senate - FORECLOSURE FRAUD - Page 2

Tag Archive | "senate"

Free From Foreclosure? Oregon Senator Sponsors ‘Anti-MERS’ Bill to Protect Homeowners

Free From Foreclosure? Oregon Senator Sponsors ‘Anti-MERS’ Bill to Protect Homeowners


March 2nd, 2011 By JAMES PITKIN

State Sen. Suzanne Bonamici (D-Washington County) is sponsoring a bill in the Legislature that could affect thousands of Oregon homeowners.

As reported in today’s WW, homeowners have accused Virginia-based Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems of foreclosing on their properties without the correct paperwork or legal standing. The company has faced legal challenges across the country—including from former Portland mortgage broker Dawn Lind, the subject of our story.

Experts say one of the problems with MERS is that it’s unclear who actually owns the mortgage for the homes MERS tries to foreclose.

Continue reading … Willameet Week

[ipaper docId=49944885 access_key=key-jzf9xg0az60nrg0a55v height=600 width=600 /]

© 2010-19 FORECLOSURE FRAUD | by DinSFLA. All rights reserved.



Posted in STOP FORECLOSURE FRAUDComments (1)

Bill SB 5275 in WA Legislature to Eliminate “Produce the Note” Foreclosure Protection

Bill SB 5275 in WA Legislature to Eliminate “Produce the Note” Foreclosure Protection


Updated March 4, 2011

I was contacted by a woman in Washington informing us that we were off the mark with this post. The way we posted fell a bit short and was slightly off the mark. It seems this bill was already voted through. Here’s the update and correction to this piece:

The “declaration” portion of this foreclosure bill trying to pass in the Washington State legislature is already law. This is what we, in Washington, are currently fighting. The bill, SB 5275, is a so-so bill with this “declaration” embedded in it. What the law (with its current language) does is bring the parties to the mediation table. This mediation process gives the homeowner an additional 90 days. What it DOESN’T do, is bring the CORRECT parties to the mediation table, as the banks can still hide behind this “declaration” in claiming ownership of the note, by putting a robo-signed pen-to-paper.

There are people in Washington, who are fighting within the legislature to get an amendment proposed. They are trying to get language similar to Arizona’s SB 1259, allowing only for a “clear chain of title” to prove ownership of the note. What a “clear chain of title” will do, it will bring the CORRECT PARTIES TO THE MEDIATION TABLE.

All you Washingtonians, please write your Senators and your Representatives asking for this amendment bringing a “clear chain of title” to this bill, SB 5275. If we can get this amendment to the floor of the House, we may still have a chance in Washington to bring the banks to their knees, as we all know they are unable to provide a “clear chain of title.”

Also ask your legislator to think about NEXT legislative session to put an end to the RCW 61.24.030 (7)(a), which states that the servicer only need provide a “declaration” to reside with the trustee to prove ownership of the note. The servicers are able to robo-sign these declarations and not have to provide any more proof of ownership of the note. THIS IS WHAT IS REALLY BAD LAW. The legislators need to know that what they did LAST session, has made Washington the worst state in the nation to try to fight these criminal servicers.

Thank you to Richard Zombeck @ ShameTheBanks.org for his help on clarifying this update for us. Don’t be silent… share your thoughts and story with ShameThe Banks. Together we can and are making a difference.

Original Post below..

This bill (SB 5275) is scheduled for a hearing today (scroll down for details). It must be stopped. We cannot allow the banks to take what they don’t own. Please call and/or email these senators (AND reps regarding the companion bill HB 1362) to politely but firmly express your opposition to giving the banks a freebie. Remind these people who they work for (US, not the banks). –Scott

Senate Bill Co-sponsors list:
maralyn.chase@leg.wa.gov; steve.conway@leg.wa.gov; karen.fraser@leg.wa.gov; jim.hargrove@leg.wa.gov; nick.harper@leg.wa.gov; marymargaret.haugen@leg.wa.gov; steve.hobbs@leg.wa.gov; karen.keiser@leg.wa.gov; derek.kilmer@leg.wa.gov; adam.kline@leg.wa.gov; jeanne.kohl-welles@leg.wa.gov; rosemary.mcauliffe@leg.wa.gov; edward.murray@leg.wa.gov; sharon.nelson@leg.wa.gov; margarita.prentice@leg.wa.gov; kevin.ranker@leg.wa.gov; phil.rockefeller@leg.wa.gov; paull.shin@leg.wa.gov; dan.swecker@leg.wa.gov; scott.white@leg.wa.gov;

