When it comes to taxes, there are numerous factors that need to be considered. This is especially true for business owners. A limited liability company (LLC) is one of the newest forms of businesses that is actually formed through the state. Because these types of businesses are newer, there are often still questions about how taxes work for LLCs. Call me to discuss the important things to know about owning an LLC and paying taxes. ...read more

Brock&Scott announced Wednesday an expansion of its default law practice within the state of Georgia. The acquisition of the 25-year old firm Shuping, Morse & Ross will combine under the Brock & Scott name, adding seasoned attorneys and dedicated staff members into one metro Atlanta office. The acquisition was effective on Feb. 19, when the Shuping, Morse & Ross team joined Brock & Scott’s existing Default Services Practice Areas. This area is led by Managing Partners January Taylor and Kyle Kotake. Read more here http://dld.bz/dhQAz ___ Mortgage Loan Compliance | Residential Forensic and Securitization Audits Call 1-866-966-6615 or visit http://www.ml-compliance.com Get The Facts on Your Loan and Protect Your Rights! ...read more

The Christmas season is a universal time of caring.  In Oregon, whether its Christians celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ, Jews celebrating Hanukah or just neighbors enjoying traditions of colorfully wrapped gifts, beautifully decorated trees, brightly lighted houses, and cozy time with friends and family, most everyone has reasons to love this holiday season. We’ve been blessed this past year with the opportunity to meet many new friends and business partners across the United States.  We cherish these new friends and add them to the list of friends and neighbors who have enriched our lives. Our hearts go out to those whose lives are not so bright—to those who may be struggling financially without a meaningful job or suffering a breakdown in their health or family relationships. For you, we pray for peace to your souls, health to your bodies and inspiration to your minds. Do not hesitate to call on us, if we can be of service to you.   Next year will be life-changing for ML-Compliance and our affiliate companies. It will start with the birth of a new business venture, MLC Marketing, focusing on Residential and Commercial Essential Services – such as energy, gas, wireless phone, and merchant processing.   Truly, 2014 will be a significant year for the MLC family and, hopefully, for our clients and affiliates as well.  We hope to speak with you about exploring our new services and continuing to help your clients in the months ahead.   But for now, during this Christmas season, let’s take time and focus inward and consider how we’ve done this past year.  Let’s commit to being a little kinder and a little more compassionate, to giving a little more service to others, and seeking to pattern our lives a little closer to that of Jesus,the babe who was born in a stable and placed in a manger so very long ago, and whose example has made the world a better place for all of us.  In short, let’s do what we can in our own part of the world to promote peace on earth and good will toward man. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays, MLC Family Companies ...read more

Countrywide Financial, acquired by Bank of America in 2008, was found liable for actions that resulted in the purchase of thousands of defective loans by Government Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.  A federal grand jury found the former Countrywide Financial and former Countrywide executive Rebecca Mairone guilty of mortgage fraud on Wednesday in a whistle-blower generated civil suit.  Mairone had been chief operating officer of Countrywide's Full Spectrum Lending Division which was responsible for operating a program, implemented in 2007, called High-Speed Swim Lane, also know as "The Hustle."  The program was designed to speed mortgage processing but federal prosecutors said it lacked quality checkpoints and processes such as income verification.  The loans were then sold to or guaranteed by the GSE's under representations that they met the companies underwriting guidelines. Mairone was the only Countrywide official named in the suit. The government maintained that the 28,800 loans underwritten through the Hustle program were processed in as few as 10 days rather than up to 60 as in most programs.  The loans that ultimately defaulted cost the GSEs $131 million and they allege that Countrywide earned at least $165 million under the program.   A whistleblower brought the original suit against Mairone and her former employer; it was then joined by the Department of Justice.  Edward O'Donnell, also a former executive at the company, said he had complained repeatedly about loan quality standards used in the program.  He could be awarded as much $1.6 million for his role in the legal action. --------- Is Your Mortgage Illegal? Get The Facts, Audit Your Loan, and Sue Your Lender! Mortgage Loan Compliance | The Forensic, Chain of Title, and Securitization Audit Company Toll Free 866.966.6615 or visit us www.ml-compliance.com ...read more

