By Dennis Norman, on September 2nd, 2016 One of the more controversial topics to discuss within the REALTOR community is the topic of agent bonuses, a bonus that a seller, by way of the listing broker, would pay to the agent that sells their home, over and above the normal sales commission. Sometimes seller’s, or their listing agents, see this as a way to draw more attention to their listing and to encourage buyer’s agents to show it and sell it. However, there are many conflicting opinions on this topic within the industry which creates some confusion for seller’s (and buyer’s for that matter), so I thought I would take some time to discuss it.
Why not just offer a higher sales commission?
The first thing that comes to mind when addressing bonuses is, if a seller wants to offer more compensation to a buyer’s agent, why not simply agree to a higher commission rate and/or higher payout to the buyer’s agent (the portion of the commission the listing agent shares with the buyer’s agent). Well, this is where some of the problems with bonuses arise. The reason seller’s don’t do it this way is the bonus is usually conditional, meaning it will only be paid, if certain terms prescribed by the seller or listing agent are met, whereas the buyer’s agent commission must be paid at the rate published in the MLS no matter how good or bad the seller feels the deal is they accept. For example, below are some bonus offers from the “agent only” remarks section of the MLS (comments only agents see and not the public):
- *Buyer’s agent bonus of $2000 for accepted contract on or before 8/21/16″
- “ATTENTION!!! $5,000 AGENT BONUS FOR AN ACCEPTED OFFER BY 9/15/16!!! “
- “$1000 Buyer Agent Bonus @Closing if FULL net price Seller accepted contract on or before 7/11/16.”
- “AGENT BONUS!!! $3,000 with successful closing by mid August.”
- “Seller is offering a BUYERS AGENT BONUS PAID DIRECTLY TO THEM of $5000 for bringing an offer that is accepted and closes prior to Sept. 15, 2016!!”
So, as you can see, the bonuses are conditioned upon some sort of “performance” on the part of the buyer’s agent, such as producing an acceptable offer by a deadline, closing the sale by a deadline or even netting the seller seller full price. Therein lies the answer to the question of why not just raise the commission…the seller wants something in return for the additional payment.
What’s wrong with the seller wanting something in return for the bonus?
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Continue reading “Should You Pay An Agent Bonus To Sell Your Home?“
By Dennis Norman, on July 9th, 2016 “Should I sell my home myself” is something that some sellers are asking today, particularly those in fast selling neighborhoods and areas where the inventory of homes for sale is low, after all, how hard can it be to sell a home if homes are in such high demand? Well, there’s a lot more to selling your home than it may appear on the surface, particularly today with all the many regulations that affect a home sale.
But I know people that are interested in my home…
Yes, finding people “interested” in your home is not that difficult, the tricky part is finding a buyer that is qualified, ready to buy, and is interested in your home at a price and under terms that work for you. Lately, with the shortage of inventory of homes for sale, the problem hasn’t been finding a buyer, it’s been selecting the right buyer the leads to a successful closing and, for this, there is nothing better than having a professional real estate agent representing you who knows what to look for in a buyer.
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5 Key Strategies To Assure A Quick Home Sale At The Maximum PriceGet a Market Report with LIVE up to date Home Sales, Prices and Inventory for ANY St Louis Area HERE Continue reading “Should I Sell My Home Myself?“
By Dennis Norman, on June 10th, 2016 UPDATE February 3, 2017 –
Representative Gary Cross has introduced HB 705 which would repeal this legislation. Ironically, Rep Cross is the representative that first introduced the original legislation, HB 1862. I’m guessing he has come to realize the problems this legislation has caused, which I believe were unintended consequences, and has chosen to fix the issue which I praise him for!
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This legislative session, the Missouri State Legislature passed HB. 1862, which modifies provisions relating to the existing landlord-tenant law in Missouri, specifically, it repeals sections 534.350, 534.360, 535.030, 535.110, 535.160 and 535.300 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri and replaces them with five new sections as described in the bill. The bill has been delivered to Governor Nixon and, if signed by him, will go into effect August 28th of this year.
