New Housing Relief Plans For FHA Borrowers And Servicemembers

The Obama administration has announced two new steps that will be taken to assist FHA borrowers and servicemembers in a statement released this week.

The administration estimates that 2-3 million FHA borrowers will be eligible.  Plans for FHA borrowers include refinancing at a lower cost and a reduction in the insurance premium.  The FHA currently charges an up-front mortgage insurance premium of 1 percent of the loan balance and an additional 1.15 percent of the balance per year; the up-front premium will be reduced to .01 percent for loans originated prior to June 1, 2009.  Annual fees for refinancing will be reduced to .55 percent.

One provision will have servicemen who were foreclosed upon since 2006 reviewed, and if any are found to have been wrongfully foreclosed upon, they can receive compensation equal to a minimum of lost equity, plus interest.  In addition to foreclosure reviews, servicemembers will be reviewed for interest rates to see if any were charged more than 6 percent after a request to lower the rate.

For veterans, $10 million will go into the Veterans Affairs fund to guarantee loans on favorable terms.

Florida Mortgage Fraud Resources

The list of resources below has been compiled for anyone that suspects that they may be a victim of any type of fraud or scam. The list was originally designed as a resource to report mortgage fraud, predatory lending scams and identity theft in Florida but may also serve those who are victims of many types of fraud in Florida. Other types of fraud may include:

Internet Scams Phishing/Email Scams Credit Card Fraud Investment Scams

Financial - Debt Elimination Business/MLM Scams Etc.

FBI Field Offices, Mortgage Fraud
White Collar Crime Supervisor
http://jacksonville.fbi.gov/
7820 Arlington Expressway, Suite 200
Jacksonville, FL 32211-7499
Phone: (904) 721-1211

White Collar Crime Supervisor
http://miami.fbi.gov/
16320 NW 2nd Avenue
North Miami Beach, FL 33169-6508
Phone: (305) 944-9101

White Collar Crime Supervisor
http://tampa.fbi.gov/
500 Zack Street, Room 610, FOB
Tampa, FL 33602-3917
Phone: (813) 273-4566

Florida Attorney General - Consumer Protection
http://myfloridalegal.com/consumer
The Capitol PL-01
Tallahassee, FL 32399-1050
Phone: (850) 414-3300

HUD Field Office
Jacksonville Field Office
Charles E. Bennett Federal Building
400 W. Bay Street, Suite 1015
Jacksonville, FL 32202
Phone: (904) 232-2627
Fax: (904) 232-3759

Miami Field Office
909 SE First Avenue
Miami, FL 33131
Phone: (305) 536-4456
Fax: (305) 536-5765

Orlando Field Office
3751 Maguire Boulevard, Room 270
Orlando, FL 32803-3032
Phone: (407) 648-6441
Fax: (407) 648-6310

Tampa Field Office
500 Zack Street, Suite 402
Tampa, FL 33602
Phone: (813) 228-2026
Fax: (813) 228-2431

HUD Regional Office
Atlanta Regional Office
40 Marietta Street
Five Points Plaza
Atlanta, GA 30303-2806
Phone: (404) 331-4111
Fax: (404) 730-2392

Florida Department of Banking and Finance
Division of Financial Investigations
http://www.flofr.com/
101 East Gaines Street, Suite 516
Tallahassee, FL 32399-0350
Toll Free: (800) 848-3792 (Florida only)
Phone: (850) 410-9275
Fax: (850) 410-9628

Nationally Chartered Credit Unions
Region III – Atlanta
http://www.ncua.gov/AboutNcua/org/Region3.htm
7000 Central Parkway, Suite 1600
Atlanta, GA 30328
Phone: (678) 443-3000
Fax: (678) 443-3020

State-Chartered Credit Unions
Florida Division of Banking
101 East Gaines Street, Ste. 636
Tallahassee, FL 32399-0350
Phone: (850) 410-9111
Fax: (850) 410-9548

