What good is a settlement if you don’t actually cash your check? Oh wait, I think I just answered my own question.
But all jokes aside, some 600,000 checks mailed to homeowners as part of the Independent Foreclosure Review have now expired without being cashed or deposited.
For the record, the payments could be as high as $125,000 plus lost home equity, depending on the severity of the circumstances. So it’s no laughing matter. Of course, the check might also be for just a few hundred bucks…
This week the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Reserve announced the reissuance of checks related to the review.
In case you don’t remember, the review pertained to homeowners whose properties were in some stage of foreclosure between January 1st, 2009 and December 31st, 2010.
The basic idea was that these homeowners suffered financial harm thanks to unsavory practices like robosigning, though the Independent Foreclosure Review didn’t seem to result in much of a review, but rather an $8.5 billion payout.
I suppose that’s better than nothing, though let’s hope the banks change their ways come the next crisis.
Is Your Lender Listed?
The review originally involved 10 home loan servicers, then expanded to 13 with the aand their affiliated companies and subsidiaries including:
America’s Servicing Co.
Aurora Loan Services
BAC Home Loans Servicing
Bank of America
Beneficial
Chase
Citibank
CitiFinancial
CitiMortgage
Countrywide
EMC Mortgage Corporation
EverBank/EverHome Mortgage Company
GMAC Mortgage
Goldman Sachs
HFC
HSBC
Litton Loan Servicing LP
MetLife Bank
Morgan Stanley
National City
PNC
Saxon Mortgage
Sovereign Bank (now known as Santander Bank)
SunTrust Mortgage
U.S. Bank
Wachovia
Washington Mutual
Wells Fargo
Wilshire Credit Corporation
Did You Miss the First Check?
The checks were originally sent out in April 2013, and as of January 2015, roughly 87% of the checks totaling more than $3.1 billion were cashed or deposited.
The remaining checks weren’t acted upon, perhaps because the Paying Agents are having a difficult time tracking down borrowers who may have…lost their homes. Hmm.
The replacement checks are expected to be mailed by the end of February, so keep an eye out. If your loan servicer was GMAC Mortgage, the replacement check is expected to be sent in May.
For borrowers who had loans with EverBank/EverHome Mortgage, you’re being told to contact Epiq Systems, which is the Paying Agent assigned by the OCC/Federal Reserve.
Please note that if you receive a replacement check it must be cashed or deposited within 90 days of issue or it too will be voided.
If you’re still wondering where your check is, you can contact Rust Consulting, Inc. at 888-952-9105.
For those whose loans were serviced by EverBank/EverHome, you can contact Epiq Systems at 877-819-9754.
Lastly, it should be noted that receiving a payment via the Independent Foreclosure Review does not prevent homeowners from taking other action related to their foreclosure.
And loan servicers are not permitted to ask borrowers to sign a waiver of any legal claims in connection with receiving payment through the review.
(photo: David Goehring)
Source: thetruthaboutmortgage.com