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Ocwen Enters Into Multi-Billion Dollar Consent Order For Mortgage Servicing Misdeeds
Ocwen is the latest mortgage servicer to enter into a consent order with the CFPB and 49 of the 50 states. Ocwen is being held accountable for its ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Los Angeles Sues Everyone
Well, not quite. The city of Los Angeles has filed lawsuits against Wells Fargo, Citigroup , and Bank of America for discriminatory lending practices ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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CFPB's Mortgage Disclosure Rules Need Work
I normally applaud the CFPB for its aggressive regulation and its attempts to expand its regulatory reach. When the CFPB first started rolling out ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Loan modification options for heirs inheriting mortgages
If a loved one has died and left his or her home to you, the gesture may seem overwhelming for numerous reasons. First, you may be struggling with the ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Considering Filing Bankruptcy? Be Sure To Preserve Your Claims Against Creditors
When you file for bankrupcty, you are required to disclose all of your assets and liabilities. Most people think of assets as things (tangible or ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Debt Collection, Debt Buyers, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
The CFPB has issued a request for comments regarding debt collection practices. This is the first step in the CFPB's rule making process. The CFPB is ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Amending The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act
On October 30, 2013, U.S. Representative Steve Cohen (D-TN) introduced H.R. 3402, the Fair Debt Collection Improvement Act . The bill was referred to ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Bank of America Liable For Mortgage Fraud
On October 23, 2013, Bank of America was found liable for civil fraud in a federal lawsuit filed in New York. The U.S. Department of Justice brought ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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JP Morgan Chase To Settle With U.S. Government -- But Is The Settlement A Tax Break?
Over the last two weeks, we have seen the Too Big To Fail banks agree to some rather large settlements for a wide variety of lawsuits. Currently, the ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Updates on the National Mortgage Settlement
Early in 2012, five banks agreed to a $25 billion mortgage settlement after being accused of a number of improprieties resulting in the nationwide ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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The Telephone Consumer Protection Act, Consent, And You
In general, when you apply for a credit card, an automobile loan, or a home loan, you are consenting to being called by the creditor. Most creditors ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Are Judges Trending Pro-Homeowner?
The New York Times ran an article on Saturday that takes a look at judges that are taking a critical view of banks in foreclosure matters. As one ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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A New Path To Home Ownership
I just read an article on Dennis Rodkin's blog about Hyperion Homes, a company with a new approach to renting and purchasing homes. Hyperion works ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Lawmakers push hospitals to standardize patient debt collections
A sudden and unexpected serious injury or illness can catch anyone off guard. In fact, this particular scenario inspires more Americans to file for ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Guest Post: CFPB Puts Companies On Notice About Duty To Investigate Consumer Credit Report Disputes
This a guest post written by Associate Attorney Dan McGarry: It happens all the time. Inaccurate information routinely finds its way into the credit ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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State of Illinois v. Safeguard Part 2 -- Consumer Illustrations
According to AG Madigan's complaint , the Illinois Attorney General's Office is aware of over 200 complaints from Illinois consumers against Safeguard ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Lisa Madigan Files Suit Against Safeguard Properties, LLC
Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan announced on Tuesday that she has filed a lawsuit against Safeguard Properties, LLC, alleging illegal eviction ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Working On A Loan Modification With Bank of America? Here Are Some Tips.
As anyone who has tried to secure a loan modification can tell you, the process is not easy. On more than one occasion, I have referred to it as ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Why You Should Fight Credit Card Lawsuits
In my experience, when consumers appear in court, they often make bad choices by "doing the right thing." Let me be very clear -- confessing to ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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How to avoid becoming a victim of foreclosure scams
When your debt load has become overwhelming, it can be tempting to panic. It can be tempting to allow your stress, anxiety and frustration to rule ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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EverBank To Pay $37 Million In Independent Foreclosure Review Payments
On August 26, the OCC announced that it had reached an agreement with EverBank where the lender will pay $37 million to more than 32,000 eligible ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Can I Force The Bank To Take Back My Home?
