Shuster & Saben has saved yet another Miami Homeowner from Foreclosure. On July 31, 2009, our firm appeared on behalf of a South Florida homeowner who had failed to serve an answer to the lender Deutche Banks’ complaint for foreclosure. Prior to our firm being retained the lender obtained a default against our client and an order granting the lender’s motion for summary judgment. By the time our firm was retained the Court had already entered a final judgment of foreclosure and set a sale date.
Our client advised that she was unaware of the foreclosure action against her until she consulted a Realtor about a short sale of the property only to find out from the Realtor that the Court had entered an final judgment of foreclosure and had set a judicial sale date for mid August. Immediately after our firm was hired we prepared a verified (notarized) affidavit to quash service of process. The affidavit set forth the testimony of the homeowner that she was never served. After the lender’s counsel, David Stern, P.A. failed to refute our client’s affidavit with record evidence., the Court granted our motion to quash service, vacated the summary judgment and canceled the judicial sale. The lender will now have to start the case over again from the beginning by properly serving the homeowner. This time our client will have an aggressive legal defense. As of the today, our client has still yet to be served.
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Monday, May 10, 2010
Shuster & Saben help Lee County client resolve foreclosure with successful short sale
After listing their Lee County property for short sale, our Bonita Spring clients received an rather unpleasant surprise from their lender, Chase Home Finance. The surprise came after a knock on the door when a process server shoved a summons and foreclosure lawsuit in their hands. The clients thought that since they were communicating with the bank the bank would not begin foreclosure proceedings. After the client spoke to their Realtor and financial adviser, they knew learned that banks often file foreclosure actions against homes listed for short sale. Banks take such actions to speed up the closing of their files. The bank’s strategy is to pursue the option (foreclosure or short sale) that will minimize their losses and close their file the quickest. The client, their Realtor and their adviser understood that by hiring a foreclosure lawyer to defend the foreclosure case they would have far more time to complete the short sale because they would avoid being defaulted by the lender’s attorney. They also understood that when a foreclosure cases is defended the costs for the bank increases greatly which makes the foreclosure option much less attractive to the bank than the short sale option.
Within thee days of being hired, the foreclosure lawyers at Shuster & Saben filed and answer and affirmative defenses on behalf of the client and sent out some twenty pages of discovery requests. Our firm also let the bank’s lawyer know that the client was attempting to sell the house in a short sale. The bank’s lawyer was also advised when the client received an offer. The client appreciated that while our firm handles many Lee County cases from our West Broward office, the firm is available to meet prospective Collier and Lee County clients in Naples or at our Bonita Srings consultation location at 28089 Vanderbilt Drive, Bonita Springs.
Less than three months from the date our firm was hired our client completed the short sale. The client had the benefit of having all of their short sale documents reviewed by the firm. Our client’s cost for defense of the case was under $1,500.00. Had the client ignored the foreclosure lawsuit and been defaulted the client would have been at risk for a deficiency judgment. Due to our client’s foresight the short sale was completed and the lawsuit filed against our client has been dismissed. Click the link below to review a copy of the Notice of Dismissal and Discharge of Lis Pendens.
Lee County Foreclosure Notice of Dismissal.
Within thee days of being hired, the foreclosure lawyers at Shuster & Saben filed and answer and affirmative defenses on behalf of the client and sent out some twenty pages of discovery requests. Our firm also let the bank’s lawyer know that the client was attempting to sell the house in a short sale. The bank’s lawyer was also advised when the client received an offer. The client appreciated that while our firm handles many Lee County cases from our West Broward office, the firm is available to meet prospective Collier and Lee County clients in Naples or at our Bonita Srings consultation location at 28089 Vanderbilt Drive, Bonita Springs.
Less than three months from the date our firm was hired our client completed the short sale. The client had the benefit of having all of their short sale documents reviewed by the firm. Our client’s cost for defense of the case was under $1,500.00. Had the client ignored the foreclosure lawsuit and been defaulted the client would have been at risk for a deficiency judgment. Due to our client’s foresight the short sale was completed and the lawsuit filed against our client has been dismissed. Click the link below to review a copy of the Notice of Dismissal and Discharge of Lis Pendens.
Lee County Foreclosure Notice of Dismissal.
