After the Florida Bar News published an article about robo-signing in the mortgage industry in the September 15th edition, State Attorney Dennis Ward of the 16th Judicial Circuit in Florida has decided to take a closer look. For those of you not yet familiar with the term robo-signing, it is a practice where banks and their counsel create documents relating to foreclosures that are often questionable in nature and have low level employees sign them without verifying their contents or correctness. Since robo-signing has caught the attention of the media in late 2010, there has been a temporary decrease in foreclosure filings throughout the state of Florida.

Mr. Ward stated his ultimate concern is protecting the integrity of the legal system and land title records. He believes when a home owner is not paying their mortgage, the bank should be able to foreclose on the property as soon as possible; provided that banks do so with valid paper work and with regard to due process.

The continued abuses in foreclosure paperwork, which banks said were ended last year after they were put under great scrutiny, is what has grabbed Mr. Ward's attention. He also recognizes that his agency does not have the resources to address this issue fully and that it is better suited for Attorney General Pam Bondi. Nevertheless, it is time for State Attorneys' to address the issue however they can. Looking into the individuals who actually sign or file these questionable documents who know them to be false of intentionally deceptive is going to be State Attorney Ward's focus.

If you are facing foreclosure, contact a Florida Foreclosure Defense Lawyer or a Jacksonville Foreclosure Defense Lawyer today for a free case review in order to determine what foreclosure defense options may be available to you.

Add "foreclosure help line" to the extensive list of catchy 800 numbers being advertised today. Although the phone number has not been established yet, 1-800-4CFRAUD seems like an apt set of digits. That's because the hotline is supposed target homeowners who fear they were harmed by problems in processing foreclosures over the last couple of years.

The telephone number is being established in response to an outcry from residential mortgage regulators to banks to fix the problems in their foreclosure procedures. This comes after finding that nearly 14 lenders filed foreclosures improperly or without the correct amount of man power to handle all of the filings. In response, regulators have expressed a desire to establish a single way to review cases rather than each mortgage company using their own procedure. Hopefully this will provide the necessary consistency and transparency homeowners did not receive when dealing directly with many mortgage lenders.

Contacting a help line is another link that could help stave off foreclosure for many struggling homeowners. If you are facing a Florida Foreclosure Lawsuit, contact a Florida Foreclosure Defense Lawyer or a Jacksonville Foreclosure Lawyer today for a free initial consultation in order to determine what options may be available to you.

Many who read this blog or follow financial news are familiar with the promises from top Banks in the US to stop the filing of fraudulent and faulty foreclosure documentation. A recent Reuter's investigation proved that many of the same companies are still utilizing the same lackadaisical practices that stifled America's housing market and plunged thousands of homeowners into foreclosure.

The article mentions 87-year-old resident of Immokalee Florida, a town at the epicenter of the foreclosure crisis in Collier County. OneWest Bank filed foreclosure paperwork in that was peppered with problems, namely in the assignment of mortgage. But this key document was not signed and recorded with Collier County until some months after OneWest filed the foreclosure!

The Reuters investigation also identified at least six robo-signers which appear on thousands of mortgage assignments filed by banks in recent months. Some of the individuals have even appeared at depositions only to claim that they never read or checked the assignments, and one, when asked what an assignment of mortgage is, replied: "I'm really not sure."

It's fairly easy to see that the recent settlements between Banks and investors have done little to stop these questionable practices. The banks seem to be saying that providing proper documentation doesn't matter, because many of these homeowners are in fact delinquent on their mortgages. Although that might be the case, it doesn't give the bank carte blanche authority to just take people's homes while not following the legal requirements to do so.

For now, Courts tend to disagree with this analysis, for whatever reason. Until Banks are held more accountable and made an example of, the fight for homeowners is still an uphill battle. Florida Foreclosure Defense attorney's are working to help turn the tides. If you are facing a Florida Foreclosure Lawsuit, contact a Jacksonville Foreclosure Defense Lawyer or a Florida Foreclosure Defense Lawyer today for a complimentary consultation to determine what potential foreclosure defenses are available to you.

A quarterly study recently released shows Florida toward the top of the list for risks of mortgage fraud. Florida was topped only by Nevada (at number one) and Arizona (number two). Northeast Florida, including Jacksonville, was rated a "high" risk while Southern Florida, including Miami and Orlando, was ranked a "very high" risk. North Western Florida, on the other hand, was given a "low" risk rating.

