This Edition Of The ForeclosureGate Gazette Contains Active Links

WEEKEND DIGEST APRIL 23 APRIL 27, 2012

ACADEMIA ADVERSARIES ADVOCATES BLOGOSPHERE LEGAL LEGISLATE OP-ED HOMEOWNERS NEWS ForeclosureGate Is A Public Service Homeowner Coalition And Cooperative, Created To Exchange News And Information And To Advance Justice For American Homeowners

MONDAY APRIL 23
Hefty payments to reach military foreclosure victims So far, several hundred military members who lost homes to illegal foreclosure actions by big banks and mortgage servicers have received settlements of $116,785 apiece for economic loss and emotional distress. They also have been paid any equity lost plus interest. Clerks From Across Louisiana Sue The Banks For RICO, Wire Fraud, Racketeering Through a series of fraudulent misrepresentations, the MERS scheme enables Defendants to unlawfully avoid payment of required recording fees, thus directly increasing the Defendants' profits in the secondary mortgage market while costing Plaintiffs the financial benefits flowing from the receiving fee revenue. Foreclosure Articles By The New York Times Foreclosures helped accelerate the fall of property values, helping to spur more foreclosures. The losses they created brought the financial system to the brink of collapse in the fall of 2008. The steep recession that followed led to even greater homeowner delinquencies, as homeowners who lost their jobs often lost their homes. Tens of millions of others found themselves in homes worth less than their mortgages. Anti-Foreclosure Ad Campaign On Facebook Instead of picketing outside company headquarters, an advocacy group is using Facebook ads to try to influence people whose profiles identify them as employees of Freddie Mac or JPMorgan Chase. The anti-foreclosure ad campaign, which launches today, asks Freddie and Chase employees to talk to their CEOs about a veteran -- a former Marine -- who's facing eviction in California.

2012

Inside the foreclosure factory: Pushing the files In a quiet office in downtown Charlotte, N.C., dozens of Wells Fargos foreclosure foot soldiers sit in cubicles cranking out documents the bank relies on to seize its share of the thousands of homes lost to foreclosure every week. They stare at computer screens and prepare sworn affidavits that are used by lenders in courts across the country to seize homes. South Florida sees nearly 53 percent spike in foreclosure filings "RealtyTrac analysts and foreclosure defense attorneys attribute the increases to the Feb. 9 agreement with the nation's five largest banks that outlines foreclosure filing standards while also forgiving civil robo-signing complaints. The velocity of new foreclosures has doubled if not tripled since the settlement," said foreclosure defense attorney Roy Oppenheim. "It's like they've been given a green light to go ahead and prosecute.". The Road to Good Credit After Foreclosure: Long but Attainable Lax lending standards and unaffordable mortgage rates contributed to one of the most devastating housing market crashes in U.S. history. In fact, millions of homes have been lost to foreclosure in just the past few years. Perhaps you were one of those unlucky homeowners.

California Coalition Calls for Changes to FHFA Foreclosure Policy or Resignation of DeMarco Ninety-seven California community groups, led by the California Reinvestment Coalition (CRC), have submitted a detailed comment letter to Housing Finance Agency Acting Federal (FHFA) Director Edward J. DeMarco demanding changes to the FHFA's foreclosure policies, or his immediate resignation.

Page 1 of 5

This Edition Of The ForeclosureGate Gazette Contains Active Links

WEEKEND DIGEST APRIL 23 APRIL 27, 2012

ACADEMIA ADVERSARIES ADVOCATES BLOGOSPHERE LEGAL LEGISLATE OP-ED HOMEOWNERS NEWS ForeclosureGate Is A Public Service Homeowner Coalition And Cooperative, Created To Exchange News And Information And To Advance Justice For American Homeowners

TUESDAY APRIL 24
Wrongful Foreclosure Creates New Official Diagnosis *If you are deeply disillusioned and feeling oppressed as an American citizen, resulting from experience with our justice system you may be suffering from Legal Abuse Syndrome. *If youve been a litigant in court and justice was not to be obtained at any price, you may be suffering from Legal Abuse Syndrome. Ruff Times Rescue - Shelby Shelby is a precious senior dog who was left behind in a foreclosure for who knows how long until the police found her there. She is emaciated and has a bad case of arthritis and neurological problems. She has a lot of vet bills in her future, and we are very lucky that one of our own rescued her from Orange County Animal Services right before her deadline.

2012

Judge dismisses foreclosure action against Prescott couple According to background in the decision, the Atkinses fell behind on their mortgage in 2009. They negotiated with the finance company to modify the terms of the mortgage and were approved for modification in December 2009. They signed the agreement in January 2010.

Latinos Bearing the Brunt of the Foreclosure Crisis The effects of the housing markets collapse can be felt far and wide, though perhaps no more so than by Latinos and other communities of color. While the overall number of foreclosure filings has recently decreased, foreclosure remains a disproportionately significant problem.

A lesson in banks and power in the Assembly So began a new nightmare, although, he said, "It wasn't as bad as the process of my wife becoming sick and passing." Davis' home is in San Francisco, but not one of the swanky parts. It has three bedrooms and one and a half baths, and is one of the faux Mediterranean houses built in the middle of the last century at the south end of the city.

