A day doesn’t go by that there isn’t some news about improprieties of mortgage lenders or the foreclosure crisis. The alarming number of foreclosures has forced the Feds to be more active in repairing the struggling housing market and protecting consumers from the negligent practices of major banks. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has drafted two revisions of mortgage applications in order to help the American homeowner better understand the details of their mortgages.
Elizabeth Warren, a Harvard Law Professor, has been overseeing the changes to the application and says the goal of simpler forms is to make the consumer aware of the full cost of the loan. This gives then necessary information so they can search for other loans. Simplifying the paperwork will also save the lenders time. Lenders are skeptical of the changes.
When the real estate market began to decline many mortgage applicants were given sub-prime loans, which could increase their monthly payments by hundreds even thousands of dollars. The people who accepted these loans may not have been aware of how their loan payments could skyrocket. Many homeowners found that they couldn’t manage their higher payments, which sent them to foreclosure attorneys with the possibility they could keep their homes.
The foreclosure crisis is unlikely to end in the immediate future so foreclosure lawyers will be in demand for many homeowners. There is no absolute guarantee that a foreclosure attorney can help everyone keep their home, but can give them a better chance than facing the courts alone.
