Bank of America halts foreclosures in all 50 states

Dennis Norman

Today Bank of America announced they will stop foreclosure sales in all fifty states until after they have completed their review of foreclosure documents.

This comes after Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase & Co and GMAC deciding last week to stop foreclosure proceedings in states that require a judicial foreclosure process which was apparently the result of recent court decisions on lawsuits brought by homeowners that alleged lenders were abusing the foreclosure process.

 

Bank of America to do HAMP Second-Lien Modification Program

Dennis Norman

Bank of America announced that it is the first mortgage servicer to sign an agreement formally committing to participation in the pending second-lien component of the federal government’s Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP).

Bank of America LogoBank of America has systems in place to begin implementing the Second Lien Modification Program (2MP) with the release of final program policies and guidelines by federal regulatory agencies, which is expected soon. 2MP will require modifications that reduce the monthly payments on qualifying home equity loans and lines of credit under certain conditions, including completion of a HAMP modification on the first mortgage on the property.

“For many homeowners facing severe financial difficulty, decreasing the payment on the first mortgage without a reduction in the payment on the second lien may not produce an affordable combined mortgage payment,” said Barbara Desoer, president of Bank of America Home Loans.

This is a pretty significant move since Bank of America is the largest mortgage servicer in the country with nearly 14 million loans, approximately 3 million of which are second liens. The bank says they will modify eligible second liens regardless of whether the first lien is serviced by them or another servicer.