RESPA VIOLATIONS

May 22, 2009

RESPA: THE FINANCIAL PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION ACT OF 2009

The Obama Administration is pushing new legislation which would create a financial services regulatory commission. The commission would be called “The Financial Product Safety Commission” and it would regulate all mortgages, credit cards, and mutual funds. The Washington Post’s Zachary A. Goldfarb, Binyamin Appelbaum and David Cho wrote an article on May 20, 2009.

The Senate version of this bill under Section 10: Enforcement has some very strong criminal and civil money penalties that could further strengthen consumer protections against businesses. The current senate & house versions of the bill could add considerable consumer protections against loan servicing companies which under Section 6 of RESPA offer consumers very little protection from some mortgage servicing companies abusive practices. This is definitely one of those bills to keep an eye on as the ramifications could be huge for businesses and consumers.
Continue reading

April 25, 2009

REAL ESTATE SETTLEMENT PROCEDURES ACT “RESPA”: ADMINISTRATIVE BROKERAGE COMMISSION FEE (“ABC FEE”) VIOLATE RESPA

by Marx Sterbcow

U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama’s Southern Division handed down a decision on April 20, 2009 in the Vicki V. Busby v. JRHBW Realty, Inc. d/b/a RealtySouth case. The case centered on Section 8(b) of the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) and whether Administrative Brokerage Commissions (ABC Fees) are illegal.

United States District Judge Virginia Emerson Hopkins ruled the ABC Fees that RealtySouth charged consumers in a residential real estate transaction involving a federally related mortgage was nothing more than an unearned fee because the ABC fee would not be linked to a bona-fide settlement service that RealtySouth performed in the transaction.

The Birmingham News “Homebuyers were unfairly charged fee, federal court in Birmingham rules” by Russell Hubbard broke the story.

February 1, 2009

RESPA VIOLATIONS: HOW TO SUBMIT A RESPA VIOLATION COMPLAINT WITH HUD

by Marx Sterbcow

The Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) under the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has a mechanism for consumers and others to file a complaint with RESPA if RESPA violations are being committed or you believe that RESPA violation is being committed. If a complaint is going to be filed with the RESPA division please make sure you follow the following steps so your complaint gets the most attention from the investigators:

1. List the names,addresses, and phone numbers of the alleged violators of RESPA;
2. Write a detailed summary of what happened or what’s happening that leads you to believe that a violation is taking or has taken place;
3. Make sure you list the specific section of the RESPA statute that was violated. Often times regulators or investigators will miss even the most generic of violations so listing the appropriate violations will help them do their job better;
4. Check your spelling and make sure the complaint is coherent and easily understood to the reader; and 5. Include your name, phone number, and address in the complaint so that an investigator can contact you for more information, if they need to contact you. RESPA Complaints can be submitted confidentially to HUD as well. If you believe you have a potential litigation matter with RESPA to HUD, I would recommend that you submit your complaint to your attorneys prior to submission to the HUD office or let your attorneys file the complaint for you.
Continue reading