(Published in the Spring/Summer of 2010 Newsletter)
If your mortgage lender gets into economic trouble, gets taken over or goes bankrupt, this normally changes nothing in terms of your responsibility to make payments on your mortgage, but can affect other things. Although your mortgage lender still has to honor your note and mortgage, and the new mortgage lender has to if there is a take over, you will receive a notice to send your mortgage payments to a different company and/or different address. You will need to make sure that this new lender and/or new address are legitimate and accurate BEFORE sending your payments
If you are refinancing or selling your home or otherwise paying off your mortgage obligation, and your lender is experiencing financial difficulties, there are certain precautions that must be taken to make sure that the mortgage obligation is properly marked paid and is properly satisfied in the public records. Also, if you escrow your taxes and homeowner's insurance your mortgage lender may not automatically refund you any excess. You should verify your escrow balances periodically and make sure that your taxes have been properly paid from that escrow account. Never forget that even if you escrow taxes and homeowner's insurance with your lender, the ultimate responsibility to pay those things is yours.
You really need your attorney to be involved anytime you are buying, selling or refinancing your home as there are many complications involved in these deceptively simple-appearing transactions.
Like all these questions, if there is any doubt, please contact our real estate attorneys for help and advice.
Menges & McLaughlin, P.C.
www.YourLawFirmForLife.com
NOTE: The contents of this Newsletter are not intended to be, nor should they be taken as, specific legal advice as each situation is different. Please contact a lawyer with any questions you may have.
The attorneys at Menges & McLaughlin, P.C. can help. Contact us now by calling, toll free, 1-866-464-5297.