As the National Association of Realtors® (NAR) said it had anticipated, pending home sales eased in August falling what may have been accelerated activity earlier in the summer.  NAR said tight inventory conditions, higher interest rates, rising home prices, and continuing restrictive mortgage credit all played a role in the lower August Pending Home Sales Index.  The index dipped 1.6 percent in to 107.7 from a revised 109.4 in July.  Still it continued its 28 month streak of annual increases and was up 5.8 percent above its August 2012 level of 101.8. The index is a forward-looking indicator based on home purchase contracts not closings.  Pending sales are generally expected to close within one to two months of contract signing. Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said the decline was expected following elevated levels of closed existing-home sales at the end of summer. "Sharply rising mortgage interest rates in the spring motived buyers to make purchase decisions, culminating in a six-and-a-half-year peak for sales that were finalized last month," he said. "Moving forward, we expect lower levels of existing-home sales, but tight inventory in many markets will continue to push up home prices in the months ahead." NAR is projecting that by year-end existing-home sales will total nearly 5.2 million, an 11 percent increase from 2012 but it sees little change in 2014, perhaps less than 1 percent.  The national median existing-home price should rise 11 to 12 percent for all of 2013, easing to an increase of 5 to 6 percent in 2014 as housing inventories improve. ...read more

Today Eric Schneiderman, New York̢۪s Attorney General, accused Bank of America and Wells Fargo of violating the terms of the National Mortgage Settlement approved last year by failing to process hundreds of refinancing requests promptly. The settlement with 49 states, the U.S. Justice Department and the lenders including JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup and Ally Financial set servicing standards and up to $25 billion in financial relief to homeowners. The standards prohibit the lenders from pursuing foreclosure while negotiating a loan modification. They require the banks to acknowledge in writing a refinancing application within three business days, notify the borrower of any missing documents within five days and make a decision on a complete application within 30 days. AG Schneiderman has notified the National Monitoring Committee established to enforce the five-bank agreement, citing complaints of 210 prompt-processing violations by Wells Fargo and 129 by Bank of America. If the committee defers taking action, AG Schneiderman said he will sue for compliance. Schneiderman said delays put homeowners further into debt from missed payments and penalties, pushing them closer to foreclosure. "The five mortgage services that signed the National Mortgage Settlement are legally required to take specific, rigorous and enforceable steps to protect homeowners," Schneiderman said. "Wells Fargo and Bank of America have flagrantly violated those obligations." _______________________ Mortgage Loan Compliance | The Forensic Loan Audit Company Proven Results That Work - Get The Facts, Audit Your Loan, Sue Your Lender and Protect Your Rights! Call Today 1-866-966-6615 or Visitwww.ml-compliance.com ...read more

In a far too common story the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has shut down yet another bogus Forensic Audit Company (see below).  It is important that consumers understand that most companies will tell you what you want to hear to get your dollars into their pockets. “Forensic Auditing” better described as Compliance Auditing is not a new and powerful tool that will stop your lender from foreclosing. In fact your lender uses the same “quality control” tool as a requirement to sell loans to FHA and to ensure that their portfolios have minimal risk to Secondary Market Investors.  We have heard numerous audit companies make claims that they are “experts” or that they wrote the book on mortgage securitization. Again, be careful what you believe in or throw your hard earned money after. There are experienced auditors, but those that wrote the book on mortgage securitization are enjoying a very luxurious life of traveling, skiing, and painting; while we the “common” people work through the mess. Forensic, Compliance, Mortgage, and/or Loan Audits are just the facts. If you find one or several violations in your loan through research or an Audit you will not be automatically entitled to anything, nor will your lender be forced to give you preferential treatment. Your mortgage is a legally binding agreement between you and your lender.Do not take any action in regards to your property without first consulting a competent Legal professional. Get The Facts, Audit Your Loan and Protect Your Rights! Clickherefor entire article. The defendants behind an operation that allegedly preyed on vulnerable homeowners have agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that they lured people into paying $1,995 or more by holding out bogus promises that they could help them avoid foreclosure and renegotiate their mortgages. The FTC’s settlement order against the Los Angeles, California-based Consumer Advocates Group Experts, LLC, company owner Ryan Zimmerman, and two other related companies is part of the agency’s continuing crackdown on scams that target consumers in financial distress.  It bans the defendants from marketing any mortgage assistance relief or other debt relief products or services.  It also prohibits them from making misleading claims about any financial product or service, or any other type of product or service. See entire FTC Articlehere... ______________________   Mortgage Loan Compliance | The Forensic Loan Audit Company Proven Results That Work - Get The Facts, Audit Your Loan, Sue Your Lender and Protect Your Rights! Call Today 1-866-966-6615 or Visitwww.ml-compliance.com ...read more