Full Senate list:
Michael.baumgartner@leg.wa.gov; randi.becker@leg.wa.gov; don.benton@leg.wa.gov; jean.berkey@leg.wa.gov; lisa.brown@leg.wa.gov; michael.carrell@leg.wa.gov; jerome.delvin@leg.wa.gov; maralyn.chase@leg.wa.gov; steve.conway@leg.wa.gov; jerome.delvin@leg.wa.gov; tracey.eide@leg.wa.gov; doug.ericksen@leg.wa.gov; joe.fain@leg.wa.gov; karen.fraser@leg.wa.gov; jim.hargrove@leg.wa.gov; nick.harper@leg.wa.gov; brian.hatfield@leg.wa.gov; marymargaret.haugen@leg.wa.gov; mike.hewitt@leg.wa.gov; andy.hill@leg.wa.gov; steve.hobbs@leg.wa.gov; janea.holmquist@leg.wa.gov; jim.honeyford@leg.wa.gov; jim.kastama@leg.wa.gov; karen.keiser@leg.wa.gov; derek.kilmer@leg.wa.gov; curtis.king@leg.wa.gov; adam.kline@leg.wa.gov; jeanne.kohl-welles@leg.wa.gov; steve.litzow@leg.wa.gov; rosemary.mcauliffe@leg.wa.gov; bob.mccaslin@leg.wa.gov; bob.morton@leg.wa.gov; edward.murray@leg.wa.gov; sharon.nelson@leg.wa.gov; linda.parlette@leg.wa.gov; cheryl.pflug@leg.wa.gov; margarita.prentice@leg.wa.gov; craig.pridemore@leg.wa.gov; kevin.ranker@leg.wa.gov; debbie.regala@leg.wa.gov; pam.roach@leg.wa.gov; phil.rockefeller@leg.wa.gov; mark.schoesler@leg.wa.gov; timothy.sheldon@leg.wa.gov; paull.shin@leg.wa.gov; val.stevens@leg.wa.gov; dan.swecker@leg.wa.gov; rodney.tom@leg.wa.gov; scott.white@leg.wa.gov; joseph.zarelli@leg.wa.gov; marty.brown@gov.wa.gov; jim.justin@gov.wa.gov;

House List:
john.ahern@leg.wa.gov; gary.alexander@leg.wa.gov; glenn.anderson@leg.wa.gov; jan.angel@leg.wa.gov; sherry.appleton@leg.wa.gov; mike.armstrong@leg.wa.gov; katrina.asay@leg.wa.gov; barbara.bailey@leg.wa.gov; andy.billig@leg.wa.gov; brian.blake@leg.wa.gov; vincent.buys@leg.wa.gov; reuven.Carlyle@leg.wa.gov; bruce.chandler@leg.wa.gov; frank.chopp@leg.wa.gov; judy.clibborn@leg.wa.gov; eileen.cody@leg.wa.gov; cary.condotta@leg.wa.gov; larry.crouse@leg.wa.gov; cathy.dahlquist@leg.wa.gov; bruce.dammeier@leg.wa.gov; j.darneille@leg.wa.gov; richard.debolt@leg.wa.gov; marylou.dickerson@leg.wa.gov; hans.dunshee@leg.wa.gov; deborah.eddy@leg.wa.gov; susan.fagan@leg.wa.gov; fred.finn@leg.wa.gov; david.frockt@leg.wa.gov; roger.goodman@leg.wa.gov; tami.green@leg.wa.gov; kathy.haigh@leg.wa.gov; larry.haler@leg.wa.gov; mark.hargrove@leg.wa.gov; paul.harris@leg.wa.gov; bob.hasegawa@leg.wa.gov; bill.hinkle@leg.wa.gov; mike.hope@leg.wa.gov; zack.hudgins@leg.wa.gov; sam.hunt@leg.wa.gov; ross.hunter@leg.wa.gov; christopher.hurst@leg.wa.gov; jim.jacks@leg.wa.gov; laurie.jinkins@leg.wa.gov; norm.johnson@leg.wa.gov; ruth.kagi@leg.wa.gov; troy.kelley@leg.wa.gov; phyllis.kenney@leg.wa.gov; steve.kirby@leg.wa.gov; brad.klippert@leg.wa.gov; joel.kretz@leg.wa.gov; dan.kristiansen@leg.wa.gov; connie.ladenburg@leg.wa.gov; marko.liias@leg.wa.gov; kristine.lytton@leg.wa.gov; marcie.maxwell@leg.wa.gov; john.mccoy@leg.wa.gov; jim.mccune@leg.wa.gov; mark.miloscia@leg.wa.gov; jim.moeller@leg.wa.gov; jeff.morris@leg.wa.gov; luis.moscoso@leg.wa.gov; terry.nealey@leg.wa.gov; ed.orcutt@leg.wa.gov; timm.ormsby@leg.wa.gov; tina.orwall@leg.wa.gov; jason.overstreet@leg.wa.gov; kevin.parker@leg.wa.gov; kirk.pearson@leg.wa.gov; jamie.pedersen@leg.wa.gov; eric.pettigrew@leg.wa.gov; tim.probst@leg.wa.gov; chris.reykdal@leg.wa.gov; ann.rivers@leg.wa.gov; maryhelen.roberts@leg.wa.gov; jay.rodne@leg.wa.gov; christine.rolfes@leg.wa.gov; charles.ross@leg.wa.gov; cindy.ryu@leg.wa.gov; sharontomiko.santos@leg.wa.gov; joe.schmick@leg.wa.gov; larry.seaquist@leg.wa.gov; mike.sells@leg.wa.gov; matt.shea@leg.wa.gov; shelly.short@leg.wa.gov; norma.smith@leg.wa.gov; larry.springer@leg.wa.gov; derek.stanford@leg.wa.gov; pat.sullivan@leg.wa.gov; dean.takko@leg.wa.gov; david.taylor@leg.wa.gov; steve.tharinger@leg.wa.gov; dave.upthegrove@leg.wa.gov; kevin.vandewege@leg.wa.gov; maureen.walsh@leg.wa.gov; judy.warnick@leg.wa.gov; hans.zeiger@leg.wa.gov;