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Firm asks Court to thow out Bank of America suit after bank contacts firm client
Shuster & Saben Moves for Dismissal and Sanctions after BAC Home Loans (also known as Bank of America) makes direct contact with client:
One of the things almost every lawyer holds sacred is that if a person is represented by an attorney and the lawyer for the other side or the other side itself wants to talk to the represented person about the legal matter the lawyer or party must speak to the represented party’s attorney and not directly to represented party. In car accident cases when an insurance adjuster hears that an accident victim has retained counsel the conversation usually stops in mid sentence because a Florida insurance adjuster can be disciplined or even lose their license for speaking to a person who the adjuster knows is represented by counsel.
Perhaps BAC Home Loans thought it was above the law when it contacted a client of this firm after the Brevard County client retained Shuster & Saben Foreclosure Attorneys to defend the foreclosure action filed against their Space Coast home.
When our firm was retained we filed a notice of appearance and served a copy on Kass, Shuler, Solomon, Spector, Foyle and Singer, the law firm representing BAC Home Loans. The notice of appearance set forth that this firm objected to any exparte communication with our client and instructed BAC to “cease and desist all communications with this firm’s client.” Since some lawyers do not bother to carefully read notices of appearances we also wrote a letter Bank of America’s lawyer, Edward Pritchard telling him to “instruct the servicer to cease all communication with the Defendant.”
To see our notice of appearance click here.
To see our letter to Bank of America’s lawyer click here.
To make absolutely certain that our client would not be bothered by the lender we even sent a copy of the letter we sent to Bank of America’s lawyer directly to the loan servicer.
To our surprise six months later our client called us to advise that he received a settlement offer (loan modification offer) directly from Bank of America. The offer included a tiny reduction of the monthly loan payment but required our client to waive valuable legal rights and defenses he had to the foreclosure action. In our opinion putting such waivers into a loan modification is a violation of HAMP loan servicing guidelines.
Our firm has filed a motion with the Court requesting that the Court dismiss BAC Home Loans lawsuit with prejudice as a punishment for Bank of America’s underhanded and unethical action. A hearing will be held on this motion in late May.
To See a Copy of our motion click here.
One of the things almost every lawyer holds sacred is that if a person is represented by an attorney and the lawyer for the other side or the other side itself wants to talk to the represented person about the legal matter the lawyer or party must speak to the represented party’s attorney and not directly to represented party. In car accident cases when an insurance adjuster hears that an accident victim has retained counsel the conversation usually stops in mid sentence because a Florida insurance adjuster can be disciplined or even lose their license for speaking to a person who the adjuster knows is represented by counsel.
Perhaps BAC Home Loans thought it was above the law when it contacted a client of this firm after the Brevard County client retained Shuster & Saben Foreclosure Attorneys to defend the foreclosure action filed against their Space Coast home.
When our firm was retained we filed a notice of appearance and served a copy on Kass, Shuler, Solomon, Spector, Foyle and Singer, the law firm representing BAC Home Loans. The notice of appearance set forth that this firm objected to any exparte communication with our client and instructed BAC to “cease and desist all communications with this firm’s client.” Since some lawyers do not bother to carefully read notices of appearances we also wrote a letter Bank of America’s lawyer, Edward Pritchard telling him to “instruct the servicer to cease all communication with the Defendant.”
To see our notice of appearance click here.
To see our letter to Bank of America’s lawyer click here.
To make absolutely certain that our client would not be bothered by the lender we even sent a copy of the letter we sent to Bank of America’s lawyer directly to the loan servicer.
To our surprise six months later our client called us to advise that he received a settlement offer (loan modification offer) directly from Bank of America. The offer included a tiny reduction of the monthly loan payment but required our client to waive valuable legal rights and defenses he had to the foreclosure action. In our opinion putting such waivers into a loan modification is a violation of HAMP loan servicing guidelines.
Our firm has filed a motion with the Court requesting that the Court dismiss BAC Home Loans lawsuit with prejudice as a punishment for Bank of America’s underhanded and unethical action. A hearing will be held on this motion in late May.
To See a Copy of our motion click here.
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Homeowner gets free house when Florida Judge throws out lender's case
Pasco county Florida resident, Ernest Harpster will be getting a “free house” based upon the ruling of Circuit Judge Lynn Tepper. In an order dated March 25, 2010, Judge Tepper dismissed with prejudice the foreclosure lawsuit that was filed against Mr. Harpster by US Bank National Association as trustee for a securitized mortgage trust.
