Many homeowners find out their existing mortgage is listed as “inactive.” An inactive status can refer to the transfer of their mortgage to another loan servicer, or to a few other factors as noted below.
The difference between having an inactive or an active MERS (Mortgage Electronic Registration System) loan may determine if the property owner has any improved or worsened home equity, or a truly saleable asset.
What is MERS?
MERS functions as a centralized electronic registry of mortgages, and it was supposed to track the ownership of these mortgages, which are typically sold multiple times during the loan’s life. MERS potentially affects upwards of 60 million residential mortgage loans nationwide, and almost completely crashed the U.S. housing market by itself because of so many problems with the packages.
MERS was created by lenders and title insurance companies, so it would be easier to transfer the beneficial interests to other secondary market lenders. Yet, some mortgages ended up significantly discounted due to packaging problems, which made them inactive.
Where’s the “IOU” for the mortgage debt?
The MERS Scandal
Missing documents, notary fraud, and “robo-signing” led the way.
There was a lot of chaos involved with MERS mortgage packets, which contained no original promissory notes (the “IOU” for the mortgage debt) in these same MERS files.
Knowledgeable homeowners were able to completely stop their home foreclosures by pointing out that the foreclosing entity, such as the mortgage servicing company, didn’t have a legal right to foreclose on their homes, since they didn’t have all of their valid mortgage paperwork in their files.
These questionable ownership interests in the mortgages led to foreclosure moratoriums, court settlements, and inactive statuses.
There were a large number of allegations of notary fraud in which real or fake notaries such as “Linda Green” were allegedly part of the massive “Robo-Signing Scandal” nationwide.
It has been suggested that promissory notes, deeds of trust or mortgages, and other loan or title documents were forged, left blank, or illegally assigned to numerous mortgage investors. Since MERS was set up to become as paperless, speedy, and efficient as possible, there was not enough third party oversight to check whether these documents were valid.
Questionable Beneficial Interests
“No Note = No Debt” became the mantra for homeowners who were in the midst of their own foreclosures due to the weaker U.S. economy. Some savvy property owners were able to legally void their existing mortgage debt altogether by proving that the foreclosing mortgage company had no valid beneficial interests in the existing mortgage, and thus had to legal right to collect any payments.
Other homeowners were able to show that their MERS files had fraudulent notary signatures signed on behalf of both owners and lenders, which moved their file designations over to “inactive” as well.
Mortgage lenders that have collapsed or imploded since the official start of the Credit Crisis (www.thecreditcrisis.net) back in 2007, such as Countrywide, Indy Mac, Lehman Brothers, World Savings, Downey Savings, and Washington Mutual still figuratively exist by way of their asset or beneficial interest transfers to the “strawman” named MERS.
MERS, may pay no taxes or employ anyone. Without the proper assignment of these MERS mortgages, these same imploded mortgage companies’ loans could have ceased to exist.
The Shadow Inventory & MERS
Instead of upwards of 60 million residential MERS mortgages becoming inactive or possibly even completely voided and worthless, many of the largest banks and mortgage service companies worked closely with the U.S. government to create the National Mortgage Settlement in early 2012. This insanely small $25 billion settlement is but a mere fraction of the potentially trillions of dollars of MERS mortgages nationwide.
The National Mortgage Settlement of 2012 and MERS Scandal were two of the primary reasons why home listings nationally dropped dramatically.
There were potentially millions of Shadow Inventory homes (mortgage payments are more than 90 days late), which may not have valid promissory notes, or other mortgage or title instruments or documents, in the files. The lack of listed home inventory led to a rapid increase of home prices between 2011 and 2013 (also partly due to the record low mortgage rates).
The “Inactive” MERS Designation
An inactive MERS designation may relate to the loan having been refinanced or paid off, discounted, or completely voided due to the invalid mortgage documents in the file. Or, the mortgage loan was assigned out of the MERS system to a completely new mortgage servicing company.
A property owner with a MERS mortgage can find the status of their loan by searching for their 18-digit Mortgage Identification Number (MERS MIN). Then, the same person may search online for the MERS Servicer ID system in order to check the status of their mortgage.
Be Careful!
Before attempting to pay off a MERS loan, it ‘s very important to find out if all of the mortgage payments have been properly applied to the account. The vast majority of MERS mortgages have been assigned to multiple mortgage investors over the years, so it is very important to check your own payment history over the years in order to determine if all of your payments have been credited to every mortgage servicing lender’s accounts.
