Bank of America Gets Pad Locked After Homeowner Forecloses On It

[jimmy olsen]

 

http://www.digtriad.com/news/watercooler/article/178031/176/Florida-Homeowner-Forecloses-On-Bank-Of-America

Bank of America Gets Pad Locked After Homeowner Forecloses On It
10:23 AM, Jun 4, 2011  |   comments


Collier County, Florida -- Have you heard the one about a homeowner foreclosing on a bank?

Well, it has happened in Florida and involves a North Carolina based bank.

Instead of Bank of America foreclosing on some Florida homeowner, the homeowners had sheriff's deputies foreclose on the bank.

It started five months ago when Bank of America filed foreclosure papers on the home of a couple, who didn't owe a dime on their home.

The couple said they paid cash for the house.

The case went to court and the homeowners were able to prove they didn't owe Bank of America anything on the house. In fact, it was proven that the couple never even had a mortgage bill to pay.

A Collier County Judge agreed and after the hearing, Bank of America was ordered, by the court to pay the legal fees of the homeowners', Maurenn Nyergers and her husband.

The Judge said the bank wrongfully tried to foreclose on the Nyergers' house.

So, how did it end with bank being foreclosed on?  After more than 5 months of the judge's ruling, the bank still hadn't paid the legal fees, and the homeowner's attorney did exactly what the bank tried to do to the homeowners. He seized the bank's assets.

"They've ignored our calls, ignored our letters, legally this is the next step to get my clients compensated, " attorney Todd Allen told CBS.

Sheriff's deputies, movers, and the Nyergers' attorney went to the bank and foreclosed on it. The attorney gave instructions to to remove desks, computers, copiers, filing cabinets and any cash in the teller's drawers.

After about an hour of being locked out of the bank, the bank manager handed the attorney a check for the legal fees.

"As a foreclosure defense attorney this is sweet justice" says Allen.

Allen says this is something that he sees often in court, banks making errors because they didn't investigate the foreclosure and it becomes a lengthy and expensive battle for the homeowner.

CBS News

[Barrister]

That is kind of cool.   

I remember one time I represented some homeowners (not on a foreclosure, but a liability suit for a bad septic system).  We won at trial, and we won on appeal.  And still the developer did not pay.

But when we started slapping liens on houses different developments that they wanted to sell, they couldn't pay us fast enough.   

[Ed Anger]

I would have icepicked the manager's tires also.

petty revenge is a dish served cold.

[11B4V]

That's cool

[CountDeMoney]

That's cool

It'd have been cooler if it was done French Revolution style.

[Ideologue]

That is kind of cool.   

I remember one time I represented some homeowners (not on a foreclosure, but a liability suit for a bad septic system).  We won at trial, and we won on appeal.  And still the developer did not pay.

But when we started slapping liens on houses different developments that they wanted to sell, they couldn't pay us fast enough.   

One of the last things that was impressed on me was that this was something to take strongly into account during settlement negotiations.  Bird in the hand versus two in the bush and whatever.

[Martinus]

Good luck ever getting positive credit rating again. Nyergers. 

[Slargos]

Good luck ever getting positive credit rating again. Nyergers. 

I think the moral of this story is "Don't fuck with the Nyergers".

Why would anyone be so stupid as to continue poking the bear?

Aside from the obvious polish angle.

[Weijun]

Deja vu!

Homeowner Forecloses on Wells Fargo
Published: Thursday, 17 Feb 2011 | 12:47 PM ET

By: Ash Bennington

You read the headline correctly: A homeowner has begun foreclosure proceedings on a local Wells Fargo office in Pennsylvania.

This is how it happened. A Philadelphia homeowner named Patrick Rodgers, who mortgage banks with Wells Fargo, was told by Wells that he needed to take out a $1 million homeowner's policy on his house. Rodgers bristled at the demand: Because the market value of his house was far below a million bucks—he'd purchased it for $180,000 in 2002—and because the insurance policy cost $2,400. (Wells wanted the house insured for its replacement value—and the 100 year old Victorian would cost a fortune to recreate; hence, the difference in valuation.)