The judge’s ruling followed a hearing that was scheduled to be commenced at 3:00 p.m. According to the Court order, the law firm for the Bank of America, David Stern, P.A. failed to appear either in person or by phone for the hearing. The matters that were scheduled to be heard were a Motion to Compel Responses to Interrogatories and Request for Production; Amended Motions in Limine regarding the Promissory Note and a Second Motion in Limine/Motion to Strike based on an allegation of fraud on the court; and finally a Motion for Rehearing."
The Court found that U.S. Bank’s counsel failed to produce answers to interrogatories (written questions to be answered under oath) for an astounding twenty-six (26) months.
The Defendant's Motion in Limine/Motion to Strike was based on an allegation that the Assignment of Mortgage was created after the filing of the lawsuit, but the document date and date the document was notarized were purposely backdated by the Plaintiff to a date prior the filing of this foreclosure action.
The attorney for the homeowner discovered this apparent fraud because the assignment was allegedly signed and notarized on December 5, 2007. The notary’s stamp designating when the notary’s license expired had a May 19, 2012 expiration date. Since Notary licenses are only good for four years, a notary license that expires on May 19, 2012 would have been issued four years earlier on Mary 19, 2008. As such the notary license would not have been issued and did not exist on December 5, 2007 when the assignment was alleged to have been executed.
According to the Court order, the notary who notarized the “back-dated” document was Terry Rice. Homeowners and their attorneys who have pending foreclosure cases should be on the lookout for other assignments and affidavits by Terry Rice which might be forged, fraudulent, or back-dated.
The court specifically found “that the purported Assignment did not exist at the time of filing of this action; that the purported Assignment was subsequently created and the execution date and notarial date were fraudulently backdated, in a purposeful intentional effort to mislead the Defendant and this Court.”
Judge Tepper ruled “The Plaintiff's complaint is dismissed with prejudice, based on the fraud intentionally perpetrated upon the Court by the Plaintiff. This Court has the power to dismiss a case a showing of a commission of fraud on the Court by a party.” She further ruled that “The Defendant shall go henceforth without day” which means that the Plaintiff, U.S. Bank will not recovery any money and will note be able to re-file the lawsuit. Judge Tepper also ruled that U.S. Bank will have to pay the homeowner’s attorney’s fees.
Our law firm did not participate in this case. Usually I only write about cases our firm was involved in. This case is discussed so that the public becomes aware of the underhanded tactics some banks and some lawyers are using to wrongfully foreclosure on Floridians’ homes. Unfortunately, Judge Tepper’s order did not include the name of the homeowner’s lawyer whose work was extraordinary. (Update we have since leaned that the homeowners lawyer was Tampa attorney Ralph Fisher) This case illustrates what a tremendous difference a talented litigator can make. Some lawyers practice “foreclosure delay” and think that filing a motion for extension of time is sufficient to defend a foreclosure case. At our firm, we listen to our clients to determine their objectives and design a strategy unique to their case and goals. Then we put that plan into action. When we defeat lender motions for summary judgment it is not by accident, rather it is because through discovery requests, depositions, and motions to compel we have obtained the evidence needed defeat the lender’s motion.
If you believe that an assignment of mortgage in your cases was fabricated or back-dated we will review the assignment on a complementary basis. If the assignment is dated after the date the foreclosure lawsuit was filed against you, the lawsuit should be dismissed. To Homeowners with questions about this blog can contact the author at foreclosuredefenselaw@gmail.com. To view a complete copy of the Court's order as a PDF / Adobe Acrobat document click here
For more information about Shuster & Saben's defense of homeowners in foreclosure in Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Collier, Lee, Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River, Brevard, Orange, and Volusia counties please visit www.attorneyforeclosuredefense.com
The judge’s ruling followed a hearing that was scheduled to be commenced at 3:00 p.m. According to the Court order, the law firm for the Bank of America, David Stern, P.A. failed to appear either in person or by phone for the hearing. The matters that were scheduled to be heard were a Motion to Compel Responses to Interrogatories and Request for Production; Amended Motions in Limine regarding the Promissory Note and a Second Motion in Limine/Motion to Strike based on an allegation of fraud on the court; and finally a Motion for Rehearing."
The Court found that U.S. Bank’s counsel failed to produce answers to interrogatories (written questions to be answered under oath) for an astounding twenty-six (26) months.