SB 5275 – 2011-12
Addressing homeowner foreclosures.
Revised for 1st Substitute: Protecting and assisting homeowners from unnecessary foreclosures.

The above underlined description of this foreclosure bill recently dropped by stealth in the Washington State legislature is an Orwellian lie; it exists to protect the banks of the New World Order-controlled Federal Reserve System, which our treasonous legislature has shown repeatedly that it serves. Amidst all of this bill’s seemingly warm and fuzzy, even lofty pronouncements on mediation and fairness, the following chilling provision stands out; please read it carefully to grasp the magnitude of its treason against the people of Washington State — and of the United States, if this abusive bill is allowed to pass and set a legislative precedent:
“7 (a) That, for residential real estate property, before the notice of trustee’s sale is recorded, transmitted, or served, the trustee shall have proof that the beneficiary (bank) is the owner of the promissory note or obligation secured by the deed of trust. A declaration by the beneficiary (bank) made under penalty of perjury stating that the beneficiary (bank) is the actual holder of the promissory note or other obligation secured by the deed of trust shall be sufficient proof as required under this subsection.”

Go to documents…
History of Bill
as of Wednesday, February 23, 2011 10:56 PM

Sponsors:
Senators Kline, Haugen, Kohl-Welles, Hargrove, Rockefeller, Nelson, Ranker, Keiser, Swecker, White, Conway, Hobbs, Chase, Harper, Kilmer, Prentice, Shin, Murray, Fraser, McAuliffe

Companion Bill:
HB 1362
2011 REGULAR SESSION

Jan 19
First reading, referred to Financial Institutions, Housing & Insurance. (View Original Bill)

Jan 26
Public hearing in the Senate Committee on Financial Institutions and Housing & Insurance at 1:30 PM. (Committee Materials)

Feb 16
Executive action taken in the Senate Committee on Financial Institutions and Housing & Insurance at 1:30 PM. (Committee Materials)

Feb 17
FIHI – Majority; 1st substitute bill be substituted, do pass. (View 1st Substitute) (Majority Report)

And refer to Ways & Means.

Feb 24
Scheduled for public hearing in the Senate Committee on Ways & Means at 1:30 PM. (Subject to change) (Committee Materials)

Go to history…
Available Documents
Bill Documents
Bill Digests
Bill Reports
Original Bill
Substitute Bill (FIHI 11)

Bill Digest
Substitute Bill Digest

Senate Bill Report (Orig.)
Senate Bill Report

http://apps.leg.wa.gov/documents/billdocs/2011-12/Pdf/Bills/Senate%20Bills/5275-S.pdf

[ipaper docId=49818854 access_key=key-257fq53w4yivpxsg87z0 height=600 width=600 /]

© 2010-19 FORECLOSURE FRAUD | by DinSFLA. All rights reserved.