Why This New Law May Force Landlords (even licensed real estate agents) To Use Property Managers:
While this bill has some good things in it, such as establishing some reasonable procedures and time lines for a landlord regaining possession of a property as well as doing a little housekeeping with regard to what can be deducted from a security deposit, the bill also makes, what I believe to be, a very damaging change to the law with regard to security deposits. With regard to security deposits held by landlords, the bill changes section 535.300 (2) to read (emphasis is mine):
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By Mike Hejna, on April 8th, 2016
St. Louis County is entertaining the idea of adding the City of St. Louis to its list of incorporated municipalities. All legal opinions firmly show that the County will absorb NONE of the City’s nancial responsibilities. If this were to happen the City of St. Louis will be no different than municipalities such as Clayton, Ellisville, or Chester eld. It would simply be another city located in St. Louis County. I am an advocate for this move. The City needs to cease County functions and turn them over to the County. Currently, practices and city functions run at inefficient levels.
If the city were to join the St. Louis County roster then we would have about 91 municipalities in the County. It should be noted though that 23 of them have less than 1,000 in population. Why does that make sense for a few blocks of St. Louis County to incorporate? If you ask them, they want to control their neighborhood, perhaps a worthy endeavor. However, we then have 90+ City Administrations for a population of 1.3 million (City and County). Some may suggest that this is very inefficient and a misuse of funds. But how inefficient is it really?
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By Dennis Norman, on November 11th, 2015 Today most, if not all, landlords are aware of the Federal Fair Housing Act with regard to making various types of discrimination illegal when it comes to housing and, even if they don’t have a thorough understanding of all of the nuances of the act, at least have a basic understanding of it. However, today, a lack of a thorough understanding of the law, as well as the risks associated with violating it, or even being accused of violating it, can be quite costly to a landlord. Therefore, if you are considering becoming a landlord, or perhaps are already in the midst of building your real estate empire, spending time studying and understanding the Federal Fair Housing Act and how it applies to you would be time well spent and it would also be a great move to align yourself with a real estate professional with a good understanding of it that can help you navigate the regulatory waters a landlord must navigate today.
The Case of HUD vs Pebble Beach Apartments –
In July 2013 there was a fair housing violation complaint filed against the owner and manager of the Pebble Beach Apartments alleging they discriminated against a tenant based on familial status in violation of the Fair Housing Act.
By Dennis Norman, on April 1st, 2015 Section 347.057 of the Missouri Limited Liability Company Act states “A person who is a member, manager, or both, of a limited liability company is not liable, solely by reason of being a member or manager, or both, under a judgment, decree or order of a court, or in any other manner, for a debt, obligation or liability of the limited liability company, whether arising in contract, tort or otherwise or for the acts or omissions of any other member, manager, agent or employee of the limited liability company.” So, like a corporation, LLC’s provide protection to the individuals, (or other LLC’s, or corporations) that own the LLC from personal liability for business conducted by the LLC. Without the ability to protect one’s personal assets from liability from business operations, many businesses wouldn’t exist nor would the products and services they provide. For example, would you be willing to buy stock in a company such as Ford, or Johnson and Johnson if you were going to be personally named in all the lawsuits brought against those companies? I doubt it.
Landlords, rehabbers, developers and speculators often own and operate their real estate inside of LLC’s for many reasons including for liability reasons, tax benefits as well as to sometimes conceal or protect the identity of the individuals or companies involved. All of these things (including concealing the identity of the members of the LLC) are lawful purposes of the LLC and have legitimate purposes.
Proposed legislation could strip protection away from property owners in Missouri:
House Bill 864 (bill contents below), introduced by Representative Sheila Solon from District 031 Continue reading “The Rights Of Missouri Landlords Are About To Be Trampled On Again“
By Dennis Norman, on January 19th, 2015  Authors note: While setting out to write something in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King today, I found the article below I wrote a year ago at this time and realize it says what I would say today so I chose to publish it again…Today, as we celebrate the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., it is hard for me to believe that, during my lifetime, there was a time when it was legal to refuse to rent or sell a house to someone because of their race or skin color, but it was. However, the Civil Rights Act of 1968, also referred to as the “Fair Housing Act of 1968”, which was signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson, just one week after Dr. King’s assassination, corrected this atrocity and made it illegal to refuse to rent or lease a home to someone based upon their race.
