JPMorgan Chase Mortgage Foreclosure in Violation of FHA Requirements Class Action

People make painstaking payments over many years to pay off a mortgage, but it may take only a short run of difficulty to undo it all and lead to the disaster of foreclosure. The complaint for this class action claims that JPMorgan Chase Bank, NA foreclosed on the home of plaintiffs Dhimiter Llori and Natalia Hoshovsky before it was legally permitted to do so.

Plaintiff Llordi and Hoshovsky took out a mortgage on a property in Quincy, MA in December 2011. The mortgage was originated by MetLife Bank, NA. The paperwork on the mortgage indicates it was insured by the Federal Housing Authority (FHA); the plaintiffs claim that the interest in the note was transferred to the Government National Mortgage Association, or Ginnie Mae.

In December 2015, the complaint says that the mortgage was assigned to Chase. In March 2018, Chase notified the plaintiffs that their mortgage had “been accelerated” and that it would foreclose in May.

However, the complaint claims that all FHA standard mortgage contracts contain a paragraph 9(d) that states that a lender’s rights to require immediate payment in full, and to foreclose, will be limited by regulations issued by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

The complaint then cites 24 CFR 203.604, a regulation which requires that a mortagee must have a face-to-face interview with the mortgagor, or make a reasonable effort to do so, before three monthly installments on the mortgage go unpaid.

The meeting is not required under certain circumstances: if the mortgagor does not live at the property; if the property is not within 200 miles of the mortgagee or a branch office; the mortgagor has clearly indicated that he will not cooperate in such an interview; a repayment plan has been entered into, rendering the meeting unnecessary; or a reasonable effort to arrange such a meeting is unsuccessful.

The complaint contends that Chase did not hold any such meeting and that none of the above conditions apply. In foreclosing, the complaint says, Chase has breached its contract as well as its covenants of good faith and fair dealing and reasonable diligence.

The class for this action is all homeowners or former homeowners,

With whom defendants JPMorgan Chase Bank, Rushmore, or US Bank failed to have a face-to-face interview with the mortgagor, or failed to make a reasonable effort to arrange such a meeting, before three full monthly installments due on the mortgage when unpaid,

• Whose properties were within 200 miles of a branch office of the defendants,
• Who occupied the mortgaged property as their primary residence,
• Who never indicated that they would not cooperate with such an interview,
• Who did not enter into a repayment plan to bring their accounts current,
• Thus making defendants’ actions a breach of mortgage contract paragraph 9(d) and 24 CFR 203.604(b).

Article Type: Lawsuit
Topic: Consumer
Tags: Foreclosure, Mortgage-Related Unfair Practices, Your Bank