Archive for the 'Illinois Articles' Category

Compared to other mortgage lenders, Bank of America has been driving more Chicago foreclosure auctions over the past years.

Based on a report from the community organization National People’s Action, BofA accounted for 17 percent of all foreclosure postings in the city in 2009, the highest percentage posted in the city.

So far this year, the bank has already filed 1,700 foreclosure cases, increasing the total of BofA filings in Chicago since the start of the housing meltdown in 2008 to over 8,000 filings.

Last year, the bank has filed 3,950 foreclosures, accounting for 17 percent of the city’s total filings of 23,000 and marking the highest number of postings filed by any mortgage lender or servicer in the city. More than 9 percent of all foreclosures at auctions in the city last year were taken back by BofA.

To help play up the release of the report, the community group marched around two blocks hit hard by foreclosure and posted signs on some homes informing people that the vacant properties were foreclosures by BofA.

In response to the report, a bank spokesperson said that as BofA services and owns 20 percent of all residential mortgages in the country, it is inevitable that it also owns a big portion of distressed homes entering Chicago foreclosure auctions.

In 2008, BofA also acquired Countrywide Financial, one of the mortgage lenders largely blamed for the record number of foreclosures that hit the U.S. because of its questionable lending practices.

The BofA spokesperson also disputed the HAMP figure mentioned by the community group. He said that the bank has modified over 630,000 residential mortgages since January 2008, including preventing a big portion of homes from entering foreclosure auctions in Illinois.

In the most recent HAMP report released by the Treasury report, BofA has started 308,527 trial modifications and has completed 62,969 permanent loan modifications since the start of the program, including modifications that rescued a number of units from entering Chicago foreclosure auctions.

Karen Hsu, a lawyer at Land of Lincoln Legal Assistance Foundation, has provided details on foreclosure regulations governing tenants of repo homes in Illinois.

Hsu said that the foreclosure process covering renters of repo homes in Illinois starts with the filing of a complaint. Summons are served to distressed owners of repo homes, and then a judge will issue a foreclosure ruling and order of property sale.

After being served and having received the summons, owners of repo homes are given 90 days to make their accounts current. After the reinstatement period comes the redemption stage in that repo homes owners are required to pay the whole loan principal, fees, costs and interest seven months after they received the summons or a quarter after the issuance of foreclosure judgments.

The sheriff’s sale of Illinois repo homes will be conducted after the redemption time period has lapsed. A court hearing will be held to confirm the foreclosure property sale.

The proceedings for Illinois foreclosures affect tenants in several ways. Sometimes they are named in foreclosure complaints and served with notice. In the event that this happened, the buyer can make a claim for the foreclosed property a month after the hearing for confirmation of the sale.

Meanwhile, Hsu explained that sometimes tenants are not named in foreclosure complaints. If this is the case, the complainant may file a supplementary petition for possession. The petition can be filed during the foreclosure proceeding, up to 3 months after the order of sale confirmation.

In addition, courts are required to conduct hearings on petitions not more than 21 days starting on the day that the notice of the foreclosure hearing is served.

Meanwhile, Illinois foreclosure regulations protect tenants who have not violated any law and remain current on their rent payments. Tenants who are good payers have the option to remain on their rented repo homes for 4 months after the notice of the supplemental petition hearing or until the lease expires, whichever is shorter.

In cases that tenants are not diligent in paying their monthly rents, they could be forced to vacate the premises immediately.

On the other hand, if the buyer of the foreclosed property filed a proceeding of forced entry and detainer against the tenant, he can seek ownership of the house a month after the order of the confirmation of the sale.