 I know we have a long way to go and there may never come the time that discrimination does not exist in one form or another, but I am thankful for Dr. King and that he was willing to sacrifice his life to make life better for others. While I was just 7 years old when Dr. King was assassinated and only knew of him through historical accounts, that changed a few years ago when I met my good friend Otis Woodard. I now feel like I have gotten to know Dr. King a little better through Otis. You see, Otis was part of the civil rights movement and was a friend of Dr. King’s. When Otis talks about Dr. King you can see how much he respected him and what an influence Dr. King has had on his life. In fact, a park in north St Louis where Otis converted vacant lots it into a safe haven for homeless and poor people of the neighborhood pays tribute to Dr. King, being named “Peace Park” and bearing a quote from Dr. King, “At the center of non-violence stands the principle of love.”
While writing this article, I saw a tweet from another man I tremendous amount of respect for, Dr. Ben Carson, that says it all… “As we celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. let us pay more attention to the content of one’s character than the color of one’s skin.”
By Dennis Norman, on December 10th, 2014 The Mortgage Delinquency Rate, the pre-cursor to, and leading indicator of, foreclosures, which play havoc with home prices, is expected to decline to 3.12 percent by the end of this month and continue to decline next year hitting 2.51 percent by the end of 2015, according to a forecast just released by TransUnion. If mortgage delinquency rates fall as lowest as forecast, it will hit the lowest level since the housing bubble burst. A home mortgage that is 60 days or more delinquent is counted in the mortgage delinquency rate for this report by TransUnion.
The report goes on to state that, even though the forecast is good and the rate will be low relative to what we have seen the past 6 years or so, even if the mortgage delinquency rate hits 2.51% as projected, it will still be significantly higher than the historical norm of 1.5% – 2.0%.
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By Dennis Norman, on October 14th, 2014 One of the most frequent questions I have been asked over the years by home buyers is “Should I Buy A Home Directly From The Listing Agent?” While no answer is correct for every situation, I would say that, in most cases, the answer to this question is “no”, you should not buy a home directly from the listing agent. You may be thinking though “won’t I get a better deal by cutting out the middle man?” In reality by going to the listing agent you are in fact NOT cutting out the “middle man” because in 99.99%* of the listings in the MLS the Seller will pay the SAME commission regardless of who sells their home, therefore, there is NO savings to the seller when you buy from the Listing Agent, just MORE COMMISSION to the Listing Agent.
Think of buying a home without a buyer’s agent representing you like going to court without an attorney….when the other side has an attorney. That’s basically what you are doing when you buy a home without being represented by a buyer’s agent…the “other side” (the seller) has professional representation and someone that has a legal obligation to represent them and get the best deal possible for them (the listing agent) and you have no one with a legal obligation to make sure you get the best deal possible.
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(*a search on 10/11/14 of the MLS (MARIS) revealed 18,218 residential listings and of those, only 25 had a “variable rate” commission meaning the seller would save money if the listing agent sold the home)
By Dennis Norman, on August 6th, 2014 Villa’s are becoming increasingly popular in St Louis evidenced by the increase in online searches by home buyers searching for a Villa. Let’s get to the question that may be going through your mind right now, what is a “Villa”, or more accurately, what type of housing in St Louis is the term “Villa” being applied to? The term “Villa” has to be one of the most misapplied terms used in the housing industry today as it’s origin goes back to Roman times when “Villa” referred a large country estate owned by a wealthy person. Today however, Villa refers more to a lifestyle than an architectural style.
What is the Villa lifestyle? Generally, when someone is looking for a Villa they have in mind something modest in size, often part of an attached home development, such as duplexes, town-houses and the like, and often gives a more care-free lifestyle as a result of lawn and landscaping maintenance, and perhaps exterior maintenance, being maintained by an association rather than the homeowner. But wait, that’s a condo, right? Well, it could be a condo but the term “condominium” refers to a type of legal ownership or title and not to an architectural style. Villa’s may be fee-simple in ownership (like a single family home where you owned a definite, and definable, chunk of dirt as well as everything on it, or it could be a condominium, where you own a percentage of the whole. The latter is probably the most common form of ownership for a villa.
In either event, a Villa offers the carefree and less hassle lifestyle many homeowners today, especially aging baby boomers that are becoming empty-nesters, are attracted to. The slide show below shows all the St Louis Villas currently available.
See ALL St Louis Villas For Sale HERE
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By Dennis Norman, on April 7th, 2014 A residential rental property licensing ordinance has been proposed in St Louis County by Councilman Michael O’Mara which would prohibit an owner of residential property in unincorporated St. Louis County from renting or leasing their property without first paying a fee and obtaining a residential rental license. The bill, which has been kept relatively quiet and is impossible to find on the website for the St Louis County Council other than listed on the agenda, will most likely be passed at the meeting of the St Louis County Council tomorrow evening.
