Were You Improperly Foreclosed Upon?

A nationwide federally mandated review by mortgage servicers of potentially improper foreclosures from 2009 and 2010 began yesterday, November 1. The review is meant to determine whether any owners suffered financial harm as a result of illegal or punitive foreclosure proceedings, such as robo-signing, inaccurate fees or having been foreclosed upon while seeking a loan modification.

Homeowners can call 888-952-9105 to request a free review by April 30, 2012. Letters are also supposedly being mailed to those who might qualify. Homeowners who are currently in foreclosure will have their foreclosures halted until the review is completed. People who are found to have been financially harmed may be compensated (potentially around $1500, according to one review of the deal I read in the New York Times), but banks aren't known for being generous with compensation for their own errors.

The program resulted from an agreement between bank regulators and 14 of the country's largest mortgage servicers reached after the robo-signing scandal was uncovered last fall. Unfortunately for homeowners, the banks get to choose their own auditors, which creates a conflict of interest. Ultimately, this is probably a long-shot since the banks obviously have an interest in not finding fault with their practices and not compensating injured homeowners.

1stdibs.com Moves into Real Estate

The luxury website www.1stdibs.com has made the move into high-end real estate in Palm Beach and it is featuring homes from Coldwell Banker! The website is showing the finest in luxurious Palm Beach real estate, such at John Kluge's compound at 89 Middle Rd. Other locations featured include Manhattan, San Francisco and, next month, Paris. Getting your listing on www.1stdibs.com is excellent exposure and as a Coldwell Banker agent, I can make that happen for you!

Keeping my readers informed of developments in Palm Beach real estate is exactly what the Palm Beach Real Estate blog is all about.