Savings & Loan Association or Savings Bank
Office of Thrift Supervision
http://www.ots.treas.gov/resultsort.cfm?catNumber=88&dl=17&edit=1
E-mail: consumer.complaint@ots.treas.gov
Southeast Region - Atlanta
1475 Peachtree Street, N.E.
Atlanta, Georgia 30309
Phone: (404) 888-0771
Complaints: (800) 842-6929

National Fair Housing Alliance
To locate your local office:
http://www.nationalfairhousing.org/
National Contact: E-mail: nfha@nationalfairhousing.org
1212 New York Avenue, NW Ste 525
Washington, DC 2005
Phone: (202) 898-1661
Fax: (202) 371-9744

Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
Division of Consumer Services
http://www.800helpfla.com/~cs/complaints.html
2005 Apalachee Parkway
Terry Rhodes Building
Tallahassee, FL 32399-6500
Phone: 1-800-HELP-FLA (435-7352)

Florida Real Estate Commission (FREC) Home Page
DBPR Customer Contact Center
http://www.myfloridalicense.com/dbpr/re/complaint.html
1940 North Monroe Street
Tallahassee, FL 32399-1027
Phone: (850) 487-1395
Fax: (850) 922-4191

Better Business Bureaus
Better Business Bureau of Northeast Florida
http://www.bbbnefla.org
E-mail: info@bbbnefla.org
4417 Beach BV., Suite 202
Jacksonville, FL 32207
Phone: (904) 721-2288
Fax: (904) 721-7373

Better Business Bureau Serving Southeast Florida and the Caribbean
http://www.bbbsoutheastflorida.org
E-mail: info@seflorida.bbb.org
2924 N Australian Ave.
West Palm Beach, FL 33407 –
Phone: (561) 842-1918
Fax: (561) 845-7234

Better Business Bureau of West Florida
http://www.clearwater.bbb.org
E-mail: info@bbbwestflorida.org
PO Box 7950
Clearwater, FL 33758 -7950
Phone: (727) 535-5522
Fax: (727) 539-6301

Better Business Bureau of Northwest Florida
http://www.nwfl.bbb.org
E-mail: info@nwfl.bbb.org
PO Box 1511
Pensacola, FL 32591 -1511
Phone: (850) 429-0002
Fax: (850) 429-0006

Better Business Bureau of Central Florida, Inc.
http://www.orlando.bbb.org
E-mail: info@orlando.bbb.org
151 Wymore Road, Ste. 100
Altamonte Springs, FL 32714 -
Phone: (407) 621-3300
Fax: (407) 786-2625

Why Short Sale Instead Of A Foreclosure Defense?

One of the services I offer to homeowners, investors and commercial borrowers is a full review of their current mortgage (sometimes known as an audit), if the mortgage is in foreclosure.  I have had many instances when the borrower has been able to establish a defense or gain leverage to negotiate based on our findings.  To date we have helped borrowers negotiate millions of dollars in reductions.  

However, over time I've also become a big proponent of short sales if they can be successfully closed with a waiver of deficiency.  Statistics show that on average a home sold through a short sale brings a 24 percent greater return to the lender than a foreclosure.  While banks are offering incentives to homeowners and borrowers to short sale, in many cases this 24 percent can be a tool for negotiating more favorable terms for the borrower such as cash for keys or a waiver of deficiency.  

Regardless of the decision you make to short sale the property or establish a foreclosure defense, it is imperative that you have a professional on your side.  I have seen many foreclosure defenses botched by inexperienced attorneys and short sales fall through due to a lack of knowledge on the part of real estate agents and attorneys.  

Due diligence is the key to putting a negative real estate experience behind you.  Should you have any questions or need an introduction to a capable and knowledgeable real estate agent or attorney, please don't hesitate to contact me.

yourbestmortgagechoice@gmail.com

@TheMortgageFirm

Suzanne Morton is a partner in Compleat Consulting Group, Inc. and is a respected consultant in the mortgage field working with  over 50 law firms as an expert in foreclosure defense and compliance.  Additionally, Suzanne is a Senior Loan Originator with The Mortgage Firm originating residential loans.