Stern Lays off 155 People

Another 155 employees received pink slips Thursday from the Law Offices of David J. Stern and DJSP Enterprises, which processes home foreclosure cases for the Plantation-based law firm.


The layoffs came as Fannie Mae, which withdrew it business from the Stern firm after becoming one of its biggest clients, announced it had named eight law firms to handle foreclosure cases in Florida.

DJSP and the Stern law firm laid off 155 employees Thursday morning. A DJSP spokesman said the company has no intention of closing.

The layoffs and new law firm appointments came on the heels of an investigation by Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum into consumer and defense lawyer complaints of improper document filings with the courts by four law firms including Stern's. McCollum's office issued broad subpoenas for law firm files several months ago.

Following announcement of the subpoenas, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac — one of Stern's biggest clients — severed ties with the firm.

The lawyers or firms that will now handle Fannie Mae foreclosures in Florida are: Albertelli Law, Jacksonville; Douglas C. Zahm, St. Petersburg; Kahane & Associates, Plantation; Smith Greenspoon Marder, Fort Lauderdale; the Law Offices of Daniel Consuegra, Tampa; Tripp Scott, Fort Lauderdale; Van Ness Law Firm, Deerfield Beach; and Elizabeth Wellborn of Deerfield Beach.

In the first nine months of 2010 Fannie Mae acquired 25,316 properties through foreclosure in Florida.

DJSP, a public company, was spun off by the Stern law firm in January. The company and the law firm are headquartered in the same Plantation office building and share many workers. Foreclosure attorney David J. Stern heads both businesses.

The latest round of layoffs — which included lawyers and support staff — reduces the total number of workers at the Plantation firm and DJSP to 300. That's down from a year ago, when more than 1,200 employees worked for the two businesses.

"We performed another round of layoffs this morning," said Chris Simmons, director of investor relations and human resources for DJSP Enterprises.

Simmons and Stern's lawyer, Jeffrey Tew of Tew Cardenas in Miami, insist the law firm and the foreclosure processing company are not closing.

"We are not shutting down," Simmons said. "We are working hard to keep the company running."

Local headhunters say they are being inundated with resumes of attorneys from the Stern firm.

DJSP this week announced it had defaulted on a $12 million line of credit with Bank of America and was working with the bank to reach an agreement.

"We are not shutting down. We are working hard to keep the company running."Chris Simmonsdirector of investor relations, human resourcesDJSP Enterprises

Julie Kay can be reached at (305) 347-6685.

http://www.dailybusinessreview.com/PubArticleDBR.jsp?id=1202475092847&hbxlogin=1

MERS

MERS itself has only 50 employees and they are not involved in signing mortgage assignments to trusts. These servicing company employees sign as officers of MERS “as nominee for” a particular mortgage company or bank. They are not employees of the mortgage companies or employees of the original named lender, but their titles on the Mortgage Assignment belie this and typically read: “Linda Green, Vice President, Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc., as nominee for American Brokers Conduit.”




MERS president R.K. Arnold testified in Senate testimony earlier this week that there are over 20,000 MERS “certifying officers.” To become a MERS certifying officer, a mortgage servicing company employee need only complete an online form and pay $25.00. Because of the concealment of the actual employer on the Mortgage Assignments, it is easy enough for Courts, and homeowners, to believe that they are examining a document prepared by the lender that sold the mortgage to the trust, when, in fact, the signer was a servicing company clerk paid by the trust itself.



The representative of the GRANTOR is, in truth, a paid employee of the GRANTEE. In hundreds of thousands of cases, the authority is, therefore, misrepresented. It is now also coming to light that in tens of thousands of cases, the individuals signing these forms did not even sign their own names. The documents were made to look official because other mortgage servicing company employees signed as witnesses and then all four “signatures” were notarized by yet another mortgage servicing company employee. The titles were false, the signatures were forged, the “witnessing” was a lie, as was the notarization. Despite all of these false statements, the BIGGEST LIE on these documents is that the trust acquired the mortgage on the date stated plainly on the Mortgage Assignment. In truth, no such transfers ever took place as represented by these MERS certifying officers (or their stand-in forgers). The date chosen almost always corresponds not to an actual transfer, but to the date roughly corresponding to the time the loan went into default. The Mortgage Assignment was prepared only to provide “proof” that the trust owned the mortgage. Until courts require Trusts to come forward with actual proof that they acquired the mortgages in question, specifying whom they paid and how much they paid for each such trust-owned mortgage, the actual owner of these mortgages will never be known.

http://stopforeclosurefraud.com/2010/11/18/false-statements-r-k-arnold-mortgage-electronic-registration-systems/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ForeclosureFraudByDinsfla+%28FORECLOSURE+FRAUD+%7C+by+DinSFLA%29

We all know the mortgage securitization process is complicated. But just how complicated?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/11/16/mortgage-security-chart_n_784274.html?view=screen

STERN FIRM FIRED BY FANNIE & FREDDIE

Freddie Mac announced Tuesday that it has terminated its relationship with the law offices of David J. Stern, P.A. in Plantation, Florida. Fannie Mae, too, says it has suspended business with the so-called Florida “foreclosure mill.”