While there are several municipalities in the St Louis area that currently require some sort of licensing or registration of rental property, and the issue of whether that is an infringement of property rights or not, is a topic I’m not going to address today. Instead, I will just focus on some of the things in this proposed legislation that I feel, in my humble opinion, are egregious violations of property owner’s private property rights. The bill, a draft of which can be read here, is bad in many ways, however below are the parts that violate private property rights the most. followed by my comments on each section: (We work hard on this and sure would appreciate a “Like”) Continue reading “St Louis County Residential Rental Property Licensing Ordinance Tramples Property Rights“
By Dennis Norman, on January 20th, 2014 Today, as we celebrate the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., it is hard for me to believe that, during my lifetime, there was a time when it was legal to refuse to rent or sell a house to someone because of their race or skin color, but it was. However, the Civil Rights Act of 1968, also referred to as the “Fair Housing Act of 1968”, which was signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson, just one week after Dr. King’s assassination, corrected this atrocity and made it illegal to refuse to rent or lease a home to someone based upon their race.
I know we have a long way to go and there may never come the time that discrimination does not exist in one form or another, but I am thankful for Dr. King and that he was willing to sacrifice his life to make life better for others. While I was just 7 years old when Dr. King was assassinated and only knew of him through Continue reading “Dr. Martin Luther King Jr and Fair Housing“
By Dennis Norman, on October 15th, 2013  January 10, 2014 new QM rules (qualified mortgage) will go into effect and will most likely negatively impact the ability of some home buyers to obtain a mortgage. In terms of how many borrowers the new rules will affect, it is hard to say. There have been several analysis’ done of the percentage of home loans originated in 2012 would not have met the QM rules and the estimates vary from 12 percent to more than half. Personally, I think the lower estimates are probably closer to accurate, but it is still a significant number…potentially somewhere around 1 of every 9 home buyers may not be able to obtain a mortgage that, absent the new QM rules, would have been able to.
UPDATE 12/06/13 – Read/download the CFPB Compliance Guide for new QM rule
Watch CFPB Video on QM Rule Here
What are the QM Rules and who do they affect? Continue reading “New QM Rules Going To Put Home Loans Out of Reach For Some Buyers Come January“
By Dennis Norman, on September 27th, 2013  Daniela Spiridon, a 42 year-old woman from St. Charles, pled guilty yesterday to six felony counts of wire fraud related to a scheme she operated out of an office in Chesterfield, according to a report from the FBI. According to the indictment Spiridon was charged under, she operated her business out of an office at 18118a Chesterfield Airport Road, in Chesterfield, MO under several business names, including A&AD Investments, LLC; CDRS ESC Investments, a.k.a. CDRS ESC and CDRS LLC.
Continue reading “St Charles Scammer Pleads Guilty To Real Estate Scheme“
By Dennis Norman, on August 1st, 2013
City of St Peters MO agrees to pay fine and change discriminatory ordinance
The Justice Department announced today that the city of St. Peters, Mo. will pay $80,000 and make changes to its zoning laws to settle a lawsuit alleging that the city violated the federal Fair Housing Act (FHA) and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) when it denied a zoning request to operate a group home for four women with intellectual disabilities. The lawsuit is part of the Justice Department’s continuing effort to enforce civil rights laws that require states and municipalities to end discrimination against, and unnecessary segregation of, persons with disabilities. The settlement was filed today and must be approved by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri. Continue reading “City of St Peters Settles with DOJ On Disability Discrimination Allegations“
By Dennis Norman, on July 31st, 2013  Over the years I have seen many “St Louis For Sale By Owners” (FSBO’s), you know those people that decide they can sell their house themselves without the help of a professional, make a variety of mistakes in the way they handle the sale of their property. The mistakes range from minor ones that will probably just cost them some heartburn to major mistakes that could lead to serious legal troubles.
What are the most common mistakes made by FSBO’s? Continue reading “Common Mistakes Made By St Louis For Sale By Owners (FSBO’s)“
By Diana Davis, on March 21st, 2013  Making Sense of Confusing Real Estate Terms
If you are buying, selling or refinancing a home you will come across real estate terms and industry lingo that may sound foreign to you. To help address this issue, below you will find definitions for the most common real estate terms that you are likely to come across when buying, selling or refinancing a home. If you have other questions about title insurance, or the role of the title company in these transactions, please contact me and I’ll be happy to help.