The Defendant's Motion in Limine/Motion to Strike was based on an allegation that the Assignment of Mortgage was created after the filing of the lawsuit, but the document date and date the document was notarized were purposely backdated by the Plaintiff to a date prior the filing of this foreclosure action.
The attorney for the homeowner discovered this apparent fraud because the assignment was allegedly signed and notarized on December 5, 2007. The notary’s stamp designating when the notary’s license expired had a May 19, 2012 expiration date. Since Notary licenses are only good for four years, a notary license that expires on May 19, 2012 would have been issued four years earlier on Mary 19, 2008. As such the notary license would not have been issued and did not exist on December 5, 2007 when the assignment was alleged to have been executed.
According to the Court order, the notary who notarized the “back-dated” document was Terry Rice. Homeowners and their attorneys who have pending foreclosure cases should be on the lookout for other assignments and affidavits by Terry Rice which might be forged, fraudulent, or back-dated.
The court specifically found “that the purported Assignment did not exist at the time of filing of this action; that the purported Assignment was subsequently created and the execution date and notarial date were fraudulently backdated, in a purposeful intentional effort to mislead the Defendant and this Court.”
Judge Tepper ruled “The Plaintiff's complaint is dismissed with prejudice, based on the fraud intentionally perpetrated upon the Court by the Plaintiff. This Court has the power to dismiss a case a showing of a commission of fraud on the Court by a party.” She further ruled that “The Defendant shall go henceforth without day” which means that the Plaintiff, U.S. Bank will not recovery any money and will note be able to re-file the lawsuit. Judge Tepper also ruled that U.S. Bank will have to pay the homeowner’s attorney’s fees.
Our law firm did not participate in this case. Usually I only write about cases our firm was involved in. This case is discussed so that the public becomes aware of the underhanded tactics some banks and some lawyers are using to wrongfully foreclosure on Floridians’ homes. Unfortunately, Judge Tepper’s order did not include the name of the homeowner’s lawyer whose work was extraordinary. (Update we have since leaned that the homeowners lawyer was Tampa attorney Ralph Fisher) This case illustrates what a tremendous difference a talented litigator can make. Some lawyers practice “foreclosure delay” and think that filing a motion for extension of time is sufficient to defend a foreclosure case. At our firm, we listen to our clients to determine their objectives and design a strategy unique to their case and goals. Then we put that plan into action. When we defeat lender motions for summary judgment it is not by accident, rather it is because through discovery requests, depositions, and motions to compel we have obtained the evidence needed defeat the lender’s motion.
If you believe that an assignment of mortgage in your cases was fabricated or back-dated we will review the assignment on a complementary basis. If the assignment is dated after the date the foreclosure lawsuit was filed against you, the lawsuit should be dismissed. To Homeowners with questions about this blog can contact the author at foreclosuredefenselaw@gmail.com. To view a complete copy of the Court's order as a PDF / Adobe Acrobat document click here
For more information about Shuster & Saben's defense of homeowners in foreclosure in Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Collier, Lee, Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River, Brevard, Orange, and Volusia counties please visit www.attorneyforeclosuredefense.com
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Shuster & Saben Obtains Deed In Lieu Offer for Fort Myers Client
What a difference one month and hiring a lawyer can make.
Before retaining counsel our client pleaded with his loan servicer, Bank of America, to modify the mortgage on his Fort Myers condominium. Our client requested a loan modification because he has lost his job when new construction in Lee County, Florida came to a halt. BAC Home Loan Servicing, LP told our client that because he had no current income he did not meet the income requirements for a HAMP modification and declined his request for modification of his loan. Prior to our firm being retained the lender did not offer deed in lieu to the homeowner and ultimately filed a foreclosure action against him.
After diligently searching the websites of over a dozen foreclosure law firms the client selected Shuster & Saben to defend his foreclosure case. Our client explained that reading the why we are different section of our firm's website lead him to call our office. Less than three business days after being retained our firm filed an answer on the client's behalf and served an additional twenty-one pages of discovery requests and correspondence.
Our client’s goal was to avoid a deficiency judgment and to move to another part of the country where his employment prospects were better. To achieve our client’s objective, we advised the bank's lawyer in a letter sent with the answer that if they would waive deficiency judgment our client would agree to a without recourse deed in lieu of foreclosure.
Less than thirty days later we received an offer for deed in lieu of foreclosure that offered our client:
(a) No recourse… The lender would agree to waive the entire loan balance in exchange for possession of and title to the condominium.