  ...read more

A deal was struck yesterday to settle lending complaints, sell rights to service $300 billion of mortgages and repair relations between Regulators and Bank of America. The $11.7 billion agreement will hopefully resolve most disputes with Fannie Mae, even though BofA CEO Brian Moynihan said the bank “largely addressed” the liabilities just two years ago. Bank of America sold the rights to service about 2 million mortgages, and with 9 other banks, will pay $8.5 billion to end reviews of foreclosure-abuse claims stemming from a 2011 deal with regulators.   In the settlement announced yesterday, Bank of America will make a $3.6 billion cash payment, spend $6.75 billion to buy back residential loans sold to Fannie Mae, and pay $1.3 billion in fees for taking too long to assist or foreclose on overdue borrowers, according to separate statements.   In a separate settlement, 10 of the largest U.S. mortgage servicers, including Bank of America, agreed to pay a combined $8.5 billion of foreclosure abuse claims from the 2011 deal with regulators, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and Federal Reserve said in a statement yesterday. BofA will account for about $2.9 billion of the settlement, according industry sources. About $1.1 billion of the expenses are in cash payments and $1.8 billion comes in the form of assistance for distressed homeowners.   These numbers may seem boring but this tells the “American Story” very well. All these monies are to fix “abuse” and “negligence” claims yet no wrong doing or jail time for anyone. I guess the best way for a homeowner to resolve their issues would be to follow suit. Audit your loan, then sue the lender! It seems to really work for Fannie, Freddie, the OCC, and the Fed. _______________________ Mortgage Loan Compliance | The Forensic Loan Audit Company Proven Results That Work - Get The Facts, Audit Your Loan, Sue Your Lender and Protect Your Rights! Call Today 1-866-966-6615 or Visitwww.ml-compliance.com ...read more

Fannie Mae announced December 3, 2012 that legal and administrative proceedings for evictions may continue, but families living in foreclosed properties will be allowed to remain in the home during the holidays. Evictions of foreclosed single family and 2-4 unit properties will be halted from December 19, 2012 through January 2, 2013.  "We're taking this step in support of families who have faced financial challenges and gone through a foreclosure," said Terry Edwards, Executive Vice President of Credit Portfolio Management, Fannie Mae. "The holidays are a chance to be with loved ones and we want to relieve some stress at this time of year.  We encourage homeowners having difficulty to reach out for help as soon as possible." Previously, Fannie Mae announced a temporary suspension offoreclosure sales and evictionsin areas designated for individual assistance by FEMA due to Hurricane Sandy.  That 90-day suspension will last through February 1, 2013. Homeowners can visitwww.knowyouroptions.comfor resources on how to prevent foreclosure, including contact information for Fannie Mae’s 12 Mortgage Help Centers located across the country.  _______________________ Mortgage Loan Compliance | The Forensic Loan Audit Company Proven Results That Work - Get The Facts, Audit Your Loan, Sue Your Lender and Protect Your Rights! Call Today 1-866-966-6615 or Visitwww.ml-compliance.com ...read more