Posted in STOP FORECLOSURE FRAUDComments (0)

BLOOMBERG| Geithner Urged by Senators to Tackle Home-Foreclosure Process `Forcefully’

BLOOMBERG| Geithner Urged by Senators to Tackle Home-Foreclosure Process `Forcefully’


Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner and federal regulators need to fix the mortgage foreclosure process so that it doesn’t derail the economic recovery, Senator Jack Reed and 16 other senators wrote in a letter yesterday.

“Mortgage market issues point to an emerging threat to financial stability that should be forcefully addressed now,” wrote Reed, a Democrat from Rhode Island. The letter, obtained by Bloomberg News, was also signed by Senator Bernie Sanders, an independent of Vermont, and 15 other Democrats including Senators John Kerry and Dick Durbin.

The letter shows increasing concern from lawmakers that the Obama administration hasn’t done enough to stem the housing crisis. Home prices may decline 5 percent this year as the housing market starts to stabilize, Jan Hatzius, chief U.S. economist at Goldman Sachs, said in a Dec. 31 Bloomberg Television interview.

© 2010-19 FORECLOSURE FRAUD | by DinSFLA. All rights reserved.



Posted in STOP FORECLOSURE FRAUDComments (1)

MEETINGS ON H.R. 3808 PLANNED THIS WEEK…

MEETINGS ON H.R. 3808 PLANNED THIS WEEK…


Back in Congress on Wednesday?

H.R. 3808:
to require any Federal or State court to recognize any notarization made by a notary public licensed by a State other than the State where the court is located when such notarization occurs in or affects
interstate commerce

2:15 P.M. –
ONE MINUTE SPEECHES – The House proceeded with one minute speeches.
H.R. 3808:
to require any Federal or State court to recognize any notarization
made by a notary public licensed by a State other than the State where
the court is located when such notarization occurs in or affects
interstate commerce

2:14 P.M. –
VETO MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT – The Chair laid before the House the
veto message from the President on H.R. 3808. The objections of the
President were spread at large upon the Journal, and the veto message
was ordered to be printed as a House Document No. 111-152. Pursuant to
the order of the House of earlier today, further consideration of the
veto message and the bill are postponed until the legislative day of
Wednesday, Nov. 17, 2010
, and that on that legislative day, the House
shall proceed to the constitutional question of reconsideration and
dispose of such question without intervening motion.

2:13 P.M. –
The House received a message from the Clerk. Pursuant to the
permission granted in Clause 2(h) of Rule II of the Rules of the U.S.
House of Representatives, the Clerk transmitted H.R. 3808, the
“Interstate Recognition of Notarization Act of 2010,” and a Memorandum
of Disapproval thereon received from the White House on October 8,
2010, at 12:55 p.m.

Mr. Scott (VA) asked unanimous consent That, when the House adjourns
on Monday, November 15, 2010, it adjourn to meet at 12:30 p.m. on
Tuesday, November 16, 2010, for Morning-Hour Debate. Agreed to without
objection.

Mr. Scott (VA) asked unanimous consent That, when a veto message on
H.R. 3808 is laid before the House on the legislative day of today,
then after the message is read and the objections of the President are
spread at large upon the Journal, further consideration of the veto
message and the bill shall be postponed until the legislative day of
Wednesday, Nov. 17, 2010
; and that on that legislative day, the House
shall proceed to the constitutional question of reconsideration and
dispose of such question without intervening motion. Agreed to without
objection.

© 2010-19 FORECLOSURE FRAUD | by DinSFLA. All rights reserved.



Posted in STOP FORECLOSURE FRAUDComments (3)

Obama Clarifies Pocket Veto Of Controversial Bill Related To Foreclosures

Obama Clarifies Pocket Veto Of Controversial Bill Related To Foreclosures


Arthur Delaney
arthur@huffingtonpost.com | HuffPost Reporting
.

The White House issued a statement Friday clarifying President Obama’s “pocket veto” of legislation that consumer advocates worried would have made it more difficult for homeowners to fight fraudulent foreclosures.

Some have been skeptical that a pocket veto, which allows the president to kill legislation simply by not signing it when Congress is not in session, was available because the Senate has, in fact, been holding pro-forma sessions.

So instead of just not signing the bill, Obama is also sending it back to the House, making it a “protective return” veto.

