California lawmakers approve foreclosure-protection law

[Eugene]

Source: Reuters

SAN FRANCISCO | Mon Jul 2, 2012 9:15pm EDT

(Reuters) - California legislators on Monday approved a sweeping bill aimed at stopping abusive practices by mortgage lenders and helping homeowners avoid foreclosure.

The legislation, among the most ambitious of its type in the nation, would bar banks from moving ahead with foreclosures while still negotiating with homeowners over loan modifications, a practice known as "dual-tracking."

It would also allow lawsuits against banks for so-called "robo-signing," in which foreclosure documents are signed en masse without review. Revelations about robo-signing helped lead to a $25 billion settlement of a multi-state foreclosure lawsuit against major banks.

California Attorney General Kamala Harris, a central player in the foreclosure lawsuit settlement, also played a lead role in developing the legislation approved Monday.

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Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/07/03/us-usa-foreclosure-california-idUSBRE86201120120703

[msongs]

1. a democrat doing the job to honor democratic party principles. nice to see nt

[ProgressiveProfessor]

2. I wish there were more civil penalties

About every 6 months or so I get a scam attempt that I am being foreclosed on (I own my place outright). Love to be able to nick them in the pocketbook

[SunSeeker]

3. CA's Attorney General Kamala Harris is a treasure.

She is definitely the brightest light in CA government. I hope she runs for higher office. She'd make a great successor to Dianne Feinstein.

[IndyJones]

6. She really is. Totally agree.

[lunatica]

7. She's been working on this since day one when she was elected

I voted for her and would love to see her replace the self-serving Dianne Feinstein. I've been hoping for years that Barbara Lee would, but she's never made a move in that direction. I've sure asked her to though.

[Tikki]

4. This help would never have happened if (run State like a business ) Meg Whitman had been...

elected. Kamala Harris and Jerry Brown care for their Californians.


Tikki

[Liberty Belle]

5. I can't find the roll call on these - anybody have who voted how?

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

8. Kamala Harris is on her way up. I would love to see her on the SCOTUS!!

[doodadem]

9. Too little, too late

Oh NOW they come out with something like this, after I've already lost my farm. Wells Fargo/Freddie Mac did exactly that to me----supposedly working on my modification at the same time going full speed ahead on foreclosure. Then when the modification was about to be completed, they came back and said---we want you to go get this judgment lien taken off the property. So I spend what little money I have left on an attorney to do that. Of course, he never had to complete what he was paid to do, because the bank foreclosed on me first and wiped out the lien.

I did write to the Calif. Atty. Gen's office, and got back a form letter---fill out this complaint form, and you might get a few thousand bucks.........for my farm that I poured my life into over the past 11 years.

[Xolodno]

10. Be interesting to see if the Banks...

...ramp up the foreclosures before the law goes into effect on Jan. 1.

On one hand, doing so could glut some areas of the market and drop housing values even more (and give them an even larger loss).

On the other hand, waiting it out will make it more difficult to foreclose...but may keep housing values stable.