A independent audit to be released on today projects that the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), a government agency that insures mortgages, will not have the cash reserves to pay all of its obligations, with the total shortfall amounting to about $16.3 billion. “This does not mean F.H.A. has insufficient cash to pay insurance claims, a current operating deficit or will need to immediately draw funds from the Treasury,” the report stressed. FHA insures more than $1 trillion in mortgages, but its reserves fell to below $3 billion last year making a Taxpayer bailout very likely. The coming report cites a number of additional weaknesses on the agency’s books. “We will continue to take aggressive steps to protect F.H.A.’s financial health while ensuring that F.H.A. continues to perform its historic role of providing access to homeownership for underserved communities and supporting the housing market during tough economic times,” said Carol J. Galante, its acting commissioner, in a statement. The F.H.A. “has weathered the storm of the recent economic and housing crisis by taking the most aggressive and sweeping actions in its history to reform risk management, credit policy, lender enforcement and consumer protections,” Shaun Donovan, the secretary of housing and urban development, said in a statement. Politicians in Washington, particularly Republicans, have voiced concerns that the agency could become a drain on the taxpayer, much like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Those two mortgage finance giants have not required additional taxpayer funding in recent quarters, as the housing market has stabilized. But they have nevertheless received about $190 billion in federal financing in the last four years. An agency release cites three reasons for its deteriorating financial position. Home prices have not risen as quickly as the administration’s actuaries expected. Low interest rates have weakened its books. The agency’s independent actuary used a “refined methodology this year to more precisely predict” its losses. More broadly, the agency is still struggling from the burst of the real estate bubble. By many measures, housing prices have only recently started to stabilize and increase. The rate of foreclosures remains high. _______________________ Mortgage Loan Compliance | The Forensic Loan Audit Company Proven Results That Work - Get The Facts, Audit Your Loan, Sue Your Lender and Protect Your Rights! Call Today 1-866-966-6615 or Visitwww.ml-compliance.com ...read more

Roy Oppenheim, Co-Founder of Oppenheim Law in Fort Lauderdale, Florida and creator of South Florida Law Blog recently noted some striking similarities in a fraud involving Facebook and one you may be facing today, Robo-Signing. Federal prosecutors have decided to indict Paul Ceglia, a fraudster, who tried to bilk Mark Zuckerberg, founder of the social network Facebook. Ceglia claimed he had a contract where Zuckerberg gave him half the company years ago in exchange for some program coding he did for the young college entrepreneur. In a press release announcing Celiga’s arrest, U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said after claiming that Celiga doctored, fabricated, and destroyed evidence involved with his initial lawsuit: "Ceglia's alleged conduct not only constitutes a massive fraud attempt, but also an attempted corruption of our legal system through the manufacture of false evidence. That is always intolerable." Oppenheim highlighted that - “if you simply removed Ceglia's name in that quote and replaced it with the name of almost any bank that has serviced a mortgage in the last five years, you would have the most succinct condemnation of the robosigning crisis to come out of the mouth of a federal official. Servicers, through their use of Linda Green and friends , were relying on fraudulent or non-existent documents in foreclosure after foreclosure, at a time when Facebook was still in its college-dorm infancy. The only difference here is Ceglia has been charged, yet we have not seen a single Wall Street banker criminally prosecuted, let alone any financial institutions. But make no mistake, the crimes bare some startling similarities.” If you’re wondering how exactly the feds are going after Ceglia, he is being charged with mail fraud and wire fraud. That is how they go after fraudsters when they have no other way to prosecute. So in essence, this case has provided Eric Schneiderman the blueprint on how to prosecute the banks. Get The Facts On Your Loan and Protect Your Rights! ______________________   Mortgage Loan Compliance | The Forensic Loan Audit Company Proven Results That Work - Get The Facts, Audit Your Loan, Sue Your Lender and Protect Your Rights! Call Today 1-866-966-6615 or Visitwww.ml-compliance.com   ...read more