“To leave no doubt that the bill is being vetoed,” said Obama in a statement, “in addition to withholding my signature, I am returning H.R. 3808 to the Clerk of the House of Representatives, along with this Memorandum of Disapproval.”

Continue reading…HUFFINGTON POST

.

© 2010-19 FORECLOSURE FRAUD | by DinSFLA. All rights reserved.



Posted in assignment of mortgage, foreclosure, foreclosure fraud, foreclosure mills, foreclosures, Notary, notary fraud, STOP FORECLOSURE FRAUDComments (1)

*BREAKING* THANK YOU PRESIDENT OBAMA FOR NOT SIGNING H.R. 3808!

*BREAKING* THANK YOU PRESIDENT OBAMA FOR NOT SIGNING H.R. 3808!


Thank you for for not signing H.R. 3808!

.

Too tired to write at the moment but here is where you can read all about this *Breaking News*

HUFFINGTON POST

.

Thank you MAX GARDNER for saying it best…calling this “Suspicious”!


© 2010-19 FORECLOSURE FRAUD | by DinSFLA. All rights reserved.



Posted in STOP FORECLOSURE FRAUDComments (5)

H.R. 3808: Interstate Recognition of Notarizations Act

H.R. 3808: Interstate Recognition of Notarizations Act


H.R.3808

One Hundred Eleventh Congress

of the

United States of America

AT THE SECOND SESSION

Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday,

the fifth day of January, two thousand and ten

An Act

To require any Federal or State court to recognize any notarization made by a notary public licensed by a State other than the State where the court is located when such notarization occurs in or affects interstate commerce.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ‘Interstate Recognition of Notarizations Act of 2010’.

SEC. 2. RECOGNITION OF NOTARIZATIONS IN FEDERAL COURTS.

Each Federal court shall recognize any lawful notarization made by a notary public licensed or commissioned under the laws of a State other than the State where the Federal court is located if–

(1) such notarization occurs in or affects interstate commerce; and

(2)(A) a seal of office, as symbol of the notary public’s authority, is used in the notarization; or

(B) in the case of an electronic record, the seal information is securely attached to, or logically associated with, the electronic record so as to render the record tamper-resistant.

SEC. 3. RECOGNITION OF NOTARIZATIONS IN STATE COURTS.

Each court that operates under the jurisdiction of a State shall recognize any lawful notarization made by a notary public licensed or commissioned under the laws of a State other than the State where the court is located if–

(1) such notarization occurs in or affects interstate commerce; and

(2)(A) a seal of office, as symbol of the notary public’s authority, is used in the notarization; or

(B) in the case of an electronic record, the seal information is securely attached to, or logically associated with, the electronic record so as to render the record tamper-resistant.

SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

In this Act:

(1) ELECTRONIC RECORD- The term ‘electronic record’ has the meaning given that term in section 106 of the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act (15 U.S.C. 7006).

(2) LOGICALLY ASSOCIATED WITH- Seal information is ‘logically associated with’ an electronic record if the seal information is securely bound to the electronic record in such a manner as to make it impracticable to falsify or alter, without detection, either the record or the seal information.

Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Vice President of the United States and President of the Senate.

[ipaper docId=38867914 access_key=key-1yqasqqr7mxbrxa5un47 height=600 width=600 /]
© 2010-19 FORECLOSURE FRAUD | by DinSFLA. All rights reserved.



Posted in assignment of mortgage, bill, foreclosure fraud, h.r. 3808, MERS, MERSCORP, MORTGAGE ELECTRONIC REGISTRATION SYSTEMS INC., Notary, Real Estate, robo signers, STOP FORECLOSURE FRAUDComments (3)

Please tell President Obama NOT to sign the Interstate Recognition of Notarizations Act

Please tell President Obama NOT to sign the Interstate Recognition of Notarizations Act


Secretary Brunner: Please tell President Obama NOT to sign the Interstate Recognition of Notarizations Act

On Monday, September 27, 2010, U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA), on the Senate floor, asked that the Judiciary Committee be discharged from further consideration of a bill that would hurt consumers.

H.R. 3808 requires federal and state courts to recognize notarized documents from other states, including ones that contain electronic notarizations that are not subject to the same consumer safeguards of documents notarized in person. Some financial institutions are using electronic notarizations to process home foreclosure documents.

Sen. Casey asked that the Senate move forward with immediate consideration of the bill with unanimous consent that the bill pass with no other action or debate. The Senate passed the bill without amendment by unanimous consent. It now sits on the President’s desk. I’m asking you to email or call the President at 202-456-1111 to ask him not to sign the bill.