It’s imperative that the owner pays off the correct amounts, which may mean more money back to the owner, and much less money for the current mortgage loan servicer. As such, a little research and loan analysis by a property owner on their personal payment histories can save them a lot of money and headaches.
We haven’t made a mortgage payment in almost 4 years. we have applied for modifications time and time again, but kept getting denied. No one at Chase can answer any questions or give any details about the account. We have tried to get in contact with some lawyers that were recomended here and there, but none of them will return our calls. We know that there are documents missing at the courthouse. The commissioner of the revenue told us that he doesn’t see how they can foreclose. Does anyone have any suggestions? We have have decided to stay until the sheriff tells us to move. It still is not a comfortable feeling. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
I have researched mortgage fraud for several years. As a result, I uncovered several occurrences of fraud in my own mortgage with GMAC. As they began to foreclose on me, I sued them and have been in court with them for 1.5 years. Since then, I have found a much more effective method through administrative remedy coupled with a Quiet Title Action. Time does not allow me to get into a lot of detail, but the organization offering this has a 100% track record over the past 3 years. It is estimated that the average loan has 20 instances of fraud. I wish you well in your efforts to win your case. If you want more info, please contact me at bizlocs@gmail.com. Thanks, Larry
Hello Larry I have been fighting a foreclosure case against Wells Fargo..I have asked my lawyer if he had done a proper chain of title search and I know they have not…now Im going to court November 14, 2016.where Wells Fargo is going for the Lost Note..i need someone that can help me check if they have standing to do this…do you know of anyone that can help me? have you heard of http://www.cfla.com? Please let me know..Thank you! 321-689-1336 Carmen
Order your POOLING service agreement. It will prove there is no ASSIGNMENTS, IF THERE IS NO VALID ASSIGNMENT THEN THEY CAN NOT STAND IN COURT. WRITE THEY ASS UP FOR FRAUD ON THE COURT. TO THE BAR ASSOCIATION. SEND PSA WITH BLUE RIBBON CERTIFED TO JUDGE. THATS IT. WITH A 1099A YOUR THE LENDER, OK IT WORKS EVERYTIME
@ Serena: Thanks for the MERS tips. Your points seem very interesting. Have a great day.
How we can order our PSA? Serena?
Serena thanks for the info! I did find my pooling service agreement however not sure what I’m looking for on there to prove there were no valid assignments…can you help please
Well written. Informative. What is your suggestion for ACTION.
Thank you for your comments. There are various ways which may or may not work in one’s personal situation. As for legal and mortgage workout experts who may assist you, one must just try to ask around their local region for referrals to people with a decent track record of success.
First off, I suggest that people thoroughly analyze the paperwork in their files. Is there an existing Promissory Note (the “IOU” for the debt)? Are the notary signatures valid on the various documents in the file? Is the Grant Deed, Deed of Trust, or Mortgage in the proper format?
If you can’t find your Promissory Note, then please contact your existing lender for a copy in their files. If they tell you that they cannot find it either, then this may be potentially good news for you. It may also alert your lender to try to be more cooperative with you since they know they have no Promissory Note in their file either.
Is the original mortgage funding company still in existence, or did they implode in recent years (i.e., Countrywide, Washington Mutual, World Savings, Downey Savings, Lehman Brothers, Indy Mac, etc.)? Were their ownership interests wiped out too after they formally collapsed or filed for Bankruptcy protection?
Does your existing mortgage loan service company actually legally own the loan, or have valid beneficial interests? Is your local court and individual judge truly fair and unbiased? One judge may rule in the homeowner’s behalf while another more biased pro-bank judge may not be so friendly.
I know of stories in which homeowners were able to stay in their multi million dollar for well over five (5) years before their existing mortgage lender began the foreclosure process. In many cases, frustrated banks know that their existing loan document packages are defective.
As a result, these same banks may eventually offer a “Relocation Fee” to the homeowners so that they will move in the near term, and not trash the home or steal appliances on the way out. Some of these “Relocation Fees” (a glorified “bribe” to cooperate with the mortgage company) have been as high as $35,000 from what I have heard in recent years.
I do personally know someone who legally wiped out her existing mortgage debt by pointing out in Court that the existing mortgage lender had no true valid ownership or beneficial interests in her existing mortgage. As a result, she ended up with a free and clear home, and clear title as well with no defects in the “Chain of Title.” She then sold the home shortly thereafter, and pocketed a nice chunk of change.
