Green Tree Lack of HAFA Cooperation Bad Policy

Hello All,

 

We are dealing with what appears to be a common but nonetheless frustrating issue with Green Tree.  GT is the 2nd mortgagee on an approved Select Portfolio HAFA short sale; and despite GT's stated participation in the HAFA program, it refuses to accept the HAFA allotment for junior lienholders.  Instead, its representatives have stated that because the loan has been "charged off" they are not bound by the HAFA guidelines.

 

I have reached out to an acquaintence at the Dept. of Treasury to ask if this makes any sense to her.  My issue is pretty simple.  If this GT policy stands, as it seems to have, they could "charge off" every loan in junior position so that they are never forced to accept the HAFA allotment for junior lienholders.  Seems like a slippery slope, especially if other similarly situated servicers adopt this tactic.

 

Has anyone made any headway in these situations?  I will keep you posted on my discussion with the Treasury contact.

 

Best,

Chris Black

Attorney

Winged Foot Title, LLC

8695 College Parkway, Suite 2350

Fort Myers, Florida  33919

P:  (239) 985-4142

F:  (239) 425-3518

W:  www.wingedfoottitle.com

Blog:  www.homeclosingprocess.com

Twitter:  www.twitter.com/wingedfoottitle

FB:  www.facebook.com/wingedfoottitle

Views: 504

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Tiffany Abbiate on January 24, 2012 at 5:31pm

Remember that HAFA Is a Completely Voluntary program for any lien holder; 1st, 2nd, 3rd. There are plenty of lenders that don't participate at all; no one can be "forced" into participating. We recently received a HAFA Approval from Greentree on a 2nd lien -  they accepted the $6,000 payoff and are on their way. It is investor specific. Greentree, PNC, PHH are all 2nd lien holders that are famous for not accepting the typical HAFA Payoff for lien and deficiency release.

Permalink Reply by Kevin - Greenville, SC on January 24, 2012 at 7:24pm

The problem is when the do agree to participate, they SHOULD follow the Guidelines.

Permalink Reply by Smitty on January 25, 2012 at 2:44am

Yes, but keep in mind in the guidelines it does state that that the servicer can change any HAFA terms based on investor requirements.  So technically, if Greentree is stating the investor doesn't want to participate in this short sale, they are still "following guidelines" - HAFA is a joke and was only developed to protect lenders...not homeowners.

Permalink Reply by Chris Black on January 25, 2012 at 5:25am

Thanks, Tiffany.  We certainly understand that.  I'm with Kevin though and he made the point better than I.  If they are going to participate, it's good business practice to follow the guidelines.  Otherwise the participation is for the sake of convenience and PR and clearly insincere.

The point is that it's bad policy on a number of fronts.  First, wouldn't it be in Green Tree's best interest to participate in junior lien situations so that when the tables are turned - i.e., when they are in first lien position - others in their junior lien position may be willing to accept the HAFA allotment.  Second, considering that they have declared the account "charged off" and uncollectable, shouldn't they be grateful for the $6,000?  And third, the fact that this borrower has a HAFA-approval is a clear indication of their financial hardship.  Demanding more from them and/or using the prospect of deficiency judgment pursuit to do so is similarly poor form.

RSS

Members

© 2024   Created by Short Sale Superstars LLC.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service

********************************** like buttons ************************