Here's where the stories gets fun, as Susanna Kim reported for ABC News.

To get some answers and to plead his case, Rodgers wrote to Well Fargo—who, it seems, ignored his letter altogether.

As it turns out, mortgage companies are required by law to respond to written requests within a certain time frame, which Wells failed to do.

So Rodgers took Wells Fargo to court: And won a judgment of $1,173.

According to the ABC News account, Wells Fargo failed to pay up.

So Rodgers placed a sheriff's levy against the one of the bank's local offices.

Despite all the attention—including coverage in the Philadelphia Inquirer—Wells still didn't respond to his letter.

Eventually Wells got around to cutting Rodgers two checks to satisfy the judgment—but still didn't respond in writing, as required by law.

So Rodgers, at this point plainly annoyed, "turned to the Philadelphia sheriff's office to initiate a sale of the Wells Fargo Home Mortgage office in Philadelphia."

As a consequence of the action, Wells owed him another 50 dollars—for the cost of initiating the sale.

Rodger was quoted as saying:

"Why Wells Faro doesn't pay $50 is beyond me, but you never know what's going on in the mind of these big companies,"

And so—improbably enough—the foreclosure and the sheriff's sale continues.

Rodgers continued:

"When I initiated the litigation I thought surely that would come to someone's attention I thought someone would say, 'Hey you don't have to litigate, you just have to talk to us.'"

"Then I had a sheriff's levy and they wouldn't respond, and then a sheriff's sale. I would love someone with some authority to give me a ring and say, 'Hey, let's sort all of this out.'"

Rodgers sounds like a pretty reasonable guy—just one who's been ticked off, after feeling like he was being pushed around by a big powerful company.

More important for Wells, Rodgers has gone on record as saying he's amenable to a solution.

If that's the case, this is an incredibly easy problem for the bank to solve.

A clever media relations person should get ten minutes of face time with the CEO of Wells Fargo, John Stumpf. And tell the guy the truth.

Which is this: Patrick Rodgers made Wells look like a bunch of bullies—and now Patrick Rodgers is making Wells look like a bunch of dopes.

Here's how Stumpf can fix the problem—and more importantly, counter the negative publicity— in fifteen minutes or less.

John Stumpf, the powerful CEO of the fourth largest bank in America, should take a few minutes out of his busy schedule—show he has a sense of humor—and call up the guy himself.

Once Stumpf gets Rodgers on the phone, they can have a laugh about how nutty bureaucracy is—and how sometimes stuff just happens when people aren't paying attention.

Stumpf should tell Rodgers he admires his cleverness. And that he's sorry for his trouble. And that he's writing him the check for fifty bucks himself.

Then, as a final grace note, Stumpf should pretend it's still 1978—and send the guy a set of steak knives, with a note thanking him for doing business with Wells Fargo.

[garbon]

Your guy sounds like an asshole though.

[Admiral Yi]

Good luck ever getting positive credit rating again. Nyergers. 

I get the impression you don't know credit ratings are compiled.

[Neil]

Good luck ever getting positive credit rating again. Nyergers. 

I get the impression you don't know credit ratings are compiled.

20th century banking and finance hasn't reached Poland yet.  Even the gold standard people think of them as being a bit backwards.

[Razgovory]

Good luck ever getting positive credit rating again. Nyergers. 

I get the impression you don't know credit ratings are compiled.

If we had to point out every time Marty doesn't know something we wouldn't have time for anything else.

[DGuller]

Good luck ever getting positive credit rating again. Nyergers. 

I get the impression you don't know credit ratings are compiled.

For one, everyone in US has a positive credit rating.

[HVC]

Good luck ever getting positive credit rating again. Nyergers. 

I get the impression you don't know credit ratings are compiled.

For one, everyone in US has a positive credit rating.

Can you have a 0 rating? how low do the three(?) rating agencies go?