Best of luck to you all.
Here is a link which may help people find out more information about their potential MERS account: http://www.mersinc.org/information-for-homeowners/my-mortgage-info
Hello Mr. Tobin,
I believe my existing mortgage lender has no true valid ownership or beneficial as well. At the recording office in my County. The last recording is with World Savings Bank and the beneficial is Golden West Financial. There is not any bank legally active on this particular loan. I tried several times for a loan modification written and orally and was denied. I am in a financial situation that has me behind in my mortgage for the past 8 months. I do not have a notice of default as of now. I have been threat of one recently. Can you please help me with some advice if possible, Thank you
Cynthia
@ Cynthia: I am sorry to read about your struggles with the existing lender. I typically suggest that the homeowner ask the current mortgage service company for a copy of the Promissory Note “for your records since you can’t seem to find your copy in your file either.” In many cases, there is no copy of the Promissory Note (the “IOU” for the debt) anywhere to be found by anyone.
There have been homeowners in the past who have used this strategy to either void or postpone the foreclosure, to force a modification of the loan, or to completely eliminate the loan debt altogether as it relates to the “No Note = No Valid Debt” concept. Since your mortgage servicer has yet to file the NOD which begins the foreclosure process in many states, then they may have some acknowledged paperwork problems in your file.
If you ask ten (10) different people for their opinions in regard to what may work best for your situation, you may receive ten (10) different answers partly based upon wide ranging court rulings around the USA. Obviously, World Savings imploded many years ago, so now it is up to the existing mortgage service company to try to work with you. Regardless, it may be better to keep the lines of communication open with the current lender or mortgage servicer which may make them want to work more with you to find better solutions. Performing loans are better for them than non-performing loans.
Again, please ask the mortgage service company to fax or mail you a copy of the Promissory Note for your records. Due to the MERS Scandal which may have adversely impacted over 60 million mortgages nationwide, there may actually be no valid Promissory Note anywhere in your file since it may never have been originally created and / or legally notarized along with a valid deed of trust.
To learn more about the MERS and LIBOR Scandals, please read this article which I wrote last year as well:
https://www.creonline.com/blog/shadow-inventory-vs-declining-home-listing-inventory/
If your mortgage service company cannot produce a valid Promissory Note, then you may have more leverage to encourage them to work with you. Best of luck to you and your family.
this article has been such a big help, my MERS is now inactive and my loan is owned by 3 major banks they want to cancel my chapter 13 over 3 missed payments while I have applied for a loan modification, my county records have not been updated, and the original loan company closed 20 days after my closing in Nov 2006. My bankruptcy lawyer goes to court this Friday, I am calling my servicer right now since this is the 4th servicer and demanding a copy of my promissory note..
A copy is not the same as the
original note. Demand you see the
original in court. A copy is not negotiable
or enforceable!
I have an assignment of mortgage dated August 2012 by Bank of America from MERS. The date of the mortgage was with Countrywide in January of 2006 and put into MERS. Do you think my note was securitized and bundled and sold off to investors.? I now have Nationstar LLC as my servicer and asked them for a wet ink copy of my note several times. They said they have it in their possession but won’t show it to me. I just sent them a QWR certified letter to show me the note. What action should I take if they don’t show me my copy of my genuine original wet ink copy ?
@ Albo: Sorry, I just saw your question today (June 8, 2014). The odds are probably fairly good that your loan was bundled and securitized many years ago. The current loan servicer should hopefully eventually answer your requests for production of the documents from your file such as whether or not they have a valid promissory note in the file.
I read this article just today from another publication which covered in detail how more U.S. property owners are fighting back against their banks or mortgage servicing companies. The article linked below may interest you as well:
http://www.salon.com/2013/08/12/your_mortgage_documents_are_fake/
Best of luck to you with your real estate and financial situation.
Anybody can give you a copy of your promissory note. I can send you one if you ask me for it. The banks are only showing you copies. It’s the original they don’t have. Send them a production of Documents request through the court if you want to know if they really have it. They will have to produce it in court. More than likely, they will file for a lost note and chances are that they will not have the right to foreclose on you. They shouldn’t even be collecting your mortgage payments. I have several lawyers working on my case and so many wrong ways the banks are handling of homeowners mortgages. It would be so easy for the banks to just do things the right way as they have done many years ago. I can’t understand the greed of these institutions at this time. How much money does one person need? The banks can still change their tactics and get the homeowners confidence back if they wanted to. They can send offers of modification to the homeowners without all the red tape and B.S. applications they want filled out. I filled out a HAMP with a certain bank I won’t mention and they put me through hell for more than a year and then turned me down. This country is letting all of this happen and nobody seems to care about the citizens of this country anymore. Everything is all money. What a sad thing this is. Good luck to all the homeowners that will lose their homes because of the fraud and lack of caring by our system.
