Dodd-Frank Act – a primer from Korte & Wortman, P.A.

The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (known by the common term of the Dodd-Frank Act) has had a profound effect on lending practices here in Florida, particularly since the Mortgage Reform and Anti-Predatory Lending Act section (Title XIV) was enacted early in 2014. This groundbreaking piece of legislation is meant “to assure that consumers are offered and receive residential mortgage loans on terms that reasonably reflect their ability to repay the loans and that are understandable, and not unfair, deceptive or abusive,” according to its creators.

Part of this legislation’s mission is to amend both the Truth-in-Lending Act (“TILA”) and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (“RESPA”). The Dodd-Frank Act requires that a lender in a residential owner-financed transaction must determine at the time credit is extended that the buyer/borrower has a “reasonable” ability to repay the loan. If the lender did not properly investigate your credit worthiness, your lender could be subject to fines and other penalties.

Therefore, if you have entered into a mortgage contract since the beginning of 2014 and are now facing foreclosure, bankruptcy, or some other form of financial distress that is threatening your property, then you need to seek out a knowledgeable defense lawyer to discuss all of the legal options you have available to you.

In addition, you may be entitled to refunds or other financial benefits if your loan did not disclose many different pieces of information to you, including deficiencies in the home like Chinese drywall; hidden penalties for prepayment of your mortgage; or other information that may have altered the value of the home.

At Korte & Wortman, P.A. we have attorneys who are well-versed in the Dodd-Frank Act mortgage reform legislation that was enacted in 2014. We have already been able to help clients navigate this legislation to get the money they deserve from lenders who have tried to take advantage of them in the form of fees, hidden charges and other predatory lending practices.

Our South Florida firm is one of the few in the state that handles cases involving legislation in the new Mortgage Reform and Anti-Predatory Lending Act.

To learn more about the Dodd-Frank Act please visit this page on our website at http://foreclosurefactor.com/the-dodd-frank-act/ or call us directly at (561) 544-7071 for foreclosure prevention or defense against any lender who may have violated your rights under the rules of the Mortgage Reform and Anti-Predatory Lending Act throughout the State of Florida. We can help you TODAY!

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau offers database of consumer complaints to the public for first time

As part of our Federal Government’s effort to step up protection of you, the consumer, in the wake of the financial crisis we endured in 2008 and 2009, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) was created as part of the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act. The CFPB’s website was opened in July of 2011. For the first time in June of this year the website, www.consumerfinance.gov made consumer complaints public:

According to Assistant Director Scott Pluta in a blog he released on June 25^th, “Today, for the first time, we are making consumers’ complaint narratives – the heart and soul of the complaints we receive – public. These narratives are important because they tell the story of what happened in the consumers’ own words. Making these consumer narratives public, amplifies the voice of the consumer.”

The release of these individual complaint submissions has been made public through a new forum called the “Consumer Complaint Database”. For the last 3 years the website had been sharing data compiled from consumer complaints to the public, but not the individual complaints themselves. The CFPB Assistant Director stated that the agency had been working on publishing the individual narratives for several years as the majority of the 627,000 consumers submitting complaints (approximately 59%) had said they wanted their experiences to be shared with the public.

Assistant Director Pluta stated, “After four and a half years of hard work, I am proud that the Consumer Complaint Database is now a reality. It reflects the commitment of our amazing team of dedicated public servants to empower consumers to make better decisions for themselves and their families. And now that it’s in your hands, it will help the financial marketplace run more fairly for all Americans.”

Visit the Consumer Complaint Database to read about consumers’ experiences, and if you’re facing a problem with a financial service or product you can submit a complaint and add your voice to the database: http://www.consumerfinance.gov/complaintdatabase/

The Frank-Dodd Act in 2010 was enacted to help protect the rights of consumers. One part of Frank-Dodd created the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in 2011. This agency is offering help to millions of consumers who need a voice for protection against predatory lenders and lending practices.  The foreclosure and bankruptcy defense attorneys at Korte & Wortman, P.A. in West Palm Beach have the knowledge and information to help you to utilize the Dodd-Frank Act if you feel that you have been exploited by a predatory lender.

If you are in West Palm Beach, Ft. Lauderdale, Clearwater or anywhere else in the state of Florida and in need of a law firm knowledgeable about the Dodd-Frank Act, then contact us at Korte & Wortman, P.A. Korte & Wortman, P.A. is a law firm specializing in all aspects of real estate law, includingth Dodd-Frank Act. In addition to using this blog as a helpful resource, please contact us directly if you have any questions or current legal issues in any type of real estate transaction. Our home office is based in West Palm Beach, at 2041 Vista Parkway, Suite 102. You can call us at (561) 544-7071, stop in to our office, email us at vdinapoli@kwlawfirm.com or come to our website at http://www.foreclosurefactor.com. Our firm represents clients throughout the state of Florida and across the eastern seaboard. We also have offices in Sunrise and Clearwater, Florida.

We look forward to helping you get the legal advice that you need in all real estate, foreclosure, bankruptcy and credit card situations.