the wasserblawg

Two years ago today, the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation  initiated the Illinois Anti-Predatory Lending Database ( IAPLD ) project. Since then, details of most every Cook County mortgage transaction have been manually entered into the State's super computers, not once, but twice, sometimes even three times.... all at additional expense to the borrowers the process aims to protect. Closing are taking longer too. Predatory lending, while "discouraged," remains legal. Today, the program expands to three neighboring counties, Kane, Will and Peoria. As with Cook, all three have been hit hard by foreclosures, many the result of those too-good-to-be-true loans we saw so much of  back in those go-go days before the bubble burst.   The APLD law requires loan originators to enter details of proposed loans into a state database. The state computer screens the loan and - where appropriate - mandates that would-be borrowers attend  loan counseling ...

Is the City of Chicago preparing  to start taxing foreclosures? @ Properties agent Robert Darrow of @ Properties posted an interesting  piece yesterday on his always informative blog, suggesting that very thing, Apparently, 26th ward Alderman Roberto Maldonado has  introduced proposed legislation to the City Council, assessing the transfer tax on bank acquisitions of foreclosed properties.  There is not much other information on the internets to flesh this story out, so it may be a bit premature to take sides on this one. What the heck, here is my take so far:

It is just not getting any easier for home buyers hoping to finance their deals with mortgage backed loans. Beginning June 1, lenders originating mortgages being sold to Fannie Mae will have to pull a second credit report just before the loan closes. According to the National Mortgage New s, the new quality control requirement is designed to prevent a type of mortgage fraud called "shotgunning," a mortgage scam in which someone obtains several loans (from multiple, unwitting lenders) on the same property. all at the same time. Typically, a shotgun fraudster skips town with the proceeds of all his loans. Most of the lenders do not recoup a cent because their mortgages are subordinate to the first one recorded and the home will not fetch enough in a sale to cover the junior liens.  The second credit reports, it is thought, will alert lenders to other creditors who have recently requested information about the mortgage applicant.  Buyers are cautioned (as always) to defer ...

direct from the you tube: markenlei — April 28, 2010 — Morning rush hour in the 4th largest city in the Netherlands. Streets look like this when 33% of ALL trips are made by bicycle! This is an ordinary Wednesday morning in April 2010 at around 8.30 am. Original time was 8 minutes that were compressed into 2 minutes, so everything is 4 times faster than in reality. The sound is original. This is one of the busiest junctions in Utrecht a city with a population of 300,000. No less than 18,000 bicycles and 2,500 buses pass here every day. And yet Google Street View missed it. Because private motorized traffic is restricted here. These cyclists cross a one way bus lane (also used by taxis and municipal vehicles), two light rail tracks and then a one way street that can be used by private vehicles. Behind the camera is a railway (you can hear the squeaking sounds of the trains passing) and the main railway station is very close too. A number of rental bikes from the station pa...

Not only is Sunday Mothers Day and my sister Judy's birthday, it marks the 25th anniversary of my admission to the Illinois Bar. A heart felt thanks Mom (& Dad) for encouraging me in my studies, and in my pursuit of a life-long dream. Thank you to everyone who has supported my efforts and who helped me reach this goal. Thank you.

The concept of exchanging a deed & keys for money still remains the same, but the steps to the crazy tribal dance we perform while helping buyers buy and sellers sell keep changing. Whereas closings ten years ago could best be thought of as graceful arm in arm waltzes and minuets, todays closings are more akin to post-modern amalgams of sudden thrusts, breaks, pops, and martial arts-flavored acrobatics. The dance just keeps on changing and anyone who's lawyer is not prepared to embrace these changes is going face a heck of a time trying to get their closings done.

This morning, CNNMoney.com reports on an ugly phenomenon - the fact that many mortgage lenders are chasing borrowers for "deficiencies", the difference between what is owed and what is recouped whether by "short sale" or foreclosure or a deed in lieu of foreclosure. You lost your house - but you still have to pay Posted using ShareThis Notes, Mortgages, and Deeds are all legal documents. Short sales and Foreclosures are transactions that significant legal consequences. The cases described in this report all seem to have involved borrowers who entered into these arrangments with their mortgage lenders without legal counsel . Good Lawyering can help distressed homeowners avoid these sorts of deficiency judgments. I have helped clients avoid these and other pitfalls as they try to extract themselves from distress situations. Please let me know if I can help you (or anyone you know) too.