Very well said. Couldn’t have said it better
myself.
My ex-husband filed bankruptcy on a second mortgage in 2001. I was a rider but not a borrower on the mortgage. No one has tried to collect since the bankruptcy was filed. The lien still remains, so I can not refinance the first mortgage for a better interest rate. How can I find the servicer /owner ? It is not in the MERS system. The last mortgage assignment that was filed at the courthouse was Gmac——-they no longer are in business.
There are some very informative comments here. Yes, one of the main cores of the MERS Scandal is related to the lack of an ORIGINAL promissory note. I personally know someone who was able to legally void their entire mortgage balance ($300,000+) by battling their lender in court over the lack of an original note issue.
Rick Tobin,
please give further details. I’ve been trying to find our loan for so long — I don’t believe there is any mortgage either but don’t know how to go about it.
Very similar story. A 2005 MERS loan assigned to Countrywide 2008. Another assignment at registry in 2012 Countrywide to Bank of America. HOWEVER, documents from the bank show my mortgage investor FNMA within the same timeframe as above. Does anyone know what FNMAACT/ACT means that is one of my investor names also. Gets better…. MERS liquidated our Fannie Mae, investor loan in 2013 to a non-MERS status. How can I find out where our loan ended up. I’ve been through the mill with this and can’t get any answers. BOA does now own my loan but I can’t find the info myself and they lie, lie, lie.
Any suggestions anyone?
Thanks in advance
My mom and I took out a loan with Indymac bank in 2007, my mom pass away in 20011 Onewest was the servicer at the time they drop my mom name of the loan . Now Ocwen is my servicer. I was on the MERS website looking for my mortgage information and could not find it under my name only my mom’s name. Shouldn’t my name be register?
What a frickin mess, to say the least. I have been fighting nasty old Bank of America for over forty five months now and have nearly a four (4) foot think file of useless and telling correspondence. I was so happy the the great state of Montana stood up to Bank of America with the Supreme Court ruling in the “Morrow Case” and with the Montana AG filing an Amicus Brief in support of the Morrows. After the case got “kicked” down for the jury trial to continue old B of A effected a quick out of court and confidential settlement with the Morrows- so the Morrows got lots of money, but let them off the hook for ALL the injustice that has been done and downright fraud on behalf of this nasty Goliath that is apparently too big to fail.
Everyone seems to have selective memory now that the National Mortgage Settlement was completed and the epci settlement with the USDOJ last August for nearly $17 Billion dollars- the big question I have is where is the money??
I researching my case on the five “conforming loans” that were originated by Countrywide and MERS as their “nominee” and “beneficiary” I am finding the robo stamps and checked with a list of possible “robo signors” that is out there and all the signatures match the alleged “robo signors”. Even more strange is the fact that B of A has proceeded with recording these phoney assignments late in 2013, 2014 and 2015 after the supposed big settlement- too much,
With all the thousands of complaints against B of A to the useless CFPB, the hundreds of lawsuits, and the big settlements the BBB has B of A rated with a BBB rating- only in America and B of A has been rated one of the worst American Companies these past years. Someone needs to stand up to these turkeys and put them out of business once and for all- they are terrible as so many suggest and they really suck as so many have indicated on the Internet.
I checked MERS and my account says inactive. It is possible because I filed bankruptcy. I originally got a mortgage with Countrywide in 2008 and the loan was transferred to Bank of America in 2009. However, on MERS there is no mention of Countrywide at all. It states Bank of America 2008. What does that mean? Does anyone know?