(b) Moving expenses of up to 2% of the outstanding loan balance. This will provide our client with approximately $5,000.00 for moving expenses.
(c) BAC Home Loans will allocate up to $8,500.00 to pay liens on the property for condominium maintenance and property taxes.
The offer to our client was received less than a month after our answer was filed. To view a copy of the offer (with our client’s name removed for privacy reasons) click here.
Shuster & Saben has offices in Melbourne, Plantation, Doral, and Miami, Florida. The firm is also available for consultation only in Bonita Springs, Florida, Boca Raton, West Palm Beach, and Stuart, Florida. Shuster & Saben handles foreclosure cases in Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Collier, Lee, Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River, Brevard, and Orange Counties.
Before retaining counsel our client pleaded with his loan servicer, Bank of America, to modify the mortgage on his Fort Myers condominium. Our client requested a loan modification because he has lost his job when new construction in Lee County, Florida came to a halt. BAC Home Loan Servicing, LP told our client that because he had no current income he did not meet the income requirements for a HAMP modification and declined his request for modification of his loan. Prior to our firm being retained the lender did not offer deed in lieu to the homeowner and ultimately filed a foreclosure action against him.
After diligently searching the websites of over a dozen foreclosure law firms the client selected Shuster & Saben to defend his foreclosure case. Our client explained that reading the why we are different section of our firm's website lead him to call our office. Less than three business days after being retained our firm filed an answer on the client's behalf and served an additional twenty-one pages of discovery requests and correspondence.
Our client’s goal was to avoid a deficiency judgment and to move to another part of the country where his employment prospects were better. To achieve our client’s objective, we advised the bank's lawyer in a letter sent with the answer that if they would waive deficiency judgment our client would agree to a without recourse deed in lieu of foreclosure.
Less than thirty days later we received an offer for deed in lieu of foreclosure that offered our client:
(a) No recourse… The lender would agree to waive the entire loan balance in exchange for possession of and title to the condominium.
(b) Moving expenses of up to 2% of the outstanding loan balance. This will provide our client with approximately $5,000.00 for moving expenses.
(c) BAC Home Loans will allocate up to $8,500.00 to pay liens on the property for condominium maintenance and property taxes.
The offer to our client was received less than a month after our answer was filed. To view a copy of the offer (with our client’s name removed for privacy reasons) click here.
Shuster & Saben has offices in Melbourne, Plantation, Doral, and Miami, Florida. The firm is also available for consultation only in Bonita Springs, Florida, Boca Raton, West Palm Beach, and Stuart, Florida. Shuster & Saben handles foreclosure cases in Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Collier, Lee, Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River, Brevard, and Orange Counties.
Monday, March 8, 2010
Firm Attorneys Attend Fair Debt Collection Practices Act Seminar
Firm attorney Richard Shuster traveled to Jacksonville, Florida to attend the National Associations of Consumer Advocates (NACA) annual seminar on the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. The seminar was attended by leading consumer protection attorneys from across the United States. Richard Shuster is a member of NACA.
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act is a federal law that protects consumers from unfair or harassing collections practices. This law regulates the conduct of third party bill collectors including mortgage loan servicers and law firms that file foreclosure actions against homeowners. Under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act a loan servicer (such as Litton Loan Servicing) must comply with a consumers request that the servicer stop calling the consumer and conduct all future communications in writing. A consumer may also demand that a servicer or bill collector not call their cell phone or work number.
Under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, bill collectors and mortgage loan servicers are prohibited from communicating with debtors when the bill collector or loan servicer knows that the debtor is represented by an attorney. If a loan servicer calls a homeowner after receiving a request to cease communications or after receiving notice that the homeowner has retained an attorney, the homeowner is entitled to statutory damages of up to $1,000.00 and actual damages.
In the near future our law firm will be filing additional lawsuits under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, against loan servicers who continued to call our clients after receiving notices that the homeowners had retained an legal counsel.
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act is a federal law that protects consumers from unfair or harassing collections practices. This law regulates the conduct of third party bill collectors including mortgage loan servicers and law firms that file foreclosure actions against homeowners. Under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act a loan servicer (such as Litton Loan Servicing) must comply with a consumers request that the servicer stop calling the consumer and conduct all future communications in writing. A consumer may also demand that a servicer or bill collector not call their cell phone or work number.