I have been asked this question more times than I can count. My answer is usually, "Unfortunately, no." That may be changing. Last month, the United ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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The Latest CFPB Supervisory Report: Banks Not In Compliance With Regulations
This likely comes as a shock to no one, but banks aren't very good at customer service or complying with regulations. The Consumer Financial ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Illinois Governor Pat Quinn Signs Bill Extending Tenant Protections In Foreclosure
A federal law that protects renters whose buildings are in foreclosure will expire this year. Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn signed a bill into law that ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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FHA Changes Eligibility For Borrowers Post-Bankruptcy and Post-Foreclosure
FHA loans have been a reliable source of mortgage lending for people with less-than-perfect credit. It is possible to get an FHA mortgage two years ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Department of Justice Sues Bank of America, Confirms What We've Always Known
On Tuesday, the Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against Bank of America . The lawsuit alleges that BofA lied to investors about the quality of ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Equifax Hit With $18.6 million Fair Credit Reporting Act Judgment
Julie Miller, a woman from Oregon, has been awarded $18.6 million in her lawsuit against Equifax. According to The Oregonian , the jury awarded $18.4 ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Homeowners consider crowdfunding in fights to avoid foreclosure
Experienced bankruptcy attorneys are often able to help homeowners avoid foreclosure through utilization of a variety of legal options. However, even ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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CFPB Sues To Enforce Dodd-Frank Compensation Rule
When the mortgage industry collapsed along with our economy, lawmakers attempted to improve things by passing Dodd-Frank. While the bank lobby found ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Independent Foreclosure Review -- Uncashed Check Update
According to Housing Wire (apparently via the Huffington Post), approximately 400,000 Independent Foreclosure Review settlement checks were mailed to ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Independent Foreclosure Review -- Cash Your Checks!
According to this article , about $1 billion in Independent Foreclosure Review settlement checks remain uncashed. The checks are only valid for 90 ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Encore Capital Group and Midland Credit Management, Inc. -- When A Consumer Bill of Rights Doesn't Mean What It Says
In 2011 Encore Capital Group rolled out a "Consumer Bill of Rights" that was touted as an effort to " set the industry standard for consumer conduct. ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Guest Post -- Ryan v. U.S. (In re Ryan) Case Note
This case note was authored by Atlas Consumer Law's Penelope N. Bach. Ms. Bach is an attorney in the firm's bankruptcy practice. As can be seen from ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Independent Foreclosure Review -- Ally/ResCap Calls It Quits
When the rest of the banks settled with the OCC and began sending out rubber checks, Ally/ResCap decided to continue its portion of the Independent ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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American Banker: Chase Halts Credit Card Debt Sales
According to American Banker , Chase has quit selling credit card debt in anticipation of increased regulatory scrutiny. This comes as no surprise ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Debt Collectors, Debt Buyers, and Collection Agency Act
I recently attended Max Gardner's Debt Buyer Boot Camp. During the boot camp, the panel briefly discussed the Unifund CCR Partners v. Shah series of ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Foreclosure maintenance settlement will target blighted areas
When the economic recession and foreclosure crisis of 2008 rocked the nation, some areas were unquestionably hit harder than others. Some residential ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Activist Shareholders Seek Answers From Bank of America Regarding the Current Whistleblower Scandal
Bank of America has been in the news lately thanks to the testimony of six whistleblowers . Those whistleblowers described a corporate culture where ...
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Atlas Consumer Law
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National Mortgage Settlement Update -- Tightening Up Dual-Tracking
According to this article , the initial compliance reports from the National Mortgage Settlement are causing regulators to consider tightening up the ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Bank of America Whistleblowers: BofA Lied to Homeowners, Incentivized Foreclosures
If you have ever applied for a loan modification on your own, then you may have encountered some very frustrating situations. I frequently hear about ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Independent Foreclosure Review and National Mortgage Settlement Checks -- An Update
As we get further into the summer, we should be receiving more information about the Independent Foreclosure Review settlement and the National ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Overview of 2013 Chicago Housing Market
While homeowners in other housing markets across the country are breathing a collective sigh of relief amid increasing home prices, those here in ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Bank of America's New Ad Copy -- Same As It Ever Was
According to a recent article at American Banker , Bank of America is using questionable advertising materials to advertise refinance packages to ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Avoiding pre-approved mortgage schemes
American consumers are often quite familiar with the concept of pre-approval for a variety of services. Credit card applications arrive in the mail ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Chicago City Council Passes "Keep Chicago Renting" Ordinance
On June 5, 2013, the Chicago City Council enacted the "Keep Chicago Renting" ordinance. The ordinance is designed to prevent vacancies in foreclosed ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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HAMP Extended Two More Years -- But Are Loan Modifications Working?