In making its conclusions, the report looks primarily at four types of mortgage scams: property valuation fraud, identity fraud, occupancy fraud, and phony income reports.

Property valuation fraud typically involves manipulating property values to create a profit margin. It's similar to "flipping", which was very popular before the market crash, in that the buyer purchases a home intending to sell it at a higher value. Unlike flipping, however, the buyer doesn't add any actual value to the home -- instead, the buyer uses shady numbers and other tactics to artificially raise the price of the home and then sells it to an unsuspecting buyer.

Identity fraud is a relatively well-known problem. In the mortgage market, identity fraud generally means a buyer pretends to be someone else. This enables him or her to obtain a better credit rating and attain a loan that he or she otherwise might not have received.

Occupancy fraud involves buyers who falsely claim they will live in the house full time. A full-time residency generally means lower down payments and lower interest rates. Similarly, phony income reports involve buyers who falsify income documents to appear to have more assets than they really do.

All of these types of fraud have a negative impact on the mortgage industry and only increase paperwork for already backed-up banks and courts. Hopefully the fraud and unscrupulous behavior surrounding Florida's foreclosures market subsides in the coming months and years.

Lisa Myers has a Video Series on Foreclosures and this segment discusses Jacksonville and some of the problems we face daily. We were interviewed for this segment of the series.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

You can view/read the main text article for the special report here:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/42881365/ns/business-personal_finance/

You can watch the four Lisa Myers reports here:

Foreclosure Crisis: The Mortgage Loan Modification Trap

Foreclosure Crisis: The Whistleblowers

Foreclosure Crisis: Manufactured Loan Documents

Foreclosure Crisis: The Face of Foreclosure: One Family's Story

President of the Florida Bar, Mayane Downs, says that the Bar has seen an increase large increase in the number of complaints and investigations of attorney misconduct as a result of foreclosure fraud and some may pay the ultimate professional price, disbarment. The Florida Bar, the body responsible for monitoring and investigation attorney conduct, has seen the number of fraud cases and the number of attorney's under investigation rise from 28 investigations on 23 attorneys in 2010 to 222 investigations on 157 attorneys open so far in 2011.

The substance of the investigations are not made public but complaints normally range from forged signatures on court documents, forged notarizations on documents and other illegal and unscrupulous activities designed to speed up the foreclosure process. These investigations do not include the wide-ranging investigations into the 8 Florida "foreclosure mills" including the now defunct Law Offices of David J. Stern. Many foreclosure defense attorneys question why no one from any of the "foreclosure mills" has yet to be suspended or face professional sanctions as a result of the investigations.

Many attorneys didn't believe that the media allegations of foreclosure abuses would result in official investigations by the Florida Bar but that appears to not be the case. If you are facing a Florida Foreclosure Lawsuit where one of the 8 "foreclosure mills" is opposing counsel, contact a Jacksonville Foreclosure Defense Lawyer or a Florida Foreclosure Defense Lawyer today to see what foreclosure defense options may be available to you.

Last week the Attorneys General from all 50 states presented their proposed settlement to the 5 largest mortgage servicers, Bank of America, Wells Fargo; J.P. Morgan Chase; Citigroup and GMAC/Ally, in order to settle the widespread claims of foreclosure misconduct that arose late in 2010. The proposed settlement addresses 5 major areas of concern: loan modifications, foreclosure proceedings during loan modifications, standards of conduct for mortgage servicers, fee restrictions and servicer contact.

The Attorneys General have requested a substantial increase in the amount of loan modifications that include a reduction in the principle amounts of the loans, a move which lenders have been strongly opposed to in the past. Also included in the settlement proposal is the requirement that lenders do not initiate a new foreclosure, or continue to pursue a pending foreclosure while a homeowner is being considered for a mortgage modification. The settlement also addresses one of the most frequent complaints about lenders, they would be required to provide a single point of contact for homeowners who are facing potential foreclosure. Standards of Conduct would also be put in place for lenders in order to avoid improper foreclosure practices, such as "robo-signing", as well as limits on the amount of fees and costs that lenders will be allowed to charge when a homeowner defaults on their mortgage.