H.R. 3808 is known as the “Interstate Recognition of Notarizations Act.” It passed the House under a suspension of the rules in April 2010. It requires federal and state courts to recognize any notarization that is lawful in the state where the notary is licensed. Now, in one day, it passed in the Senate.

When I learned of it last Thursday, it sounded innocuous to me, but then I started looking at the timing of the bill. GMAC, owned by Ally, had just suspended its foreclosure actions in 23 states, including Ohio. I had already referred Chase Home Finance, LLC, on August 23, 2010, to the U.S. Department of Justice, asking it to review and investigate Chase’s document notarization practices in home foreclosures (18,000 documents per month were being notarized by 8 people, along with other irregularities). I license notaries in the State of Ohio. Even though I don’t have the power under state law to investigate or prosecute, I couldn’t stand idly by without acting. That’s why I’m asking you to email or call the President at 202-456-1111 to ask him not to sign the bill.

Last Wednesday, the day before I announced the DOJ referral, JPMorgan Chase announced it was having third party counsel review its document procedures for foreclosures. Just two days before, the U.S. Senate had rushed through H.R. 3808. Something didn’t seem right. Since then others agree with me.

Notarizing a document requires the signer to make a fundamental statement, an acknowledgment, before a notary public. It is used for documents of great sensitivity or value, like when the title of a car is transferred on its sale or when a bank tells a court how much is owed on a note for a mortgage when it wants to foreclose.

Some states have adopted “electronic notarization” laws that ignore the requirement of a signer’s personal appearance before a notary. A notary’s signature is that of a trusted, impartial third party, whose notarization bolsters the integrity of the document. Many of these policies for electronic notarization are driven by technology rather than by principle, and they are dangerous to consumers.

President Obama was presented with HR. 3808 on Thursday, September 30, 2010. As of today, he has not signed the bill. Please join me in urging him not to sign the bill by sending an email or calling the White House at 202-456-1111.

Mortgages are now being used as backing for securities traded all over the world by financial institutions. When a mortgage goes into default, a “chain of title” (list of its owners) must be created. It’s being discovered that many financial institutions have taken shortcuts in creating lawful chains of title that allow them to foreclose and take homes when they would not otherwise have the right under the law.

Banks demand we follow every letter of their contracts. We must demand they follow the law. It’s that simple. Please join me in urging President Obama not to sign the bill by sending an email or calling 202-456-1111.

Thanks for working together,

jBrunner300dpi_blue.jpg

Jennifer Brunner
Ohio Secretary of State

© 2010-19 FORECLOSURE FRAUD | by DinSFLA. All rights reserved.



Posted in assignment of mortgage, Notary, STOP FORECLOSURE FRAUDComments (7)

GRETCHEN MORGENSON: Too Large for Stains

GRETCHEN MORGENSON: Too Large for Stains


By GRETCHEN MORGENSON The Wall Street Journal

Published: June 25, 2010

OUR nation’s Congressional machinery was humming last week as legislators reconciled the differences between the labyrinthine financial reforms proposed by the Senate and the House and emerged early Friday morning with a voluminous new law in hand. They christened it the Dodd-Frank bill, after the heads of the Senate Banking and House Financial Services Committees who drove the process toward the finish line.

The bill is awash in so much minutiae that by late Friday its ultimate impact on the financial services industry was still unclear. Certainly, the bill, which the full Congress has yet to approve, is the most comprehensive in decades, touching hedge funds, private equity firms, derivatives and credit cards. But is it the “strong Wall Street reform bill,” that Christopher Dodd, the Connecticut Democrat, said it is?

For this law to be the groundbreaking remedy its architects claimed, it needed to do three things very well: protect consumers from abusive financial products, curb dangerous risk taking by institutions and cut big and interconnected financial entities down to size. So far, the report card is mixed.

On the final item, the bill fails completely. After President Obama signs it into law, the nation’s financial industry will still be dominated by a handful of institutions that are too large, too interconnected and too politically powerful to be allowed to go bankrupt if they make unwise decisions or make huge wrong-way bets.

Speaking of large and politically connected entities, Dodd-Frank does nothing about Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the $6.5 trillion mortgage finance behemoths that have been wards of the state for almost two years. That was apparently a bridge too far — not surprising, given the support that Mr. Dodd and Mr. Frank lent to Fannie and Freddie back in the good old days when the companies were growing their balance sheets to the bursting point.

So what does the bill do about abusive financial products and curbing financial firms’ appetites for excessive risk?

