Mortgage Foreclosures: Courts Make It Easier To Negotiate With Mortgage Lenders

People facing possible mortgage foreclosure often complain that their mortgage lender won’t talk to them about loan modification or that they don’t know how to reach any lender representative with authority to resolve their situation. Some courts in Florida are making it easier for homeowners to negotiate with their mortgage lender. However, help is not available until the case is within court jurisdiction in the form of a foreclosure lawsuit.

Some of the judicial districts in Florida are requiring court supervised mediation in all foreclosure cases when the property is owner-occupied. Mediation slows down the foreclosure process, and more importantly, it requires that a lender representative with authority to compromise on the lender’s behalf to sit down at mediation, face-to-face, with the borrower or his attorney and discuss in good faith a compromise other than foreclosure. A lender who does not attend a scheduled mediation can be sanctioned or have the foreclosure suit dismissed.

posted by Jonathan Alper, asset protection and bankruptcy attorney, Orlando, Florida