Under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, bill collectors and mortgage loan servicers are prohibited from communicating with debtors when the bill collector or loan servicer knows that the debtor is represented by an attorney. If a loan servicer calls a homeowner after receiving a request to cease communications or after receiving notice that the homeowner has retained an attorney, the homeowner is entitled to statutory damages of up to $1,000.00 and actual damages.
In the near future our law firm will be filing additional lawsuits under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, against loan servicers who continued to call our clients after receiving notices that the homeowners had retained an legal counsel.
Sunday, February 7, 2010
HOW MUCH DOES FORECLOSURE DEFENSE COST?
A review of Google searches made by Florida homeowners performing on-line research suggests that there are a significant number of homeowners trying to find out how much it costs to have an attorney defend them in foreclosure litigation. While our firm includes its price in its website ($495.00 per month on loans under $500,000) it appears that most law firms do not include their prices in their websites. To help homeowners make informed decisions about the cost of hiring a lawyer to defend themselves and their home in a foreclosure case, it is necessary to discuss the four most common pricing models among law firms that defend foreclosure cases. The four most common models are: Fixed Fee, Hourly, Monthly, and Hybrid.
FIXED FEE
ADVANTAGE: The Homeowner Pays One time.
DISADVANTAGE: Lawyer has little incentive to work on the case. Arrangement may put lawyer’s interest of obtaining reasonable hourly rate in conflict with client’s goals.
CAUTION: Look our for hidden fees.
When a lawyer represents homeowners on a fixed fee basis all the money the lawyer will ever receive is in the lawyers hands on day one. Working harder on the case or spending more time on the file will not benefit the firm’s bottom line. If the lawyer charges $2,400 for a fixed fee defense and usually changes $300.00 per hour, then you can divide the cost of the defense by the hourly rate to figure out how many hours the lawyer expects to spend on the case. Will the lawyer who is hired on a fixed fee basis take a deposition or file a motion to compel better answers to a request for production of documents, if doing so only increases the amount of work the lawyer has to do and the duration of the case? Will the lawyer hired on a fixed fee basis attend mediation and summary judgment hearings on the client’s behalf. Some lawyers who accept foreclosure cases on a fixed fee basis only intend to file an answer and discovery requests. If a fixed fee representation is being considered the homeowner should be frank with the prospective lawyer during the initial interview. The client and lawyer should be on the same page as to what is included in the fixed fee and whether the lawyer contemplates attending mediation and summary judgment hearings.
HOURLY:
ADVANTAGE: Lawyer has a financial incentive to work on the case
DISADVANTAGES: Lawyer has a financial inventive to work on the case. Fees may vary widely from month to month.
It is hard for consumers to evaluate how much time various legal tasks require. The lawyer may have incentive to perform work because it is billable rather than crucial to advancing the case. The amount of each bill may vary greatly depending amount of time spent by the lawyer.
MONTHLY:
ADVANTAGES: Fees are the same every month. Lawyer has a financial incentive to work on the case.
DISADVANTAGE: Penalizes lawyer for rapid resolution of case.
For a homeowner seeking to stay in their home for as long as possible, monthly fees will align the interest of the lawyer and the client. For a owner of a vacant investment property monthly fees with a cap on total months or a bonus for a quick resolution can modify a monthly fee arrangement to make it work for all parties. With monthly fees the fee is always the same so there are no surprises for the client. Monthly fees make foreclosure defense affordable for many consumers who lack sufficient cash for a one time up front fee, and can’t afford high hourly fees.
HYBRID:
A hybrid fee arrangement combines two or more of the above models. For instance a firm might change hourly with a monthly cap on the total fee. Some firms also include a reverse contingency where the firm receives a bonus in the event the firm is able to obtain a reduction of the loan balance or interest rate. Under a reverse contingency the firm is paid a portion of the savings the client receives as a result of the representation.
UPDATE (May 2012): This blog post has now been read over 2,000 times! When evaluating the cost of a specific law firm homeowners should not ignore a firm's results and choose a lawyer on price alone. A cheap foreclosure defense lawyer who does a bad job will most likely costs more than an expensive foreclosure lawyer who does a good job. When our firm firm wins foreclosure cases we file motions against the bank to recover attorney's fees for the benefit of our clients. Firms that win cases and recover fees from the the bank can substantially decrease a client's legal expenses. For more information on recovering fees from banks see our blog post The Robin Hood Law Firm.
UPDATE 2 (July 2013): New Post about BAIT & SWITCH pricing strategies being used by some law firms. To read the post click here.