The Stern law firm is one of the largest in the state, processing thousands of cases a month, and had been retained by both Fannie and Freddie as a preferred legal counsel for its servicers to go to for pending foreclosures and home repossessions.

But the firm and its namesake attorney have been the focus of high-profile investigations by both the Florida attorney general and the Florida Bar Association for allegedly falsifying legal documents and misleading the courts in numerous foreclosure cases.

The GSEs are no longer referring new cases to the David Stern law offices and have instructed the firm and its attorneys to stop processing all Florida foreclosure and bankruptcy matters related to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac mortgages.

Freddie clearly stated in its notice issued Tuesday, “Servicers may not refer any Freddie Mac foreclosure or bankruptcy cases to the Law Offices of David J. Stern, P.A., whether referred within or outside Freddie Mac’s Designated Counsel Program.”

The GSE continued, “It is critically important to Freddie Mac that the legal rights of borrowers and the integrity of the foreclosure process are protected and that our servicers fully comply with applicable law and Freddie Mac’s servicing requirements. Freddie Mac continually monitors the participants in our Designated Counsel Program for compliance with Freddie Mac guidelines.”

The David Stern law offices have been removed from both Freddie Mac’s list of approved legal counsel and Fannie Mae’s retained attorney network. There are currently four Florida firms listed as designated counsel for Freddie, and eight firms on Fannie’s list.

Freddie says it is in the process of identifying law firms to which it will transfer cases from the law offices of David Stern. According to a report from the Palm Beach Post, Fannie Mae has already sent retention letters to nine other firms in Florida.

https://www.efanniemae.com/sf/technology/servinvreport/amn/pdf/retainedattorneylist.pdf
 
Thanks DS NEWS

States, Mortgage Lenders in Talks over Fund for Borrowers in Foreclosure Mess

State attorneys general and the country's biggest lenders are negotiating to create a nationwide fund to compensate borrowers who can prove they lost their home in an improper foreclosure, the Washington Post reported today. Discussions are continuing over the size of the fund, who would administer it and what kind of proof homeowners would have to present to get access to the money. However, there is a consensus between the lenders and state officials that some sort of financial remedy is necessary to avoid the turmoil that could result from homeowner challenges. Any settlement between the banks and attorneys general almost certainly would force lenders to put more resources into modifying the loans of homeowners who missed their payments, rather than rushing toward foreclosures, state officials said. The banks could also be barred from foreclosing on homeowners while simultaneously negotiating mortgage modifications.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/11/16/AR2010111607100.html


In related news, Senate Democrats, drawing on testimony from a leading foreclosure expert on foreclosure, yesterday charged that the nation?s biggest banks appeared to have big financial reasons for moving at a snail's pace to modify mortgages of homeowners facing foreclosure, CongressDaily reported today. Sen. Tim Johnson (D-S.D.) who is in line to chair the committee in the next Congress, said that he had "serious concerns" that banks have been unwilling to offer more generous concessions on the first loans of troubled borrowers because they were afraid of taking big losses on their massive portfolios of second mortgages. Prof. Adam Levitin of Georgetown University Law Center testified before the Senate Banking Committee that the four biggest banks had more than $400 billion in second liens - roughly equal to their collective market capitalization. The banks carry those second mortgages and home-equity loans on their own books, and would be forced to take immediate losses if they were modified. "If they start writing off their second lien mortgages, they would have no capital. They would be insolvent," Levitin said. "That creates a strong incentive not to recognize losses and just try to pretend it is not there," Levitin said. Bank of America and Chase executives staunchly disputed Levitin's allegations, saying that second liens play no role in their decisions to modify first mortgages.

House to Consider Override of Notary-Bill Veto

House lawmakers are scheduled to consider today a motion to override President Barack Obama's veto last month of a bill that critics claimed could make it harder for homeowners to stop flawed foreclosures, the Wall Street Journal reported today. The vetoed bill, sponsored by Rep. Robert Aderholt (R-Ala.), would require notarizations of mortgages and other documents, including those done electronically, that are done in one U.S. state to be accepted by courts in another state. The House approved the bill in April by a voice vote, and the Senate passed it unanimously in late September. President Obama, however, returned the bill to Congress without his signature last month as concerns mounted over the unintended impact that the measure could have on consumer protections amid growing problems with foreclosure documentation. Critics have said the bill would make it easier for lenders to speed up the foreclosure process. Aderholt has rejected any link between document-handling problems and the bill, titled the "Interstate Recognition of Notarizations Act of 2010."

