I thought the lien stripping ship had sailed. We are finally climbing out of the worst of the Great Recession and California real estate values are recovering. Turns out, I was wrong. It’s not too late to reduce your mortgage debt by tens, or even hundreds of thousands of dollars, if you live where real […]
Six Credit Card Scams You Need To Spot
One of the hazards in today’s society is becoming the victim of credit card fraud. It can happen in many ways. Here are six all-too-successful scams identified by the banking industry: Phony Data Breach You get a text message, claiming to be from your credit card company, alerting you that your card is blocked because of […]
Get Out From Under Student Loans In Half The Time
Work full time for a governmental agency or non-profit, and you can discharge your federal student loans after 10 years of payments. Regardless of the balance. Tax free. And regardless of the job you hold in a qualifying employer. Rich man, poor man, Beggar man, thief. Doctor, lawyer, Indian chief ! Not sure about these […]
California Restores Mortgage Debt Relief for 2013
California taxpayers who lost their home to foreclosure or a short sale in 2013 got a last minute tax break when the legislature extended favorable tax treatment for forgiven mortgage debt. The state law covers only sales or foreclosures occurring prior to January 1, 2014. It mirrors but is less expansive than the federal law on […]
Big Ocwen Payout To Victimized Homeowners
Ocwen’s mortgage servicing failings will cost it big bucks. The Attorneys General of the states and the CFPB have reached a settlement with Ocwen regarding its misconduct as a mortgage loan servicer. Ocwen must provide $2 billion in principal reductions to borrowers, along with cash to those who were victimized in the course of a […]
What You Don’t Know (Yet) About Your Mortgage Loan
The aftermath of mortgage mess mess will be with homeowners for as far into the future as we can see. Even those who held on to their homes can expect trouble. The “who’s got the note” theory of foreclosure defense that swept the rest of the country never made much headway in California. We are […]
The Most Important Bankruptcy Decision Of 2013
A bankruptcy case nominally about travel trailers, ATV’s, and a car for a an adult child gets my vote as the most important bankruptcy decision of 2013 for Californians. When the 9th Circuit decided Welsh, it told us, and Chapter 13 trustees, that you take your Chapter 13 debtors as you find them. If you […]
Congratulations To Sergio Garcia, New California Lawyer
Welcome to the California Bar, Sergio Garcia. Brought to this country as a teen by his father, Garcia is still waiting after 10 years for his green card. Meanwhile, he graduated from university and law school, and passed California’s notoriously difficult bar exam. But it was unclear whether an undocumented person was eligible for […]
Will Social Security Be Enough To Retire To Surf City?
We live in the Golden State. Retirement is supposed to be the Golden Years. Do you have enough gold to make it happen? It takes more than twice the typical Social Security check to meet just basic living expenses for a single elder in Santa Cruz County. Yup, the median Social Security check is $12,500 […]
Three Giant Banks Fail To Keep Settlement Promises
Three of the five big banks who settled charges of mortgage lending abuse have failed to live up to their settlement commitments. Who’s surprised that Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup were each found wanting by the watchdog appointed to monitor their compliance? Monitor Joseph Smith reported that these banks flunked 7 of the […]
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