Good news for veterans facing foreclosure! Effective January 1, 2011, if you are a veteran and a defendant in a foreclosure suit, you have the right to request a 90-day stay of the foreclosure proceedings. In order to qualify for the 90-day stay, you must have been deployed at some point in the 12 months preceding the foreclosure suit. Moreover, your deployment must have been for combat or for a combat-support posting.
So long as you meet those requirements, the court must grant you a 90-day stay. Any other rights you have as a veteran will not be affected. With any luck, 90 days may be enough to get you back on track with your mortgage payments or work out a loan modification!
Friday, October 29, 2010
Thursday, October 21, 2010
New Fees to Fund Foreclosure Counseling and Costs to Municipalities
It is widespread knowledge that foreclosures have become increasingly rampant. More and more homeowners are fighting to keep their homes. As various loan modification and loan assistance programs emerge, mortgage and foreclosure counseling is often a prerequisite to qualify. To defray the costs associated with counseling, the Illinois legislature recently passed a bill that requires the plaintiffs in all foreclosure suits to pay an additional $50 fee. The resulting funds collected will be applied for the benefit of counseling programs.
Some homeowners are unable to keep their homes no matter how hard they try. Once these homes are vacated, they often become targets of crime. Other times, they begin to look neglected and rundown. Water and sewer bills aren't paid. More and more cities and towns in Illinois need funding to assist in the costs associated with foreclosed and vacated homes. The legislature recently enacted a law requiring the purchaser of residential property to pay a tax of $1 for every thousand dollars (or fraction thereof), if the property is bought at a judicial sale. Mortgagees, judgment creditors, and other lienholders are exempted from this tax. The funds collected as a result of this tax will be passed on to municipalities.
Some homeowners are unable to keep their homes no matter how hard they try. Once these homes are vacated, they often become targets of crime. Other times, they begin to look neglected and rundown. Water and sewer bills aren't paid. More and more cities and towns in Illinois need funding to assist in the costs associated with foreclosed and vacated homes. The legislature recently enacted a law requiring the purchaser of residential property to pay a tax of $1 for every thousand dollars (or fraction thereof), if the property is bought at a judicial sale. Mortgagees, judgment creditors, and other lienholders are exempted from this tax. The funds collected as a result of this tax will be passed on to municipalities.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Illinois Homeowners Emergency Assistance Program
Effective this last summer, the Illinois Housing Development Authority was granted the right to assist qualified Illinois homeowners with their mortgage payments. Under the Illinois Homeowners Emergency Assistance Program, the Illinois Housing Development Authority may grant up to three mortgage payments to qualified homeowners in need.
The mortgage payments are for first lienholders only. This means that if you are looking for mortgage assistance towards secondary financing or a home equity line on your home, you are not eligible. Payments will be made directly to your lender, and cannot exceed $6000 or three of your regular mortgage payments, whichever is less. Funds can be applied towards principal, interest, taxes, and mortgage insurance. However, funds for this program are limited to a total of $3,000,000, and the program is only available until December 31, 2010.
So how do you qualify? Well, you must meet a number of criteria, such as:
1) The mortgage must be for your primary residence.
2) The bank must have commenced foreclosure proceedings, and be willing to stop and renegotiate the mortgage with you if the Illinois Housing Development Authority notifies the bank that you may be eligible for financial assistance from them.
3) You must attend HUD-certified counseling.
4) You must be a resident of Illinois.
5) You must agree to indemnify the Illinois Housing Development Authority from any damage that results from the payments they make to your lender.
6) Your household income must be less than 120% of the median income in your area.
If you feel you might qualify under this program, act now. Funds are limited!
The mortgage payments are for first lienholders only. This means that if you are looking for mortgage assistance towards secondary financing or a home equity line on your home, you are not eligible. Payments will be made directly to your lender, and cannot exceed $6000 or three of your regular mortgage payments, whichever is less. Funds can be applied towards principal, interest, taxes, and mortgage insurance. However, funds for this program are limited to a total of $3,000,000, and the program is only available until December 31, 2010.
So how do you qualify? Well, you must meet a number of criteria, such as:
1) The mortgage must be for your primary residence.
2) The bank must have commenced foreclosure proceedings, and be willing to stop and renegotiate the mortgage with you if the Illinois Housing Development Authority notifies the bank that you may be eligible for financial assistance from them.
3) You must attend HUD-certified counseling.
4) You must be a resident of Illinois.
5) You must agree to indemnify the Illinois Housing Development Authority from any damage that results from the payments they make to your lender.
6) Your household income must be less than 120% of the median income in your area.
If you feel you might qualify under this program, act now. Funds are limited!
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Filing Foreclosures Against Deceased Borrowers
When filing a foreclosure suit against a deceased borrower, banks have generally filed in rem actions; in other words, banks have assumed that the foreclosure suit is based on the parcel of real estate for which mortgage payments have not been made. As a result, many banks have obtained default judgments against deceased borrowers, simply because the mortgagor is deceased and was thus never served.
In ABN-AMRO Mortgage Group, Inc. v. McGawhan, No. 107954 2010 WL 2222123 (Ill. Sup. Ct.), the Illinois Supreme Court rendered a decision that changed how banks must file foreclosure suits. The court determined that a foreclosure suit should not be an in rem proceeding. Rather, it should be a quasi in rem proceeding. In other words, the suit must be brought against an actual person, not just a piece of land. In lieu of the deceased, the deceased's personal representative must be named. If the deceased's personal representative is named in the suit, he must be served, and therefore, he will receive notice of the suit.
The court's decision indirectly assists people in keeping their homes. If mortgage payments stopped after the borrower died, the banks will have to notify the deceased's personal representive. As a result of this notice, the deceased's heirs will have an opportunity to catch up on the payments (although the bank may not allow this if their borrower is no longer alive). If payments continued after the borrower died, but the family member who was making the payments eventually stops for any reason, the banks will have to notify the deceased's personal representative, who may then have an opportunity to rectify the situation. Either way, the Illinois Supreme Court's decision increases the chances that the deceased's loved ones will be able to keep their home.
In ABN-AMRO Mortgage Group, Inc. v. McGawhan, No. 107954 2010 WL 2222123 (Ill. Sup. Ct.), the Illinois Supreme Court rendered a decision that changed how banks must file foreclosure suits. The court determined that a foreclosure suit should not be an in rem proceeding. Rather, it should be a quasi in rem proceeding. In other words, the suit must be brought against an actual person, not just a piece of land. In lieu of the deceased, the deceased's personal representative must be named. If the deceased's personal representative is named in the suit, he must be served, and therefore, he will receive notice of the suit.
The court's decision indirectly assists people in keeping their homes. If mortgage payments stopped after the borrower died, the banks will have to notify the deceased's personal representive. As a result of this notice, the deceased's heirs will have an opportunity to catch up on the payments (although the bank may not allow this if their borrower is no longer alive). If payments continued after the borrower died, but the family member who was making the payments eventually stops for any reason, the banks will have to notify the deceased's personal representative, who may then have an opportunity to rectify the situation. Either way, the Illinois Supreme Court's decision increases the chances that the deceased's loved ones will be able to keep their home.
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