Embattled Florida mom says foreclosed home not in default
Tuesday, October 12, 2010 at 12:05AM (Jacksonville, Fla.)—Rebecca Sharp, a homeowner in Jacksonville, says she’s been fighting to keep her home since 2005. Since then she’s been dealing with a foreclosure process that has been frustrating, confusing and erratic. When she and her husband worked out an agreement during their divorce, everything appeared to go according to plan. Sharp never envisioned facing the loss of a home that isn’t underwater, a property she said she’s made timely payments on. 
Homeowner Rebecca Sharp and her daughter Angela. Sharpe has been dealing with a foreclosure nightmare over paperwork errors and multiple lenders.When she and her husband split up, Sharp said, “He got a loan for $174,300 to take his part out.” He deeded the house to her and they closed with a local bank. The home had been paid for, so at that time there was no mortgage insurance on the property. “So we went to closing and had to have homeowners’ insurance,” she said. “We got one year of homeowners’ and also got flood insurance and escrowed $2500 for taxes.”
For Sharp, it wouldn’t really be her mortgage that caused her such anguish. It would be her escrow account.
Sharp’s loan was sold three different times. The first time it was sold, she made several payments to the new lender and was surprised one night to get a call from another lender. “We bought your loan,” the representative said. And then he told her this was a collections call.
Sharp was astonished. She told him she had made her payments on time, and she needed to call her mortgage company. “He was rude,” she said.
However, Sharp did phone and she learned her loan had been sold. And the lender that sold it finally credited her for the payments. She was frustrated to learn her loan had been sold after the fact—no one sent a notice ahead of the sale.
She was shaken, however. “I’d worked in the mortgage industry,” she said. “I felt something was wrong.” So she began to pay the loan through Western Union every month, paying an extra $12.95 fee to do so.
Soon she heard from her ex-husband who told her the lender was going to foreclose. They told him she didn’t have homeowners insurance and she wasn’t making her payments. After a long, frustrating investigation, she learned the mortgage company had purchased new homeowners’ insurance on her behalf, for three times the regular rate of her policy costs. She eventually learned the lender was assessing inspection and other fees as well, ramping up a big deficit on her escrow account.
She kept making the mortgage payments, often for more than the principal, and she kept trying to straighten the escrow matters out.
Her loan was sold again—to a major bank. That bank immediately filed a foreclosure. “I got served a summons,” she said. “I had made all my payments.” She had sent them to the newest lender. “They called and told me not to send any more payments,” she said.
Sharp has also learned who was dealing with the foreclosure legalities—a law firm targeted as a foreclosure mill, currently the subject of an investigation by the office of Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum.
“There’s money to be made in foreclosures,” said Sharp. “Why would somebody buy a loan that’s supposed to be in default?”
The Jacksonville mom has dealt with rude judges (one hung up on her when she phoned to ask a question), paid thousands in court filing fees and has been asked to leave the Duval County court handling foreclosures. Only attorneys and judges can talk to the authorities outside the courtroom in that department currently using some retired judges to deal with the deluge of foreclosures. She has kept records of dozens of actions by lenders and efforts on her part to correct them.
No one will help her—no lawyers, no members of Congress. She has turned to many for help without success.
The Florida Times-Union did an investigative article about the special foreclosure court. Some attorneys call the court the ‘Rocket Docket.’ One attorney minced no words when asked about the court. “For the first time,” he said, “they're not even pretending to be unbiased arbiters of justice."
Sharp has repeatedly asked for and tried to obtain discovery in accordance with her legal rights, but so far the attorney hasn’t come forward with documentation. Her property is in foreclosure but no one seems to have the paperwork justifying the motion.
The foreclosure mill attorney didn’t show up for court when her last hearing was scheduled.
She has another hearing set for January, 2011. Maybe this time the people trying to take her home will show up and bring the documents they’re using to do so.
“I keep telling myself I do not live in a country that allows a bank to take my house away from me,” she said. “And they are refusing to give me the evidence I need to prove my case.” (Filed by Kay B. Day/Oct. 12, 2010)
Follow-Up Commentary at The US Report
As foreclosure chaos rules, story about Jacksonville woman touches a nerve (Oct. 22, 2010)
Related Articles
The Florida Times Union
‘Rocket Docket’ rushing foreclosures, lawyers say
Jacksonville Republican Examiner
Foreclosure epidemic presents challenges for Jacksonville
US Business and Economy, US Lifestyles, US States tagged courts, florida, foreclosures, lenders
Reader Comments (2)
This is something out of the twilight zone!! I was under the impression that if a mortgage is sold the new lender is to send the homeowner a letter stating that fact which should include where to send the payments (at least that's what they did for me). I doubt Rebecca is a mind reader ... how was she suppose to know of these transactions if not notified!!! I can't imagine paying my loan on time thinking all is good then being served papers that my home is in foreclosure!!! OMGosh, someone in the banking industry goofed really bad. I think Rebecca is owed one big apology and even compensation for the stress she has obviously been put through!!
LIKE AMERICA NEED JOBS, FORECLOSURE MILLS NEED INVESTIGATION!!!
Florida's Attorney General is correct to file his motion for rehearing the court ruling that prevents the AG from investigating foreclosure mill firms who CLEARLY fabricated foreclosure documents!!
It is imperative the MILLS are investigated for INTENTIONALLY FABRICATING court documents because certain lawyers are engaged in SELF-DEALING FORECLOSURES. Most definitely, it is NOT A WASTE OF TAX PAYER MONEY to probe awful, underhanded illegalities surrounding foreclosures which have caused thousands of people to be UNLAWFULLY evicted and homeless –while unscrupulous lawyers became CRIMINALLY ENRICHED.
LONGSTANDING foreclosure frauds incorporate falsified CIVIL as well as BANKRUPTCY court pleadings; repetitive and illegal property flipping (thus blighted neighborhoods); “simulated auctions” and “straw buyers”; FALSE “lift stay” motions and FALSE “proof of claims;” and "fee-splitting." Certain lawyers achieve extra benefits from litigating against foreclosure defense lawsuits, as they MISREPRESENT to their mortgage-clients property owners are delaying foreclosures, but actually its continual deceptive foreclosure lawyers' activities while billing $$$$ to mortgage clients and actually committing MALPRACTICE + fraud upon the courts + fraud & illegal exploitation of homeowners!
Because fraudulent foreclosures include many facets, culmination can take years while arranging cash cow “PAWNS” needed for big pay-offs. [Super Future Equities Inc. v. Wells Fargo, et al., @ http://www.bankruptcy-lawnetwork.com/2007/05/11/what-are-those-mortgage-servicers-doing/. To repeat, LIKE AMERICA NEED JOBS, FORECLOSURE MILLS NEED INVESTIGATION. State Attorneys General everywhere now need to recognize the ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM –which has been for a long time, hiding in plain sight: foreclosure mill fraud! http://www.lawgrace.org/2010/09/30/important-facts-about-foreclosure-and-mortgage-fraud/