Hello, I am hoping someone can give me some advice…I have a loan that originated with Countrywide and closed in Aug 2006. I had an 80/20 with a balloon payment. I have never qualified for a refi because it is a rental and the loan to value has always been upside down. I have requested a loan modification and been denied. My servicer is currently Nationstar. I asked them who the “note holder” is on my loan and they wouldn’t tell me. I sent a QWR to their research dept. I checked MERS and it says my loan is active. It also told me that one loan is held my Fannie Mae. I looked up my loan on Fannie’s website and it came back with nothing…
The person at Nationstar did agree to send me what they have on file for my Promissory Note. What they forwarded me (via email) has a stamp on it from my title company that says it is a certified copy of my Promissory Note. So obviously not the original… I have not received a response from Nationstar in regards to my QWR yet… I contacted my title company. The gentleman I spoke to told me he personally knows someone who had their loan dissolved because the original Promissory Note could not be located. The guy didn’t even know anything was wrong until is note holder contacted him and offered him a $250 gift card if he could produce the original Promissory Note!!
I called a real estate attorney who deals in these typed of claims and he said he feels that these types of cases don’t hold enough weight and that they can still just get a judicial foreclosure and foreclose on me anyway…Help???
Hoping someone can offer some insight for me. Re-fi loan from 2007 (which included a balloon rider w/terms stating that loan’s maturity date, I have to pay off the loan in full an amount double what my home is worth.. but that’s not really my concern, believe it or not). Besides the balloon rider, my interest rate on the note is 9.5%, and well it’s just a ridiculous loan. Last year the bank tried to foreclose and we fought them for over a year until we were forced to sign a loan mod in order to cancel the foreclosure. Pretty much signed under duress, awful loan terms yet again. Lost my job and tried to contact the lender for help or some kind of work out agreement until I found employment. Nothing from them… sent a QWR and letter asking lender and servicer information. No response. A year later, foreclosure complaint filed again and due to the complexity of this case and all the forged documents along with the original lender on my note not matching the original lender’s name on the mortgage assignment, attorney searching and then the unexpected passing of my all forced me to miss the cut-off date to file the answer. Now I have to file a motion to set aside Plaintiff’s request for entry of default and I’m stuck. At this point, I’m so confused myself that maybe I really don’t have a case at all? Anyone have any sense they can knock into me? Thanks!
Hi,
This site is VERY informative. I have a couple of quick questions based on these facts:
1. On a copy of my Deed of Trust (DOT), the MERS number 1001944 corresponds to SGGH, LLC in Sherman Oaks, CA.
2. The lender listed on the DOT is Fremont Investment and Loan (not affiliated with MERS) which is no longer exists
3. As of today when I looked up my address in the MERS system it listed Bank of America as servicer and Goldman Sachs Mortgage Company as Investor.
4. Select Portfolio Servicing (SPS) is trying to foreclose stating that they represent the shareholders of the mortgage-backed security GSAMP 2005-HE1 trust
5. According to the SEC that trust terminated its Registration on January 6, 2006
Is there a way for me to defend myself against SPS’s attempts to foreclose, (which should be investigated by the CFPB for fraud)? Lawyers are too expensive.
FYI-I purchased my home 08/24/2004.
Yes there is I can give you insight on what I did how I am fighting back against Nationstar, Citi Mortgage and Mers.
Jilianna, can you please tell me how you were fighting back against your lender? I’m in the same situation with my lender. Thank you
Julianna, could you share your insight? I’ve been fighting Nationstar for 2 years.
ME, TOO, PLEASE! Perhaps we can exchange lots of other info as well, Julianna.
Hello WOW what great huge amount of information! Thank you in advance!!
I purchased a home in 2012 courthouse steps if you will. No I didn’t do a title search water under the bridge at this piont. I’m trying to sell it and the title search show a unsatisfied loan from 2005 ..7 years after I purchased it and in 2010 CHASE Foreclosed on the buyer that bought it in 2008 this buyer got a FHA loan (I have case #) lender was Wachovia. The 2005 loan would have been paid with this Wachovia FHA loan in 2008 (It also says “MER” on his loan documents but the address doesn’t appear on “MER” site. From what I read the “Mer” site should have the chain of events but nothing comes up on there site by the address or FHA CASE number or his name. All I’m trying to do is get the document that loan was satisfied. The loan has to of been satified because NO ONE has contacted me to collect one dine in 5.5 years. The original lender of the 2005 loan was AAMES out of business there title company out if business I’ve research and found out that Accredited Home Lenders bought AAMES loan which they filed Bankruptcy and now I found out that “lonestar” in Texas purchased loans from Accredited homes …I know these people have the document I’m looking for but getting a hold of anyone is like pulling teeth! One question I have is why would the address or fha case number show up on the “MER” Site? Also the loan from 2005 is not on the property appraiser county website where all transactions are to be recorded ? Can anyone offer me insite of how to get this document ..beside a “quiet title law suit” I’ve investigated it all its clear to me that if I can get someone at HUD or Wachovia to tell me what loan was paid with this man’s fha loan he got to buy this house in 2008 …it’s the loan from 2005 ! BINGO I’d have it ..Any information would be greatly appreciated thank you
SRIMES IN FLORIDA
Hello why when I search by MIN# it comes up inactive with JPMorgan Morgan servicer note date 2/11/08 . If I search any other way address FHA case number is shoes no results. Here’s the werid thing also the note date is 2/11/08 The date of purchase of property was 2/11/08 heres the werid part. On 2/11/08 The loan is Wachovia that’s who the lender was on the date of purchase 2/11/08 So why is Jp Morgan the servicer on the same date of purchase ? Lastly does Mer have record of satisfaction that the seller loan was paid off on 2/11/08 date I purchased ? It is not recorded in the County records like it is required to be which I believe Jp Morgan Chase would be the ones that were supposed to do that since they are listed on the note date 2/11/08 The day I bought my house.