Obstruction of Justice a Feature of Bank Interaction with Foreclosure Fraud Investigators You can find the HUD IG reports on servicer abuse here. They created one for each bank involved. And they really are incredible, describing a pattern and practice of abuse that is quite extraordinary. They paint a picture of constant demand on the back offices of the major servicers.

Foreclosure Influx Causes Backlog In Some States Real estate is about location, location, location. And foreclosure is no different. Depending on the state, it can take an average of three months or three years to process a foreclosure. And the disparity in how states deal with foreclosures is getting bigger.

Foreclosure Victim, Receives $18 Million For Investigating Mortgage Crisis Look closely at the paperwork if you ever get foreclosed on. It could pay off. That's what Lynn Szymoniak learned when her bank foreclosed on her Palm Beach Gardens home in 2008. Szymoniak, an attorney and renowned expert in foreclosure law, was suspicious of the way foreclosures were being conducted in Florida.

Page 2 of 5

This Edition Of The ForeclosureGate Gazette Contains Active Links

WEEKEND DIGEST APRIL 23 APRIL 27, 2012

ACADEMIA ADVERSARIES ADVOCATES BLOGOSPHERE LEGAL LEGISLATE OP-ED HOMEOWNERS NEWS ForeclosureGate Is A Public Service Homeowner Coalition And Cooperative, Created To Exchange News And Information And To Advance Justice For American Homeowners

WEDNESDAY APRIL 25
Protests Overwhelm Wells Fargo Annual Meeting, Shareholders Shut Out As I write this, downtown San Francisco is filled with community activists and members of the 99% who have surrounded Wells Fargo's annual shareholders meeting in protest. The Merchant's Exchange Building in the city's Financial District, where the meeting is taking place, is effectively shut down. The countrys foreclosure problem is only halfway over Recent statistics show foreclosure activity is declining, but the nations foreclosure problem is far from over. Whats more, the drawn-out foreclosure crisis has lasting consequences for those who have lost their homes as well as the communities surrounding them. Five million foreclosures have occurred since 2007.

2012

CitiBank cashed the checks for seven straight months, but on the eighth month... Last year, Melecio and Beatriz Delgado applied for a loan modification for their modest singlefamily house on the northwest side of Chicago. At the time, CitiBank and a number of other big banks were under pressure from the Obama administration to offer quick modifications.

How our home was saved from foreclosure Early last month, Bank of America said it had identified more than 200,000 borrowers who prequalified for principal reductions. The bank has yet to reach out to these homeowners, however, saying it will begin to send out letters to this group within a week or two, according to spokesman Rick Simon.

Fourth investor pleads guilty to rigging real estate foreclosure auctions in Mobile area A local real estate investor pleaded guilty today foreclosed to manipulating auctions of properties, becoming the 4th person to admit to a long-running conspiracy. Under terms of the plea agreement, Lawrence B. Stacy would serve 6 months in prison, pay a $10,000 fine and make restitution in the amount of $1,500.

Foreclosure Bulk Sales Program Allows Banks and Hedge Funds to Buy Low After Selling High Plenty of economists and political personnel are heavily invested in the idea that weve turned the corner in housing and are poised for a revitalization. Recent statistics make it more difficult to hold that view. Existing home sales were actually down in February, though up year-over-year.

Florida Foreclosure Law Firm Fires 14 For Wearing Orange Fourteen employees of a Florida law firm that specializes in foreclosure were summarily fired Friday for showing up to work wearing orange shirts. The law offices of Elizabeth R. Wellborn, P.A dismissed the employees even though several said their choice of attire was an innocent plan to match at a planned happy hour.

Housing, banking advocates hail measure to speed foreclosures of abandoned homes A piece of state legislation that looks to turn foreclosed homes into affordable housing also contains a little-noted provision that banking and housing experts say would provide an important step to unclogging the bottleneck holding back the states housing recovery.

Page 3 of 5

This Edition Of The ForeclosureGate Gazette Contains Active Links

WEEKEND DIGEST APRIL 23 APRIL 27, 2012

ACADEMIA ADVERSARIES ADVOCATES BLOGOSPHERE LEGAL LEGISLATE OP-ED HOMEOWNERS NEWS ForeclosureGate Is A Public Service Homeowner Coalition And Cooperative, Created To Exchange News And Information And To Advance Justice For American Homeowners