States' approved uses for their Foreclosure Settlement shares range widely.  A National Conference of State Legislatures summary said Colorado's money is going for housing-related programs and services, Georgia is using its share for regional and rural economic development, and Nebraska's is being deposited in the state's rainy day fund. While critics say the money should be used to help mortgage borrowers, a lawyer for the state said Wednesday that Arizona is entitled to use $50 million of its share of a multistate foreclosure settlement paid by lenders to help balance the state budget because it's compensation for revenue lost due to the housing market collapse. "Everyone who pays taxes in this state has been affected by this foreclosure crisis," said Douglas Northrup, representing Attorney General Tom Horne. "It doesn't have to be put aside for a narrow subset of people who were in danger of losing their homes ..." Tim Hogan, an attorney challenging the $50 million transfer to the general fund disagreed, saying that's a legally shaky argument and that the money is intended for services and other uses directly related to mortgage foreclosures. "Just sticking money in the general fund doesn't improve or make better the foreclosure crisis," he said. "You're just spending money on state government." Arizona is not alone among states in using settlement money to prop up its budget, but other states have designated all or most of their shares to bolster or launch hotlines, financial counseling and other services and programs directly related to mortgage foreclosures. Hogan, an Arizona Center for Law in the Public Interest attorney, said the only compensation the state can claim is for direct costs, such as the expense of investigating lenders' mortgage practices. Judge Mark Brain of Maricopa County Superior Court said he'd rule within several weeks on the opposing sides' requests that he dismiss the lawsuit or block the transfer. The $50 million represents slightly more than half of the $98.8 million of Arizona's share of settlement money. Aside from the money provided to state governments, other pots of settlement money are intended to compensate or help borrowers. Much of the Arizona case centers on legal arguments about whether the challengers had a legal basis to sue and whether the Legislature could appropriate the money once Horne agreed to put it into a trust fund as part of the settlement. A similar turf issue is playing out in Florida where Attorney General Pam Bondi is feuding with the Legislature over who gets to decide how to spend that state's $334 million allotment. Bondi has insisted that she be allowed to spend the money without having to get prior approval from the Legislature, while lawmakers contend they have constitutional authority to spend the money. _______________________ Mortgage Loan Compliance | The Forensic Loan Audit Company Proven Results That Work - Get The Facts, Audit Your Loan, Sue Your Lender and Protect Your Rights! Call Today 1-866-966-6615 or Visitwww.ml-compliance.com ...read more

While we BBQ in Oregon, watched parades in Texas, and celebrated our Independence from the British rule a scandal was exploding in sync with the San Diego Fireworks finale. This brilliant display of Bank CEOs resigning, bank shares dropping more than 15%, and $450 million (dollars not pounds) in fines highlight just how dependent these United States are really to the Empire across the pond. You may have seen the word “LIBOR” before but not many people can explain it. The Libor (London Interbank Offered Rate) is a long established, widely used rate that can help determine how well the banking system is doing.  Most US student loans, mortgages, and car loan rates are often determined by the Libor.  About $10 trillion worth of US loans are indexed to Libor.  And if you have an adjustable-rate mortgage, you're more than likely paying the Libor rate, plus an additional interest payment. During the financial crisis Barclays started fudging the rate in an attempt to make the bank look more solid than it was. However, Barclays in reality had higher interest rates than most other competitors, and this has led to a flurry of investigations and negative publicity. This fraud was paramount during the financial crisis because when the LIBOR rate is relatively high compared to the Bank of England’s base rate, it can signal a level of distrust among banks, much like when credit-card companies charge higher rates to customers with little or poor credit.  The London base is especially important, since over 20% of international lending and 30% of foreign-exchange transactions are processed through London. Given the extensive reach of the Libor, it would seem critical that the rate be calculated in an impartial and transparent manner. But the opposite seems to have been the case as with most financial transactions of late. To view a great Timeline of this multiyear scandal and investigationclick here _______________________   Mortgage Loan Compliance | The Forensic Loan Audit Company Proven Results That Work - Get The Facts, Audit Your Loan, Sue Your Lender and Protect Your Rights! Call Today 1-866-966-6615 or Visitwww.ml-compliance.com ...read more

The Federal Reserve has posted a Public Service Announcement (PSA) video to inform homeowners of their rights to an independent review of their foreclosure files if they believe they were harmed by their Servicer.  This video briefly details that the “free” review is for homeowners whose primary residence was foreclosed on or was in the foreclosure process from January 2009 to December 2010. Other eligibility requirements apply as well. You can see the entire video in ourvideo library. This review can take up to several months, however it is free. Anna Alvarez Boyd, narrator and Federal Reserve employee, advises viewers to beware of persons trying to use the program to defraud them. Boyd also mentions that the programsdeadline has recently been extended to July 31, 2012.  Important details are missing from the video, specifically any information on why a homeowner might want to request a review (fraud) and there is also no mention of possible compensation. You will however receive a letter, eventually, with the results of the review. Get The Facts, Audit Your Loan, Sue Your Lender and Protect Your Rights! _______________________   Mortgage Loan Compliance | The Forensic Loan Audit Company Proven Results That Work - Get The Facts, Audit Your Loan, Sue Your Lender and Protect Your Rights! Call Today 1-866-966-6615 or Visitwww.ml-compliance.com ...read more