Thank you
Interesting… looks like all the information I keep reading about the mortgages being paid off the day you close are actually true. They are such crooks!
At the end of the day YOUR SCREWED!!!
Try getting help from an Attorney when you tell them the value of your home is under 100k.
… N O T
I’m going to help a few people here because I’m challenging the banks and this MERS Inactive concept is one that I’m using in my cases.
I suggest you print out a copy of the MERS Inactive screen with the website and date stamped on your copy. Then use it in your challenge against your lender. The more you request debt validation of the loan the more you start to see fraud in your documents unfold. Get copies from your title company, from each servicer that sends you something, and multiple times if you can. I received from BOA two different copies of a note within one day of eachother from the same branch of BOA, and one was endosrsed and the other was not. Talk about alterations and tampering with a note. One came by fax and one by mail and they were both different and that is evidence of fraud.
If they don’t respond to debt validation, send a second letter certified and a third one. After three letters of no response sent certified, then you have evidence to show the court that they ignored your request for debt validation and that is a violation of the Fair Debt Collection Act. If you are being sued by a trustee of a trust, they never answer debt validation letters so use it and send it three times so it becomes another defense to use in court. Request inspection of the original note, not a copy but the original, especially if you are in court. And Don’t admit you defaulted in court or your case is basically lost right there. The judges try to get you to admit you are in default. If they press you whether you defaulted, I would say something like, my loan is not in default according to the records being concealed by the servicer of the trust. There were side contracts that servicers made that required them to pay the payments if the borrowers don’t. That way the mortgage bonds look like all is working well for the investors and they buy more bonds.
The servicer pays “servicer advances” to keep the loan current. You can use that to your advantage if you are being foreclosed on by the trustee itself. Make the bank prove some key points, such as that no default exists on the books of the trust for the loan. The servicer only shows you one side of the transaction, yet they have collected a ton of money from many sources regarding your loan, including insurance that paid off your debt many times over. They should not be entitled to have the money paid multiple times and the land too. A loan is required to be paid in full one time. When all principal and interest are paid in full, the loan shall be released. It doesn’t have to only come from your money, and if a stranger paid it off for you, a thank you would be in order. But it still paid it off. If someone puts money in your parking meter, they paid it off. You don’t need to put more in, you get the free parking thanks to someone’s kindness. If someone pays off your loan, and no default is on the books, then foreclosing would unfairly enrich the parties another time, so they would be getting a free house without having been injured at all. Use the free house argument against them saying it would enrich
Them unfairly. Also, the mortgage says that any overage is paid back to the borrower. So tell the court that if an overage was collected over and above your amount of indebtedness, then that money is due back to you so there may be a balance due and its important that you are able to discover the amount received on your loan from ALL SOURCES. If no default exists, which it doesn’t because the servicers are paying advances to make it look like its performing as usual, then foreclosure would serve to enrich parties who were not injured in the transaction.
Most loans of the past decade were securitized and if you have a loan from 2005-2007 it is worth challenging it because the courts are starting to get it, not much but some. You need to get your arguments right so I suggest you follow Neil Garfield’s blog. He is an amazing gift for homeowners because his blog is free and his articles are amazing. Just his 2017 recent articles are a goldmine. He is fighting for homeowners in Florida and he knows what he knows. Read his articles at livinglies.wordpress.com. Just scroll down the page of his home page and start reading the center column. If you want to fight this foreclosure, this is a resource you can’t be without. Also use Google to get information because they got lots of it. Use strategic search phrases like, Bank of America denied, no standing to foreclose, Supreme Court of Florida. Then when you get the search results, you will find some cases that you can read and see how the courts are handling those arguments. You can also go to your supreme court state website and look for recent appellate opinions. Look for any in the title of the case that has your lender, or any lender so you start to see how they are arguing the cases.