For consumers and individual investors, Dodd-Frank promises greater scrutiny on financial “innovations,” the products that line bankers’ pockets but can harm users. The creation of a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau within the Federal Reserve Board is intended to bring a much-needed consumer focus to a regulatory regime that was nowhere to be seen during the last 20 years.

It is good that the bill grants this bureau autonomy by assigning it separate financing and an independent director. But the structure of the bureau could have been stronger.

For example, the bill still lets the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency bar state consumer protections where no federal safeguards exist. This is a problem that was well known during the mortgage mania when the comptroller’s office beat back efforts by state authorities to curtail predatory lending.

And Dodd-Frank inexplicably exempts loans provided by auto dealers from the bureau’s oversight. This is as benighted as exempting loans underwritten by mortgage brokers.

Finally, the Financial Stability Oversight Council, the überregulator to be led by the Treasury secretary and made up of top financial regulators, can override the consumer protection bureau’s rules. If the council says a rule threatens the soundness or stability of the financial system, it can be revoked.

Given that financial regulators — and the comptroller’s office is not alone in this — often seem to think that threats to bank profitability can destabilize the financial system, the consumer protection bureau may have a tougher time doing its job than many suppose.

ONE part of the bill that will help consumers and investors is the section exempting high-quality mortgage loans from so-called risk retention requirements. These rules, intended to make mortgage originators more prudent in lending, force them to hold on to 5 percent of a mortgage security that they intend to sell to investors.

But Dodd-Frank sensibly removes high-quality mortgages — those made to creditworthy borrowers with low loan-to-value ratios — from the risk retention rule. Requiring that lenders keep a portion of these loans on their books would make loans more expensive for prudent borrowers; it would likely drive smaller lenders out of the business as well, causing further consolidation in an industry that is already dominated by a few powerful players.

“This goes a long way toward realigning incentives for good underwriting and risk retention where it needs to be retained,” said Jay Diamond, managing director at Annaly Capital Management. “With qualified mortgages, the risk retention is with the borrower who has skin in the game. It’s in the riskier mortgages, where the borrower doesn’t have as much at stake, that the originator should be keeping the risk.”

In the interests of curbing institutional risk-taking, Dodd-Frank rightly takes aim at derivatives and proprietary trading, in which banks make bets using their own money. On derivatives, the bill lets banks conduct trades for customers in interest rate swaps, foreign currency swaps, derivatives referencing gold and silver, and high-grade credit-default swaps. Banks will also be allowed to trade derivatives for themselves if hedging existing positions.

But trading in credit-default swaps referencing lower-grade securities, like subprime mortgages, will have to be run out of bank subsidiaries that are separately capitalized. These subsidiaries may have to raise capital from the parent company, diluting the bank’s existing shareholders.

Banks did win on the section of the bill restricting their investments in private equity firms and hedge funds to 3 percent of bank capital. That number is large enough so as not to be restrictive, and the bill lets banks continue to sponsor and organize such funds.

On proprietary trading, however, the bill gets tough on banks, said Ernest T. Patrikis, a partner at White & Case, by limiting their bets to United States Treasuries, government agency obligations and municipal issues. “Foreign exchange and gold and silver are out,” he said. “This is good for foreign banks if it applies to U.S. banks globally.”

That’s a big if. Even the Glass-Steagall legislation applied only domestically, he noted. Nevertheless, Mr. Patrikis concluded: “The bill is a win for consumers and bad for banks.”

Even so, last Friday, investors seemed to view the bill as positive for banks; an index of their stocks rose 2.7 percent on the day. That reaction is a bit of a mystery, given that higher costs, lower returns and capital raises lie ahead for financial institutions under Dodd-Frank.

Then again, maybe investors are already counting on the banks doing what they do best: figuring out ways around the new rules and restrictions.

A version of this article appeared in print on June 27, 2010, on page BU1 of the New York edition.

© 2010-19 FORECLOSURE FRAUD | by DinSFLA. All rights reserved.



Posted in UncategorizedComments (0)

Ohio foreclosure legislation shelved until fall: Do Nothing Yeah Thats It!

Ohio foreclosure legislation shelved until fall: Do Nothing Yeah Thats It!


DO NOT wait for the Government for as you can see you are the least of their concerns…Fight this, if you don’t know how? Get educated, hire an attorney, hire a forensic company, FIND HELP!

Don’t procrastinate or you will be homeless.

