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By: Ken Amaro  | firstcoastnews.com “JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Letitia Early, 51, lost her job in January 2008 and her ability to pay the mortgage on her home. But Early said she never lost her hope. “I limped along and used my savings,” she said, “Everything I had to make my payments.” She was doing everythingRead more

By Elliot Njus | oregonlive.com “An expanded state foreclosure mediation program is showing far more promise for homeowners than its 2012 launch, a virtual nonstarter. In the first six weeks since the expansion took effect in August, the program has received 456 requests for face-to-face meetings between mortgage borrowers and lenders, the Department of JusticeRead more

“A lawsuit accusing Bank of America Corp of reneging on promises to help distressed homeowners modify their mortgage loans and of driving them into foreclosure instead cannot proceed as a class action, a federal judge has ruled. While agreeing that the borrowers’ claims “may well be meritorious,” US District Judge Rya Zobel in Boston saidRead more

Solomon Poretsky, Demand Media | “Florida’s legislature passed the “Florida Fair Foreclosure Act” on July 1, 2013. It’s designed to help clear up Florida’s large backlog of foreclosures. As written, it contains protections for both lenders and borrowers and spans both owner-occupied and investment properties. Even with the homeowner protections, the law is unpopular withRead more

Scott Gunnerson | FLORIDA TODAY | “Zombies are everywhere lately, it seems. TV shows, video games, even chasing runners during special 5K races. You might even have a zombie next door. The first sign of trouble: An unmaintained yard, growing wild amid Florida’s summer heat and rain. “Zombie” properties — homes abandoned by the owners, but stillRead more

Rebecca Freeman | U.S. Finance Post | “The number of foreclosures in July were down 25 percent from a year earlier according to CoreLogic. During the month of July 49,000 foreclosures were completed compared to 53,000 the previous month.That was a decrease of 8.6 percent. In July 2012 there were 65,000 foreclosures. For context, CoreLogic pointed toRead more

By Francys Vallecillo | World Property Channel | “The U.S. foreclosure inventory decreased 32 percent in July compared to last year, according to the latest numbers from CoreLogic. The inventory included approximately 949,000 homes in some stage of foreclosure. As of July, the foreclosure inventory represented 2.4 percent of all homes with a mortgage, compared toRead more

Raju Chebium | Gannett Washington Bureau | “California’s hard-hit housing market has improved considerably since the crisis of 2008 but Congress should pass President Barack Obama’s latest proposals to keep that recovery on track, Housing Secretary Shaun Donovan said Monday. The White House released a raft of evidence touting California’s housing recovery due to policies adopted since ObamaRead more

Timothy Gibbons | Managing Editor- Jacksonville Business Journal | “Florida had nine of the top 10 cities with the highest foreclosure rates in the nation, a list led by Jacksonville, according to the Florida Legislature’s Office of Economic and Demographic Research. That’s the third month in a row, the Jacksonville News & Daily Record say, that the stateRead more

Jesse Hamilton | Bloomberg | “EverBank Financial Corp. (EVER) will make $37 million in cash payments to past mortgage borrowers to settle claims it improperly handled foreclosures, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency said in a statement. With the agreement, EverBank joins 14 other loan servicers that struck similar deals with the OCC andRead more