THURSDAY APRIL 26
We Might Not See A Turnaround In Housing In Our Lifetimes Robert Shiller has previously said that there is no guarantee that home prices will go up. And today's home price reading reinforced that view. In an interview with Reuters he said a weak labor market, higher gas prices, and lack of consumer confidence would likely see home prices continue to stay low: Bank CEOs gain as millions lose dreams, retirement to foreclosure nside and outside of Wells Fargos annual meeting in San Francisco yesterday, thousands of angry protesters decried the banks leading role in the loss of millions of American homes to foreclosure. If you want to know why the protesters are so angry, consider this double standard.. A.G. Schneiderman Announces $3 Million Awarded For Foreclosure Prevention Legal Services Statewide Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman today announced his office has awarded $3 million in foreclosure prevention services to aid New Yorkers struggling through the foreclosure crisis. In January, Attorney General Schneiderman first issued a Request for Applications (RFA) seeking bids from non-profit legal services and legal aid organizations. Man fatally shoots terminally ill wife near Tampa on day of foreclosure sale The yellow house at 4316 Clewis Ave. went up for public sale at 10 a.m. Tuesday. A foreclosure had proceeded while the couple who owned the home struggled with debts, neighbors said. The wife was battling a long illness. The 911 call came at noon the day of the sale. A man told the dispatcher he had shot his terminally ill wife inside that yellow house. MA, NY attorneys general launch foreclosure prevention programs Two high-profile attorneys general revealed how they will use part of their respective states portion of the $25 billion national mortgage servicing settlement. On Wednesday, Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley launched an initiative intended to prevent unnecessary foreclosures. Prairie State Legal Services Gets $9 Million to Help with Foreclosure Cases The foreclosure crisis has hit the Stateline hard, but there may finally be some good news. Tonight we looked at how the Illinois Attorney General is trying to help underwater homeowners. Remember when National Banks got in trouble for robo-signing, or fraudulently signing off on loan documents and leaving homeowners in the lurch? Few foreclosure funds went to help Utah homeowners It appears that only a small portion of the nearly $22 million coming to the Utah state government from a settlement with the nations big banks over improper foreclosure practices ended up in programs related to helping those who are losing their homes or have lost them. The cash from the settlement was lumped into the states general fund during the last days of the just-concluded session of the Legislature. Fed Plans to Fine Eight More Banks for Foreclosure Violations The nations mortgage-servicing companies have been under federal and state scrutiny since revelations emerged in fall 2010 that banks used robo-signers to file foreclosure documents without personally verifying their contents. Federal and state officials last month announced a $25 billion settlement of foreclosure-abuse allegations with the nations five largest mortgage servicing firms.

2012

Page 4 of 5

This Edition Of The ForeclosureGate Gazette Contains Active Links

WEEKEND DIGEST APRIL 23 APRIL 27, 2012

ACADEMIA ADVERSARIES ADVOCATES BLOGOSPHERE LEGAL LEGISLATE OP-ED HOMEOWNERS NEWS ForeclosureGate Is A Public Service Homeowner Coalition And Cooperative, Created To Exchange News And Information And To Advance Justice For American Homeowners

FRIDAY APRIL 27
Foreclosure Activity Returns in Most U.S. Markets Big jumps in foreclosure activity in cities like Pittsburgh, Indianapolis, New York and Raleigh pushed the national numbers higher in the first three months of this year, according to a new report from RealtyTrac, an online foreclosure sales and data company. A majority of U.S. housing markets posted a quarterly increase in foreclosure activity, although the numbers are still down from a year ago. Avoiding Foreclosure The Obama Administration has implemented a number of programs to assist homeowners who are at risk of foreclosure and otherwise struggling with their monthly mortgage payments. The majority of these programs are administered through the U.S. Treasury Department and HUD. This page provides a summary of these various programs. Please continue reading in order to determine which program can best assist you.

2012

Banks set minimum quotas on foreclosure documents, increasing mistakes In a Wells Fargo bank in Charlotte, N.C., legal process specialists are expected, if not demanded, to produce ten to eleven affidavit reports a day, reports that bank lenders use in court in the foreclosure process. These foreclosure foot soldiers are under such pressure to meet daily quotas that they are likely making mistakes.

Foreclosure Flood Ready to Burst Even though foreclosure activity over past three months hit the lowest level in five years, don't break out the bubbly. We're enjoying the calm before the storm. A flood of 1.6 million foreclosures backlogged during the 18 month period following the will soon make their way onto local markets, in the wake of the multi-state attorneys general settlement signed in March.

Survey Suggests More Homeowners Are Open to Strategic Default An alarming number of homeowners see strategic default as a viable option should their home continue to depreciate. Almost half of the homeowners participating in an online poll from Housing Predictor say they will walk away from their mortgage obligation if falling home values persist.

Banks preemptive strike against Dodd-Frank When Deutsche Bank reorganized its U.S. operations this week in response to new banking rules, it was the latest manifestation of what both supporters and opponents of the Dodd-Frank regulatory overhaul predicted would happen: The law has pushed big banks to reorganize to comply with the new rules on Wall Street, as well as to avoid their impact.

A Bailout by Another Name The acting director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency and overseer of Fannie Mae andFreddie Mac, Mr. DeMarco is a soft-spoken, career public servant and under fire. In the thankless job of conservator for the loss-ridden mortgage finance giants, he has a duty to ensure that the companies operate in the best interests of the taxpayers who own them.

State fines foreclosure companies $50,000, orders them shut down Two Las Vegas companies advertising foreclosure services have been ordered to cease operating and fined $50,000. The state Division of Mortgage Lending claims Majestic Group LLC and Nevada Sky Premier LLC were not licensed to operate as covered service providers and bilked at least two unidentified clients.

Page 5 of 5