This settlement proposal from the Attorneys General goes a long way toward addressing many of the most common complaints and concerns of struggling homeowners, but will the lenders accept it and does it go far enough? That is a question that can only be answered with time. If you are facing a Florida Foreclosure Lawsuit, contact a Jacksonville Foreclosure Lawyer or a Florida Foreclosure Lawyer today to see what foreclosure alternatives may be available to you.

In a relatively shocking turn of events HSBC Bank USA and HSBC Finance Corp. have quietly announced that it has stopped "all home foreclosures until further notice" and may be facing fines after federal regulators found "certain deficiencies" in the company's foreclosure procedures. This news comes as a surprise as it was only a few months ago that HSBC stated that it would not suspend its foreclosure practices and that it was not affected by the "robo-signing" allegations.

The announcement of the suspension of its foreclosures came in its annual financial report to the Securities and Exchange Commission, called a 10-K, when it stated it "suspended foreclosures until such time as we have substantially addressed the noted deficiencies in our processes." HSBC spokesman Neil Brazil stated that it is expecting federal regulators to impose a consent order mandating the procedural steps the company must take in order to fix its foreclosure problems. Brazil also announced that the foreclosure suspension actually took effect in December and that the company will be changing its "affidavit and notarization procedures, tightening oversight of outside law firms, reviewing how it uses the Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems."

If you are facing a Florida Foreclosure Lawsuit were HSBC is the plaintiff, contact a Florida Foreclosure Defense Lawyer or a Jacksonville Foreclosure Defense Lawyer today for a complimentary case review and to determine the possible effects that this announcement may have on you.

In an unexpected announcement, which coincides with the offering of a free continuing legal education seminar aimed at improving the foreclosure processes in Florida, the Florida Bar is now requiring all attorney's to notify foreclosure judges about potential fraud in their cases, including those cases that are closed and the home sold. With 1.2 million foreclosures being filed in the state of Florida since 2007 and countless accusations of fraud from the five Florida "foreclosure mills" no one can accurately estimate the impact on foreclosure cases in the state. This announcement represents the largest step toward preventing fraud the Florida Bar has ever taken.

Attorneys are now instructed to report the fraud to the court, but are instructed not to do so in a public court hearing. Instead, attorneys are instructed to ask for a private, "in camera", hearing with the judge in order to determine whether any fraud was perpetrated. Many foreclosure defense lawyers have bristled at the idea of more, private hearings and point to the fact that foreclosure hearings are civil matters and are, and should be, open to the public. It remains to be seen what judges will do once they are alerted to fraud, as the consequences range from doing nothing to dismissing the action.

A Jacksonville Foreclosure Lawyer hopes that this latest step to prevent fraud has a profound effect on foreclosure courts and Florida homeowners facing foreclosure. If you are facing a Florida Foreclosure Lawsuit, contact a Jacksonville Foreclosure Lawyer or a Florida Foreclosure Lawyer today.

Despite its claims that is foreclosure processes are "sound," Citigroup officials have told lawmakers that the company will re-file 14,000 affidavits in pending foreclosure cases due to errors it uncovered during a review of its foreclosure cases. While this is a staggering number of affidavit errors, it pales in comparison to the 102,000 affidavits re-filed by Bank of America and 55,000 affidavits being re-filed by Wells Fargo.

Citimortgage managing director Harold Lewis explained that Citi has been able to avoid the depths of robo-signing experienced by some other large banks via restructuring efforts wherein it "consolidated its mortgage operations, added staff and improved its internal training program to ensure foreclosures were being processed correctly." The company has also stopped referring new cases to embattled foreclosure mill the Law Offices of David J. Stern. The 8,500 active foreclosure cases Citigroup already had with the Stern office are now being referred to new counsel.

This is just the latest in a long line of mistakes that lenders have now admitted to committing when pursuing foreclosure cases. If you are facing a Florida Foreclosure Lawsuit, contact a Jacksonville Foreclosure Lawyer or a Florida Foreclosure Lawyer today for a complimentary case review.

A South Florida man was in the process of a loan modification with JP Morgan Chase; while unknown to him the bank was continuing the process of foreclosing on his home at the same time! On Tuesday, the Court vacated the judgment after the sale of the home and therefore the title must be placed back in the hands of the original owner.

This is a new method most banks seem to be taking: proceeding with loan modifications while beginning to process the foreclosure in case the modification does not workout.

