State and federal officials have been engaging in negotiation settlement talks with the United States' largest banks regarding the shoddy foreclosure practices of Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems (MERS). The pending settlement with the banks involves a potentially multibillion-dollar settlement and is centered around the "robosigned" documents and court filings that have plagued the foreclosure courts across the nation. The primary reason for the MERS investigation is that considerable amount of this robosigned paperwork came through the MERS system. Officials are referring to the present predicament as the "MERS morass," with its approximate 65 million mortgage registry.
At the same time, the MERS system facilitated the boom of mortgage-backed securities by permitting banks to rapidly and inexpensively transfer the ownership of loans. MERS is so intertwined into all aspects of the mortgage and foreclosure process that officials are beginning to think they may be unable to address one part of the MERS problem while leaving other aspects for future investigations. Additionally, the contradictory laws and court decisions throughout the United States make a one-size-fits-all solution extremely unlikely.
The banks are pressuring officials to leave the MERS issue alone during these negotiations as the banks are already facing billions of dollars in penalties without the MERS problem. However, those close to the negotiations say that officials have no intention of releasing MERS from liability.
If you think your mortgage loan involves MERS and you are facing a Florida Foreclosure Lasuit, contact a Florida Foreclosure Defense Lawyer or a Jacksonville Foreclosure Lawyer today for a complimentary case review and to see what foreclosure defenses may be available to you.