By Aaron Marshall, The Plain Dealer June 01, 2010, 5:35AM Cleveland.com

Associated Press Foreclosure legislation has stalled until the end of summer.

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Foreclosure legislation is headed back into the freezer until fall.

Senate Republicans had considered moving legislation designed to increase protections for renters and require registration for loan servicers as a watered-down substitute for a stronger foreclosure moratorium bill passed more than a year ago by House Democrats.

But Senate Finance Chairman John Carey, a southern Ohio Republican, said this week that the plug has been pulled on any foreclosure legislation because he didn’t get much support for his Plan B.

The GOP inaction on the issue has angered housing advocates and the House bill’s sponsor.

“I’m entirely frustrated. This has been a year these bills have been sitting over there, and now we are going to have to wait six more months,” said Bill Faith, executive director of the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio. “I don’t understand how you can see record levels of foreclosures month after month after month, year after year after year, and do nothing.”

The most recent statistics from the Ohio Supreme Court show that the first quarter of 2010 had 24,711 foreclosure filings, 9 percent above last year’s record-setting first-quarter figure. In Cuyahoga County, 3,722 foreclosures were filed, far above the 2,974 foreclosure actions filed in the first quarter of 2009.

Rep. Mike Foley, a Cleveland Democrat who sponsored the House bill, which included a six-month moratorium on home foreclosures, said he was “disgusted” by the plan to break for summer with no action by Republicans.

“They are ideologically in line with the big banks. They have a bunch of people who couldn’t care less. They are impractical. Take your pick,” said Foley. “I’m really angry. We had been sending messages that we wanted to sit down and talk, and they never even bothered to call.”

Maggie Ostrowski, spokeswoman for the Senate Republican caucus, led by Senate President Bill Harris, said that many in the GOP just don’t believe in government fixes to the problem.

“Fundamentally, Senate President Harris and other members of the caucus don’t believe that the government is going to solve the foreclosure crisis,” she said. “They believe a good economy and good-paying jobs is where we need to put our focus.” DinSFLA: YOU CAN’T EVEN SOLVE THE JOBLESS CRISIS…THERE GOES OUR ECONOMY! If you can’t do the job find a replacement! WE NEED COMPETENT LEADERS…NOT AMATEURS!

While the moratorium idea never had any legs among Senate Republicans, Carey said a House provision that would give notification to renters that an owner has filed for foreclosure has support among his caucus.

“They have not exactly bought into that language, but they have bought into the concept of notification of renters,” Carey said.

The substitute bill that Senate Republicans had considered gave renters the right to be notified only if landlords provided a list to the court of their tenants.

“It seemed unworkable — why would a landlord provide a list?” said Faith.

Carey said his caucus is also interested in some sort of registry for loan servicers, although probably not close to what House Democrats wanted, which raised fees on servicers to pay for increased regulation. He also said a Senate Republican bill that would steer foreclosure actions into court-ordered mediation is still a possibility for this fall.

“We haven’t closed the door on that,” he said.

Meanwhile, Ohio Supreme Court Justice Maureen O’Connor urged state lawmakers to study the foreclosure problem in urban neighborhoods with high rates of absentee landlords in an opinion released this week in a Cleveland court case.

Posted in foreclosure, foreclosure fraud, foreclosures, MoratoriumComments (1)

GORED BY WALL STREET: Senate Blocks Vote To Rein In Big Banks — Because It Probably Would Have Passed

GORED BY WALL STREET: Senate Blocks Vote To Rein In Big Banks — Because It Probably Would Have Passed


Simon JohnsonSimon Johnson

: May 21, 2010 09:21 AM

Focus on This: Merkley-Levin Did Not Get a Vote

After nine months of hard fighting, yesterday financial reform came down to this: an amendment, proposed by Senators Jeff Merkley and Carl Levin that would have forced big banks to get rid of their speculative proprietary trading activities (i.e., a relatively strong version of the Volcker Rule.)

The amendment had picked up a great deal of support in recent weeks, partly because of unflagging support from Paul Volcker and partly because of the broader debate around the Brown-Kaufman amendment (which would have forced the biggest 6 banks to become smaller). Brown-Kaufman failed, 33-61, but it demonstrated that a growing number of senators were willing to confront the power of our biggest and worst banks.

Yet, at the end of the day, the Merkley-Levin amendment did not even get a vote. Why?

continue reading…. Huffington Post

© 2010-19 FORECLOSURE FRAUD | by DinSFLA. All rights reserved.



Posted in foreclosures, wall streetComments (0)

Advert

Archives