The Daily Business Review’s Terry Sheridan called Oppenheim Law to talk about how loan auditors are becoming a hot commodity in helping homeowners with today’s foreclosure maze.
Here is the full story as seen in the May 5th issue of the Daily Business Review.
Loan auditors review contracts for mistakes, but critics question usefulness
A mid growing efforts to help home owners avoid foreclosure, loan auditors are elbowing for a seat at the table.
Attorneys and home owners hire the companies for $500 to $1,000 to comb through mortgage documents for questionable disclosures or improper fees that could be used to delay or prevent foreclosure. And some loan auditors say they will trace ownership of a loan note. The document is critical, because without that paper trail, a lender can’t foreclose.
“They are the latest cottage industry to spring up because of the housing and financial downturn,” said real estate and foreclosure attorney Roy Oppenheim of Oppenheim Pilelsky in Weston.
How many auditors exist isn’t certain, and the companies aren’t licensed or regulated. As for their services, no one seems able to agree on how useful audits are.
Oppenheim says at some time he may use an auditor. But for now, his clients don’t want to spend the money.
“We get hired to handle a foreclosure, not a counterclaim against a bank,” he said.
On the other hand, foreclosure defense attorney Peter Ticktin of the Ticktin Law Group in Deerfield Beach said he believes fighting the banks on behalf of his clients is exactly why auditors are essential.
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