations alone should make the mortgage un-enforceable and therefore uncollectible, yet I stopped counting at 6 federal Violations and hundreds of pages of printouts of the laws to cross-reference!!!!
Mary, I dropped a few hints, not enough to cause litigation for slander or liable (liable as in print, but I would love to know who the mortgage broker was as for years I tried to get the laws toughened in Hawaii to no avail) plus if it my ex-partners well nothing better than I would like to see them punished and you may have criminal recourse as well.
Posted by: D at June 14, 2009 01:18 PM
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