This technique is added to Chase's current approach of asking homeowners to sign waivers stating they will not sue the lender if the home is auctioned off while in negotiations for modification.

Although things worked out for this homeowner, we have seen many cases where the home is sold while the homeowner believe they are in negotiations with the bank. Often the banks will tell the homewowner that nothing will happen while they are working on a loan modification.

Because of this it is suggested that if you are in foreclosure you should contact a local Florida Foreclosure Defense Lawyer or Jacksonville Foreclosure Defense Lawyer today to review your foreclosure documents today.

With news reports of "robo-signing" of sworn affidavits from many of the nations largest mortgage lenders, some South Florida judges are now forcing banks to follow the Florida rules of civil procedure! Rule 1.510(e) requires lenders who file a motion for summary judgment that contains a supporting affidavit to attach the paperwork on which the sworn statements are based, to the affidavit. Palm Beach County chief judge Peter Blanc stated, "if the foreclosure affidavits are accurate, and they are based on person knowledge, it shouldn't be too time consuming for the evidence to be printed and attached."

Not attaching the paperwork to the affidavits is a problem mainly for those homeowners that do not contest the foreclosures, but the rule applies foreclosures across the board. In Palm Beach County alone about 80% of foreclosures are uncontested, meaning thousands of homeowners have been foreclosed without the lender having to follow this critical rule. This issue is usually not a problem for homeowners who are represented by a competent attorney because their attorney will object to this practice.

It seems as though at least one Florida Judicial Circuit is catching on to the practices of mortgage lenders and their "foreclosure mill" attorneys, Florida homeowners can only hope that this knowledge spreads statewide. If you are facing an Orange Park foreclosure lawsuit, contact a Jacksonville Foreclosure Lawyer or a Florida Foreclosure Lawyer today.

A new trend is arising in regard to the implementation of the foreclosure "rocket dockets", cases being set for summary judgment that contain some form of procedural or paperwork issue. While the problems with fraudulent and improper paperwork in Florida Foreclosure Lawsuits has been detailed by many news outlets and the Jacksonville Foreclosure Lawyer blog, the Florida Bar has just released some of their recent findings about this problem.

According to a Florida Bar News article, 20% or more of the cases set for summary judgment in "rocket docket" circuits do contain an issue regarding the paperwork or the procedure. 116 of the 534 hearings scheduled between late August and early September on the 12th Circuit's foreclosure docket contained these sorts of errors. Many attorney's and foreclosure experts agree that the first step toward combating paperwork and procedural problems is for homeowners to hire a competent attorney to review their cases in order to detect any of these issues. These errors can cause delays in the foreclosure process, prolonging recovery from the current foreclosure crisis.

If you are facing a Florida Foreclosure Lawyer you may be one of the thousands of Florida homeowners with cases that contain some form of error. Contact a Jacksonville Foreclosure Lawyer today to review your case and determine what defenses are available that may save your home.

As reported by a Jacksonville Foreclosure Lawyer in a previous blog, on August 10, 2010 Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum launched an investigation into whether three Florida "foreclosure mills" were employing unfair and deceptive trade practices when filing and pursuing foreclosure actions against Florida homeowners.

On Monday October 4, Palm Beach County Circuit Judge Jack Cox ruled that the investigation into "foreclosure mill" Shapiro and Fishman, which focuses on whether or not fraudulent documents were used to speed up the foreclosure process, as overbroad and invasive and voided the Attorney General's subpoena. Judge Cox also stated that he believed that "the Florida Bar is best suited to handle questions about law firm legal tactics." This ruling comes on the heels of announcements by three major lenders that they were suspending foreclosure proceedings in 22 states due to similar complaints by both homeowners and lawmakers.

If you or anyone you know has received a foreclosure notice from any law firm, it is in your best interest to contact a Jacksonville Foreclosure Lawyer today to review your case for these types of potentially unfair and fraudulent practices.

STOP THE PRESS

Without title insurance, the home is not able to be sold except to a cash buyer who would not be able to sell it later where financing would be required.

This means the foreclosed home is essentially worthless.

If you recently purchased a foreclosed home, you should check your title policy for exclusions which could limit your ability to sell your home in the future. Contact a Jacksonville Foreclosure Defense Lawyer to discuss your situation.