 Continue reading “Real Estate Terms Defined“
By Dennis Norman, on March 14th, 2013  What to do if you are facing foreclosure and losing your home.
If you are not able to make the payments on your home and are afraid you are going to lose your homje in foreclosure, there is free help available to you right here in St. Louis through HUD-approved counseling agencies that can provide you with information and assistance to avoid foreclosure. The agencies can also determine if you may be eligible for a special loan modification or refinance through the Federal Government’s “Making Home Affordable” plan which may help you keep your home by reducing your payments. These are not-for profit agencies that do NOT charge you but are funded, in part, by HUD. To find an agency closest to you, see the list below. Continue reading “Free Foreclosure Avoidance Help Is Available In St Louis“
By News Desk, on March 12th, 2013 Attorney General Chris Koster today filed a lawsuit against two related businesses that purported to provide loan modification and mortgage relief to desperate homeowners. Koster’s suit is against Legal Helpers Debt Resolution, LLC and Mortgage Law Group, LLC, as well as the companies’ managing partner, Jason Edward Searns; senior partner, Thomas Macey; and senior partner, Jeffery Aleman.
For tips on how to avoid loan modification scams click here
Continue reading “Attorney General Koster sues businesses that had promised foreclosure modifications and debt relief“
By Dennis Norman, on January 21st, 2013 Four years ago on the day we celebrated the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., I wrote the article below on a personal blog. This morning while doing some research on Dr. King I ran across this article which I had almost forgotten I had written, read it and decided even though some of the data in it is a little dated with regard to current events, it is worthy of publishing again to pay honor to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Reprinted from January 19, 2009…
Today we celebrate the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the very influential, prominent leader and icon of the American Civil Rights movement.
One of the most important accomplishments of Dr King and the Civil Rights movement was the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which was signed into law on July 2, 1964, and prohibited discrimination in public places, provided for integration of schools and made employment discrimination illegal. It did not, however, make discrimination in housing illegal which Dr. King and the Civil Rights Movement continued to work toward.
Finally, on April 11, 1968 discrimination in housing became illegal when Continue reading “Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. remembered“
By Robert Fishel, on December 26th, 2012  “Every single thing about housing is flashing green,” stated James Dimon, chief executive of J.P. Morgan Chase, in an interview with CNBC last month. “Household formation is rising, inventory is falling, and affordability is near a record high.” This should mean many potential homebuyers will be assessing their finances in 2013 to get ready to buy a home. Checking your credit score is at the top of the list, and in turn credit myths and credit misconceptions are plentiful.
Things You Should Know Before You Repair Your Credit:
Continue reading “Things You Should Know Before You Repair Your Credit; St Louis Mortgage Interest Rate Update“
By News Desk, on November 20th, 2012 Jefferson City, Mo. – Attorney General Chris Koster today announced that the state of Missouri and Lorraine Brown, former President of DocX, LLC, have reached a plea agreement. Under the agreement, Ms. Brown will plead guilty to one felony count of forgery, one felony count of perjury, and one misdemeanor count of making a false declaration.
Brown will be sentenced to a term of imprisonment of not less than two years and not to exceed three years in the Missouri Department of Corrections. Continue reading “Attorney General Koster announces plea agreement with Lorraine Brown Over Robo-Signing“
By Robert Fishel, on October 4th, 2012
The new legislation is titled: Honoring America’s Veterans and Caring for Camp Lejeune Families Act (H.R. 1627) and has been signed into law on August 6, 2012.