If your loan shows inactive on MERS then I would question for one thing, how did MERS as the contracted mortgagee, rid themselves of the loan without any notice to you that they were doing that. They are specifically a party in your contract so to just rid themselves of your loan without disclosure that they were doing that may be a good argument of failure to disclose that which you were entitled to know. After all, if a servicer changes, they have to notify you within 15 days, both the old servicer and the new one, but somehow MERS skipped out as the contracted mortgagee without telling us. Also MERS doesn’t give a date of when the loan went inactive so use that against them. For example, I would challenge that MERS had no right to assign anything because they are inactive. Without a date, there is no way to know that they were authorized to act on behalf of any principal. To grant validity to an assignment when MERS is inactive would require proof as to when that inactivity took place and why. MERS defines inactive as paid in full or transferred out of the MERS system. So ask for proof of the MERS details to determine the validity of the assignment by MERS when a loan is inactive. Also, recently the argument has been successful that when the original lender went out of business and the MERS assignment came after they went out of business, then the nominee, MERS, does not have any rights greater than its principal and after their principal ceases to exist, MERS has as much benefit as a defunct principal which is nil, nada, zero.
What I’ve seen in my ledgers from the servicer is about the time the loan may have gone inactive, there is an entry in the ledgers that shows a NEW LOAN. Really? Is that why the loan number changed on the loan when the new servicer took over they did a new loan? In my name with my signature? Isn’t that identity theft? If you did not refinance, and the loan has a new loan number, and the loan shows inactive on MERS, the likelihood is that the servicer, Nationstar or Bayview Loan at that point took out a new loan and gave you a new loan number to distance themselves as far from your original loan number as possible. I think that is sheer fraud and counterfeiting because if the loan is in a trust, then why would the loan number change at all, if the original loan is still with the original number in the trust. When you start paying on a new loan number then that is all they want to see, so that way they just got you to approve the new loan number even though it was merely a counterfeit. I would definitely challenge that the loan that you signed no longer exists because it was paid in full and MERS went inactive. How many times does a loan have to be paid off your honor? There is more than likely an overage due back to me because any amount over and above the loan indebtedness that was received by these hidden entities, by contract is due back to the borrower. I would fight that new loan and deny that the new loan number is the loan that you agreed to. I would not pay it and I would claim it to be identity theft. If MERS is inactive, then the loan you signed is likely not in existence once the new loan number is sent to you and MERS supports it as it is inactive.
The courts won’t let homeowners challenge the any pooling and servicing agreement or trust agreements because you were not a party to it. What you can use though is the argument that the assignment of mortgage is void because MERS was inactive and couldn’t assign anything because they rid themselves of the loan. And the assignment issued years after the trust closed makes it void. The loan is not a part of the trust if it missed the cut off date. Make them prove the loan is in the trust and ask for the cancelled check or wire receipt that the trustee paid for and received the loan into its control. Because the evidence shows otherwise, and nobody should be entitled to a free house, like this pretender lender is attempting to do.
Another argument is that the assignment of mortgage is not an assignment of the note. The note is the only instrument that matters, since the mortgage follows the note not the other way around. And if the endorsement on a note is not dated, then it is not duly endorsed and there is no way to prove that the lender using that endorsement got the note before they started the foreclosure action. Courts all over the country have already ruled that an undated endorsement needs proof of when that happened and when the note was negotiated to that entity. An undated endorsement is insufficient to prove standing.
The servicers have no assignments of the note, only the mortgage and therefore, you can use the argument that nobody has any right to enforce the note, and the note is the instrument that matters, since the mortgage follows it, not the other way around. An assignment of mortgage without the assignment of the note, is a nullity, without the right to the payments it secures. So you would say the assignment is void if your loan is inactive on MERS. If you are being sued by the trustee, and your first assignment of mortgage was done years after the trust closed, which is 90 days approx after your closing of the loan, then use the Void arguments against the assignment of mortgage. This info is only good for the loans of the last decade up until 2008. All the newer loans are under completely different rules. If your loan was from 2005 – 2007, its worth being your own investigator, read your documents, especially the assignment of mortgage, the pleadings, the note and mortgage, and become your own private eye. It is the best way to do this and be ready for a tough fight. But if we don’t fight, the banks will control all the money, the utilities and all the land too. That is a dangerous situation to be in. Stay in your home until you can’t anymore. Do not leave until you have to. Give them a run for their money and when you do leave ask for relocation money. This is a fight for freedom and the right to live free from oppression and to own our land. Don’t give up without a fight. We paid for the right to own these homes, the banks are not injured in the least based on the securitization scheme.