The Obama Administration recently announced that it was extending HAMP for two more years. HAMP was scheduled to end on December 31, 2013 -- now it ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Is The OCC Actually Regulating A Bank?
According to the Washington Post , the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is ramping up its investigation into JP Morgan Chase's credit card ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Do not let the threat of foreclosure overwhelm you
Home may indeed be wherever the heart resides. For many people, their houses actually are exactly where their hearts live. Whether individuals have ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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JP Morgan Chase and Bank of America Claim That They Have Satisfied The Terms of The National Mortgage Settlement
In an attempt to get ahead of next month's National Mortgage Settlement monitor's report, both Chase and Bank of America have announced that they have ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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California's Attorney General Sues Chase, Re-Exposes Chase's Unlawful Credit Card Practices
Every once in a while, a state-level official picks up the slack left behind by federal regulators. This time, Kamala Harris, California's Attorney ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Why Mortgage Disclosures Don't Work
I began my career during the real estate boom of the early 2000s. Finding work as a real estate attorney simply required knowing one or two realtors. ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Why stable homeowners should pay attention to foreclosure processes
If you are a homeowner who has remained so-far unaffected by the economic downturn and the foreclosure crisis, we offer sincere congratulations. Not ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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"Chapter 20," Lien Stripping, and Underwater Homes
As of March 19, 2013, 33% of Chicago-area home mortgages were underwater. This means that 1 in 3 mortgaged homes have negative equity. Some of these ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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96,000 Underpaid By Independent Foreclosure Review Settlement -- Checks Are In The Mail
The Federal Reserve has announced that 96,000 homeowners were underpaid when they received their initial settlement checks from the Independent ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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The Protecting Tenants in Foreclosed Rental Property Ordinance
A Chicago City Council committee has just passed an ordinance designed to protect tenants who live in foreclosed rental properties. Under the ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Emotionally supporting a loved one who is struggling financially
When one's financial situation becomes overwhelming, maintaining a strong support system is critical. However, supporting a loved one who is wrestling ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Independent Foreclosure Review By The Numbers -- Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley
11 of the 14 banks involved in the Indpendent Foreclosure Review reached a settlement with the OCC and the Fed. Not too long ago, I wrote about the ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Mailing Checks To Consumers -- National Mortgage Settlement Version
Any reader of this blog knows that the Independent Foreclosure Review has been utterly bungled all the way down to bouncing checks. Not to be ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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The Hits Keep On Coming -- Independent Foreclosure Review Checks Are Bouncing
Just when you thought that the Independent Foreclosure Review couldn't be any more of an utter failure . . . According to DealBook, the checks being ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Zombie Mortgages In The News
WGN-TV picked up on my posts about zombie title and zombie mortgage, etc. I had the privilege of being interviewed for a segment on zombie mortgages ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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FHFA Extends HARP Refinance Program to 2015
According to Bloomberg , the FHFA has extended the HARP refinance program to the end of 2015. This means that homeowners whose mortgages are backed by ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Independent Foreclosure Review Payouts -- A Pittance For Your Troubles
ProPublica has released some data that explains how the Independent Foreclosure Review payments are being distributed. As you may recall, the ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Illinois Supreme Court Announces Effective Date of New Foreclosure Rules
As you may recall, the Illinois Supreme Court postponed the enforcement of its newly-announced foreclosure rules because it was unclear whether those ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Why Closing Credit Card Accounts Can Hurt Your Credit Score
Most people don't know that closing credit card accounts can hurt their credit score. However, according to this article by Adam Levin, this is one of ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Can A Bank Sue You For A Deficiency After The Foreclosure Lawsuit Is Over?
Since the implosion of the real estate market, we have seen a massive number of foreclosures in Illinois. In many of these cases, homes were sold at ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Chief Justice John Roberts a Victim of Credit Card Fraud
File this under -- "can happen to anyone." According to Al Kamen of the Washington Post , U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts was recently ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Freddie and Fannie Announce a New Loan Modification Program
Freddie and Fannie are (rightfully) the target of some serious criticism in the consumer defense sector -- FHFA Director Ed DeMarco's refusal to allow ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Assets vs. Liabilities
I recently read two blog posts that raise an excellent point about the true nature of assets and liabilities. Owning stuff does not always translate ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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The "Rambo-type Foreclosure Litigator" -- A Rebuttal
I never knew that I was an action hero. A recent opinion piece at Housing Wire indicates that I may very well be one. As a consumer defense attorney, ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Are Bad Check Debts Dischargeable In Bankruptcy?