Congress expanded the scope of the legislation and specifically mandated improvements in VA home loan benefits through the VA Home Loan Guaranty Program. Realtors and lenders will now be able to help more veterans and their families become homeowners. A portion of the new law makes VA loans available to more surviving spouses, provides easier funding fee waivers for disabled vets and helps single and dual-duty parents with occupancy hurdles. Continue reading “New Law Improves VA Loan Benefits; St. Louis Mortgage Interest Rate Update“
By News Desk, on September 27th, 2012 Yesterday, Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster filed three separate lawsuits against individuals and their companies for misleading Missouri consumers in connection with mortgage-modification services. The lawsuits were filed against Colleen Kelly, a Missouri resident operating Heartland Loss Mitigation, LLC,; Eric Mader, a Florida attorney operating Mader Law Group, LLC, a Florida company; and Jim Caplan, a Florida attorney operating CAPLAW, P.A., a Florida company. Continue reading “Missouri Attorney General Files Lawsuits Against Three Mortgage-Modification Companies For Misleading Consumers“
By Dennis Norman, on September 17th, 2012 
Maybe you are a seller that has found yourself faced with the reality that you can’t sell your house or condo for a price today that will yield enough to pay off your loan, and you are not a candidate for, or don’t want to do, a short-sale? Or, maybe you are a seller with a house or condo that, for one reason or another, there is very limited demand for and, in fact, it seems that perhaps no one wants to buy what you have to sell? If so, you may want to consider using a lease option or a lease purchase to sell your home? After-all, there is a large demand for lease-options and lease-purchases by buyers but, there are risks you should be aware of and a lease option or lease purchase is not a sure thing.
Before considering selling your home using a lease option or selling your home on a lease purchase you should consult your attorney for advice (remember, I’m not an attorney and this article is not legal advice) as well as your CPA or tax professional (nope, I’m not a CPA either) however, from a 30+ year active broker, and an investor that has done many lease-options, below is a basic explanation of a lease option and a lease purchase as well as some pros and cons of selling your home utilizing a lease option or lease purchase as I see it: Continue reading “Should I use a lease option to sell my home?“
By Dennis Norman, on July 16th, 2012  In the past few months I have received dozens of emails being forwarded around the internet warning of a new “3.8 percent real estate tax” or “tax on home sale” coming as a result of Obamacare. Given there seem to be many misconceptions out there about this topic I decided to address it this morning. For starters, there is not a 3.8 percent house sale tax in the health care legislation per se. There is, however, a 3.8 percent on unearned income for high-income individuals and couples that could end up being applied to the sale of one’s home. Continue reading “Is there a 3.8 percent house sale tax in the health-care legislation?“
By Dennis Norman, on April 16th, 2012  FICO, a provider of analytics and decision management technology to the banking industry, today announced results from its latest quarterly survey of bank risk professionals which showed that almost half (46 percent) expect the volume of strategic defaults in 2012 to surpass 2011 levels as a result of more than 25 percent of U.S. homeowners owe more on their mortgages than their homes are worth.
“After five years of a brutal housing market, many people now view their homes more objectively and with less sentimentality,” said Dr. Andrew Jennings, chief analytics officer at FICO and head of FICO Labs. “Regardless of legal or ethical issues around strategic defaults, lenders must account for this risk when they evaluate mortgage applications in declining markets. Many homeowners who find themselves upside down on mortgages in the future are likely to consider strategic default as an acceptable exit strategy.” Continue reading “Survey shows banks expect strategic defaults to increase in 2012“
By Dennis Norman, on February 6th, 2012  In most parts of the country, when a home is sold, the closing is handled by one title insurance company at which both the buyer and seller close at. In St Louis, “split-closings” are common, meaning that the buyer and seller close at different title companies. Is this bad, or a risky move for them? To answer this, I turned to Wendy Cromer, Vice-President of Marketing for Security Title Insurance Agency, LLC and the current President of the Missouri Land Title Association for her perspective. Continue reading “Should the buyer and seller close at the same title company?“
By News Desk, on January 24th, 2012 Based on what we’ve heard, the settlement between major banks and states’ Attorneys General (AGs), the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the Department of Justice would represent an important step forward in addressing foreclosure abuses. The settlement would include key reforms to clean up unfair mortgage servicing practices. It would also provide an important template for ways banks can use principal reduction to reduce unnecessary foreclosures and put the country back on a path to economic recovery. Continue reading “AG Settlement: Not Perfect, But Significant Reform of Mortgage Servicing“
By News Desk, on November 26th, 2011
ST. LOUIS, MO—The United States Attorney’s Office announced the guilty plea of Matthew Kent, vice president and co-operator of Coral Mortgage Bankers Corporation’s University City office.
According to court documents, between May 2007 and December 31, 2010, Kent, his partner in Coral Mortgage David Rubin, and Joshua Gould, formerly of Woodbury Financial, embezzled approximately $1,500,000 from a retired individual solicited by Rubin to provide funds for operating capital for Coral’s St. Louis operations. The individual was Continue reading “Former Coral Mortgage Operator Pleads Guilty to Multi-Million Dollar Securities Fraud“
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