UPDATE 3 (January 2015): This post has now been read over 5,000 times! In 2014 we set a firm and Brevard County record for attorney fee recoveries from banks, and retuned tens of thousands of dollars to our clients by winning their foreclosure cases, recovering attorney's fees from the banks that lost the cases, and returning money from such recoveries to our clients.
Consumers with questions about the cost for Shuster & Saben to defend a foreclosure case in Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Collier, Lee, Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River, or Brevard County can e-mail foreclosuredefeneselaw@gmail.com.
FIXED FEE
ADVANTAGE: The Homeowner Pays One time.
DISADVANTAGE: Lawyer has little incentive to work on the case. Arrangement may put lawyer’s interest of obtaining reasonable hourly rate in conflict with client’s goals.
CAUTION: Look our for hidden fees.
When a lawyer represents homeowners on a fixed fee basis all the money the lawyer will ever receive is in the lawyers hands on day one. Working harder on the case or spending more time on the file will not benefit the firm’s bottom line. If the lawyer charges $2,400 for a fixed fee defense and usually changes $300.00 per hour, then you can divide the cost of the defense by the hourly rate to figure out how many hours the lawyer expects to spend on the case. Will the lawyer who is hired on a fixed fee basis take a deposition or file a motion to compel better answers to a request for production of documents, if doing so only increases the amount of work the lawyer has to do and the duration of the case? Will the lawyer hired on a fixed fee basis attend mediation and summary judgment hearings on the client’s behalf. Some lawyers who accept foreclosure cases on a fixed fee basis only intend to file an answer and discovery requests. If a fixed fee representation is being considered the homeowner should be frank with the prospective lawyer during the initial interview. The client and lawyer should be on the same page as to what is included in the fixed fee and whether the lawyer contemplates attending mediation and summary judgment hearings.
HOURLY:
ADVANTAGE: Lawyer has a financial incentive to work on the case
DISADVANTAGES: Lawyer has a financial inventive to work on the case. Fees may vary widely from month to month.
It is hard for consumers to evaluate how much time various legal tasks require. The lawyer may have incentive to perform work because it is billable rather than crucial to advancing the case. The amount of each bill may vary greatly depending amount of time spent by the lawyer.
MONTHLY:
ADVANTAGES: Fees are the same every month. Lawyer has a financial incentive to work on the case.
DISADVANTAGE: Penalizes lawyer for rapid resolution of case.
For a homeowner seeking to stay in their home for as long as possible, monthly fees will align the interest of the lawyer and the client. For a owner of a vacant investment property monthly fees with a cap on total months or a bonus for a quick resolution can modify a monthly fee arrangement to make it work for all parties. With monthly fees the fee is always the same so there are no surprises for the client. Monthly fees make foreclosure defense affordable for many consumers who lack sufficient cash for a one time up front fee, and can’t afford high hourly fees.
HYBRID:
A hybrid fee arrangement combines two or more of the above models. For instance a firm might change hourly with a monthly cap on the total fee. Some firms also include a reverse contingency where the firm receives a bonus in the event the firm is able to obtain a reduction of the loan balance or interest rate. Under a reverse contingency the firm is paid a portion of the savings the client receives as a result of the representation.
UPDATE (May 2012): This blog post has now been read over 2,000 times! When evaluating the cost of a specific law firm homeowners should not ignore a firm's results and choose a lawyer on price alone. A cheap foreclosure defense lawyer who does a bad job will most likely costs more than an expensive foreclosure lawyer who does a good job. When our firm firm wins foreclosure cases we file motions against the bank to recover attorney's fees for the benefit of our clients. Firms that win cases and recover fees from the the bank can substantially decrease a client's legal expenses. For more information on recovering fees from banks see our blog post The Robin Hood Law Firm.
UPDATE 2 (July 2013): New Post about BAIT & SWITCH pricing strategies being used by some law firms. To read the post click here.
UPDATE 3 (January 2015): This post has now been read over 5,000 times! In 2014 we set a firm and Brevard County record for attorney fee recoveries from banks, and retuned tens of thousands of dollars to our clients by winning their foreclosure cases, recovering attorney's fees from the banks that lost the cases, and returning money from such recoveries to our clients.
Consumers with questions about the cost for Shuster & Saben to defend a foreclosure case in Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Collier, Lee, Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River, or Brevard County can e-mail foreclosuredefeneselaw@gmail.com.
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