In Illinois, intentionally writing a bad check is a felony offense. (720 ILCS 5/17-1) The statute section is titled, "Deceptive Practices." This ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Illinois Supreme Court Postpones Start Date of New Foreclosure Rules
On February 28, 2013, the Illinois Supreme Court issued an order postponing the effective date of new Rules 99.1, 113, and 114 until May 1, 2013. The ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Another good reason to consider filing for bankruptcy
Over four years ago, the American economy took a sharp nosedive, as did the economies of several other western, industrialized nations. Thankfully, ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Practice Alert: U.S. Supreme Court Expands Liability for Losing FDCPA Plaintiffs
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) states that when a Plaintiff brings a case in bad faith and with the purpose of harassment, that ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Illinois Supreme Court Rule 113 -- New Mortgage Foreclosure Procudures
One of the reasons why Illinois has such a famously long foreclosure timeline is because our state's judicial foreclosure process puts procedural and ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Illinois Supreme Court Rule 114 -- The Loss Mitigation Affidavit
Illinois Supreme Court Rule 114 establishes a new procedural requirement in Illinois mortgage foreclosure cases -- the loss mitigation affidavit. ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Illinois Supreme Court Rule 99.1 -- Mortgage Foreclosure Mediation Programs
Newly implemented Rule 99.1 establishes standardized requirements for mortgage foreclosure mediation programs. Judicial circuits that currently have a ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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CFPB Bulletin 2013-01: What's Coming for Mortgage Servicing Transfers
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issues bulletins for many purposes, one of which is to notify the industries that it regulates about upcoming ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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New FTC Report: Over 1/4 of Credit Reports Contain Errors
According to a recent report by the FTC , 26% of credit reports contain an error, but 95% of those errors do not affect on the individual's credit ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Illinois Foreclosures are Down! Or Up!
"There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics." -- Mark Twain ( or possibly Benjamin Disraeli ) Today, I found two different ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Things That You Should Never Do When Dealing With Creditors
When I go to the courthouse, I often see consumers appearing in court pro se who make truly poor choices when speaking to the judge. I also see people ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Debt Buyer Lawsuits
In my experience, debt buyer lawsuits lack significant pieces of information that establish a prima facie case. Because debt buyers often receive very ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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FTC Releases Report on Debt Buyers
The Federal Trade Commission has released a report on the debt purchasing industry. This report is the first of its kind and takes a critical look at ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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The Independent Foreclosure Review -- Here Come the Whistleblowers
Naked Capitalism is running a series of posts describing the ugly truth behind the now-defunct Independent Foreclosure Review. Whistleblowers from ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Foreclosure and your FICO score
When you are facing financial challenges, it can be difficult to know where to begin. Do you think about the immediate stressors in your life, such as ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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CFPB Releases New Mortgage Lending Rules
On January 10, 2014, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released new rules that will regulate how banks issue mortgages. These rules are ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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CFPB Releases New Mortgage Servicing Rules
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has released new mortgage servicing rules that go into effect in 2014. These rules are meant to "put the ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Foreclosure Settlement Claim Deadline is January 18, 2013
Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan announced yesterday that Illinois homeowners have until January 18, 2013 to to submit a claim for reimbursement ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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"Zombie Title" -- When Homeowners Remain On The Hook
The press loves to use the word, "zombie," as an adjective when referring to things that were thought to be final. (For example: zombie title , zombie ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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The Independent Foreclosure Review To Be Replaced With. . . Something
On December 24, 2012, I wrote about the impending demise of the Independent Foreclosure Review program. The program was pronounced dead on arrival ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Mortgage Crisis in a Nutshell Video
Denver, CO attorney, John E. Campbell, has produced a video explaining the mortgage crisis. It is just under one hour long, but is well-worth watching ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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Fiscal Cliff Deal Extends The Mortgage Debt Forgiveness Relief Act
It looks like short sales and principal reductions will continue to work as intended, at least for one more year. The fiscal cliff bill that Congress ...
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Sulaiman Law Group, Ltd.
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