NY- Judge Schack names Robo- Signers in Cases

ROSA C. LARA

WM SPECIALTY MORTGAGE LLC, v. GRANT

TAMARA PRICE
DEUTSCHE BANK NATIONA L TRUST COMPANY, v. EZAGUI
DEUTSCHE BANK NATIONAL TRUST COMPANY, v. CLOUDEN

CHRISTOPHER M. ZEIS
PROPERTY ASSET MANAGEMENT, INC., v. THEODORE

JOHN SHELLEY
U.S. BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, v. LOUIS

ELY HARLESS
BANK OF NEW YORK v. MULLIGAN
DEUTSCHE BANK NATIONAL TRUST, v. AUGUSTE

JEFF RIVAS
DEUTSCHE BANK NATIONAL TRUST COMPANY v. CASTELLANOS

NICOLE GAZZO ESQ., Attorney of STEVEN J. BAUM PC/ CATHY MENCHISE
HSBC BANK USA, N.A., v. YEASMIN


CATHY MENCHISE
U.S. BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, v. MAYNARD

BRYAN KUSICH
DEUTSCHE BANK NATIONAL TRUST COMPANY, v. HENRY
WELLS FARGO BANK, N.A., v. GUY
U.S. BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, v. VIDEJUS

MARGERY ROTUNDO / SCOTT ANDERSON
HSBC BANK USA, N.A.,v. CHARLEVAGNE
NOMURA CREDIT & CAPITAL,, INC.,v. WASHINGTON

SCOTT ANDERSON / JESSICA DYBAS
HSBC BANK USA, N.A., v. BETTS


SCOTT ANDERSON
HSBC BANK USA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION,, v. ANTROBUS


ALBERT FIORELLO
NYCTL 1998-1 TRUST AND THE BANK OF NEW, v. CRUZ


VICTOR F. PARISI
HSBC BANK USA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, v. PERBOO


LEO S. ORTEGA, Jr.
DEUTSCHE BANK NATIONAL TRUST COMPANY, v. GRANT


KERI SELMAN
BANK OF NEW YORK v. OROSCO


JOE LANNING
U.S. BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, v. GRANT


CHINA BROWN
GE CAPITAL MORTGAGE SERVICES, INC., v. POWELL


ERICA JOHNSON SECK
DEUTSCHE BANK NATIONAL TRUST COMPANY, v. MARAJ
DEUTSCHE BANK NATIONAL TRUST COMPANY, v. HARRIS
ONEWEST BANK v. DRAYTON

http://stopforeclosurefraud.com/2010/11/16/mind-blowing-judge-schack-names-robo-signers-in-many-foreclosure-cases-greatest-hits/
 
 

Ginnie Mae OK's FHA Short Refis

Ginnie Mae has announced that it will allow issuers to pool Federal Housing Administration (FHA) short-refinance loans in Ginnie Mae single-family fixed-rate or adjustable-rate mortgage pools. The loans must meet the criteria for certain FHA Automated Data Processing codes, which Ginnie Mae outlines in its Nov. 8 memorandum.





The short-refi program, which the FHA rolled out in September, is aimed at borrowers who are underwater but current on their mortgages. To Vicki Bott, the FHA's director of single-family programs, the short refi's ability to be sold into a typical Ginnie Mae pool represents one of the program's improvements over the agency's previous efforts to help borrowers regain equity in their homes, such as Hope for Homeowners.




"We do believe a short-refi is more simplistic and from a secondary market standpoint," Bott told Servicing Management. "They're TBA-eligible, and so the pricing to the consumer should be lower."



SOURCE: Ginnie Mae

Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and FHA currently account for more than 90 percent of the mortgage market.

Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and FHA currently account for more than 90 percent of the mortgage market.


NAR says lenders refuse to make loans unless FHA will insure them or the GSEs will buy them. However stricter underwriting rules from the government agencies eliminate many buyers with credit scores as high as 750, and lenders are imposing credit overlays of their own, restricting the availability of credit, according to the trade group.

Medium US Home Price is $177,000

Prices of single-family homes rose an average of 3.6 percent during the second quarter of 2010 compared to a year earlier nationally, according to the Fiserv Case-Shiller Indexes. As of the end of June, the median U.S. home price was $177,000, as tracked by Fiserv.

Congress Runs Up against Deadline over Unemployment Benefits

Though there are many issues swirling as the lame duck session kicks off, Congress will have to negotiate the federal unemployment insurance benefits for millions that are set to expire on Nov. 30, CongressDaily reported today. Nearly 2 million of the 5 million people now on federal support will immediately lose benefits if Congress does not act by December. 1, according to the National Employment Law Project. The other 3 million would gradually lose benefits over the following few months as they used up the remainder of their benefits. The benefits cost between $6-7 billion per month, according to estimates compiled by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Extending them for one year would cost about $80 billion, the Center estimates, noting that there is no official figure for the cost of their extension.