Legislation attached to the long delayed California budget halts foreclosures on family homes in a move designed to accommodate loan modifications.
According to the Legislative Analyst, the bill
- prevents issuance of a notice of sale under CA foreclosure law for an additional 90 days beyond the statutory reinstatement period
- applies only to first mortgages on homes that are the primary residence of the borrower when the default occurs
- covers only loans recorded between 2003 and Jan. 2008
- exempts servicers who have a qualifying loan modification program in place
From my perspective, the standards in the bill for a qualifying modification program are not very high and there is no requirement that they are applied in a way calculated to actually modify the loan.
But half a loaf is better than where we are today.