I was thinking last night that I’d take the evening off, but this was too ridiculous to ignore.
We hear all kinds of stories of people having difficulties working with their lenders. No wonder- apparently some lenders can’t work with themselves. Case in point, this Fox News story of Wells Fargo suing, you’re not going to believe this, Wells Fargo. So why would they do that?
You can’t expect a bank that is dumb enough to sue itself to know why it is suing itself.
Yet I could not resist asking Wells Fargo Bank NA why it filed a civil complaint against itself in a mortgage foreclosure case in Hillsborough County, Fla.
"Due to state foreclosure laws, lenders are obligated to name and notify subordinate lien holders," said Wells Fargo spokesman Kevin Waetke.
Being a taxpayer-subsidized, too-big-to-fail institution, it’s possible that one of the few ways for Wells Fargo & Co. to know what it is doing is to notify itself with a court filing.
In this particular case, Wells Fargo holds the first and second mortgages on a condominium, according to Sarasota, Fla., attorney Dan McKillop, who represents the condo owner.
As holder of the first, Wells Fargo is suing all other lien holders, including the holder of the second, which is itself.
"The primary reason is to clear title and ownership interest in a property to prepare it for sale," Waetke said in an email exchange. "So it really is not Wells Fargo vs. Wells Fargo."
Yet court documents clearly label "Wells Fargo Bank NA" as the plaintiff and "Wells Fargo Bank NA" as a defendant.
This must be an isolated incidence, right? Wrong.
Tampa attorney Kristofer Fernandez, said he’s seen several cases where a large bank has sued itself for foreclosure as the holder of both first and second mortgages.
"Four or five years ago, you would have never seen this," Fernandez said. "Now, it’s very common."
In the final years of the housing boom, banks were lending to homeowners with no money down. To do this, they often made 80/20 loans, giving homeowners an 80% first mortgage and a 20% second mortgage.
Now, it seems these moronic mortgages require moronic foreclosures.
If lenders can’t work with themselves and have to sue to straighten out a mortgage, how can anyone else expect to work with them?
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This is actually pretty common Twist. All potential lien holders must get constructive notice of an action. It is not uncommon to have a bunch of mechanics liens on a house from repairs and construction companies, etc. WF may be acting in two different fiduciary duties too with respect to the first and second notes. The article wasn’t clear in what capacity WF was acting (servicer, note holder, or both).
It is funny though if you ever go to a hearing and the court asks who represents what parties. In some states it can even be the same law firm or attorney.
I once sold a house in Minnesota and moved to Las Vegas with a $50,000 WF bank check and my new WF bank put a 10 day funds hold on it to clear. I really hate to see tax funds assisting these operations. Igor thinks they’re lame
I won’t blame
anybody else
when I face forclosure
I’ll sue myself
It makes perfect sense to me, assuming I was a lawyer. By representing both sides, I can collect twice the pay, but at the same time eliminating any possibility that I can lose. Twice the pay for half the work, sweet deal! And, it won’t even cost the company any more money, since taxpayer dollars can go to cover the costs.
I mean, isn’t America the land of opportunity and all that? We should applaud these guys for making their own opportunities..
*sigh*