I hope this helps some homeowners in their search for answers. I’ve become passionate about the cause.
Gabrielle
Brilliant piece of information you have graciously shared. THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!
This post is everything! It confirms all the research that I have done but I thought I was squeezing lemons trying to make lemonade. Thank you so much for this wealth of knowledge.
I have been battling with BONY, BONY Mellon, Litton, Ocwen…the entire Equity One, Investaid, Popular Mortgage gob of crud since 2005. I have survived 2 prior foreclosures and I am in lawsuit #2 presently. A result of the first lawsuit in 2012-13 they did a modification and rescind of foreclosure (my suit was for wrongful foreclosure). I have had 5 different Attorneys throughout this course of time. The best advice I can give you is this: READ EACH AND EVERY DOCUMENT YOU HAVE…AND KEEP EVERYTHING!
Ok, aside from that my second advice: ATTORNEYS THAT WANT TO CHARGE YOU A FLAT FEE… they suck. They have NO idea what kind of battle they are engaging, and once they feel they have extinguished that fee… will give up and worse, give in. Make sure your legal council is TRULY versed in your type of case. They are rare (even though a million will tell you they have won this, or won that… not true). For this current lawsuit, I am in to attorneys for $30,000. And we are not to court yet. I don’t want to discourage you, but a bad attorney will cost you your home inevitably. Check your State Bar for complaints against your attorney. Do a search on the web to see what others have said. When they say they have won in court, make them prove it. See if there were actual customers, and if their case was similar. YOU control the interview, not them. Make sure they also don’t do legal work for Lenders, Banks, Brokers, Servicers or Title Companies.
Third… pull all of your documents that have been recorded in your County Register of Deeds (or whatever each state call them). Compare YOUR documents word by word with what THEY filed. Reason: (remember I said I have been dealing with this for 14 years and have had 5 different attorneys)… none of the attorneys discovered what I did last week… The ORIGINAL MORTGAGE that I signed, and that was notarized and witnessed on MY State’s HUD form, is COMPLETELY DIFFERENT than the one they had recorded with the County… different State HUD form, paragraphs added, sentences changed…completely different witness and notary. My signature and page initials have been either cut and pasted or forged as they do not match my signature on my mortgage document. Seriously.
Fourth… Spend every waking breathing moment you have available and do your OWN work. Research, research, research. Pull the PSA; pull lawsuits; research the law; know your violations; know your rights. I have over 3000 hours into this since 2013. If I hadn’t done this much work (your case I am sure would be easier, I am dealing with the worst of the worst in the Industry) I would be homeless already. NO ONE will care about your case, your home, your family, your equity as much as you do. You will also save thousands of dollars in Attorney fees and have a far better chance to win your case. Mortgage fraud is real. It affects more people that one can imagine. We can no longer take a back seat to predatory lending and/or fraud in the name of profit.
I could write on and on for another 50 paragraphs on what I have discovered in my own documentation, and the cover-ups that have been done. My final advice… the best defense, is yourself.
In all my years of writing articles, the reader comments posted on this blog are the most informative that I’ve ever seen. Sometimes, the best responses come from people who have dealt with the issues personally themselves. What may work well for one person may not always work well for another. The key is to have as many different options as possible in order to increase the likelihood of success.
This blog is THE BEST information for us homeowners who are being wronged and preyed upon. I wish us all the best.
What is mers assignment I had Ames funding then bank of America but had countrywide as well and others , my note still goes back to Ames went a deed of trust then sold to lnv mgc mortage they don’t know who previously serviced my loan ?! What ?!
Regardless of which bank funded or closed your original loan or which bank currently acts as the mortgage loan servicing company in the secondary markets, one or more of the loan transfers may have gone through MERS (Mortgage Electronic Registration System). This is an informative eight minute video on the ongoing MERS Scandal that potentially impacted the vast majority of residential mortgages in America: