Legal Fees Campaign
 Homeowners have gone directly to several mortgage lawyers' offices to ask "Why are your fees so high?" |
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Legal Fees
Reasonable legal fees from foreclosure attorneys whose fees often keep homeowners from catching up on their mortgage Foreclosure attorneys are charging thousands of dollars for often minimal effort to families facing foreclosure. Simple filings can cost $1,500 to $2,000 and costs can go up from there. Homeowners must pay these fees before they can resolve their default, often being a major contributor to loss of the home. Foreclosure fees must be reduced and based on actual costs, not inflated to earn big profits at the expense of desperate families
Homeowners Force Down Legal Fees
Pup's Foreclosure Crisis Committee met with Larry Phelan and Banking Secretary William Schenck on May 26, 2004 at the offices of Community Legal Services. Phelan is a partner in the state's largest foreclosure law firm, Federman and Phelan. Legal fees charged by the mortgage company are often higher than back mortgage payments for families facing foreclosure.
Homeowners strongly demanded that Phelan reduce his legal fees and costs to a maximum of $969 for families facing foreclosures. They also demanded that Dawn McKann and her family have their legal fees reduced so they can qualify for a payment plan with their mortgage company.
Phelan agreed to a major reduction in his fees and agreed to waive all of Dawn's fees so that their home would be saved. They had been scheduled for sale on June 8, 2004.
Later, following an article about the Phelan agreement the firm of McCabe, Weisberg and Conway agreed to reduce their fees also.
Goldbeck firm waives fees for family and reduces fees in general
Members of the Philadelphia Unemployment Project's Foreclosure Crisis Committee and supporters to the firm of Goldbeck, McCafferty and McKeever on Wednesday, June 23 to demand that the firm accept a payment plan for legal fees that will force the Sheriff Sale of FCC member Judith Santos home in August. Ms Santos has 4 children and a grandchild living in the home. The mortgage company has offered a workout plan on her FHA mortgage, but the attorney's fees are being demanded in advance before the plan can be put into practice. See a history of negotiations to save the family home.
Legal fees and costs are a major obstacle to families trying to
save their homes from foreclosure. PUP has charged that legal
fees are out of proportion to the legal work actually done and
is demanding that fees be reduced.
The Santos family had requested a payment plan from Goldbeck for
their legal fees, but the firm is requiring $1,600 to be paid
at once. The family currently does not have the funds and is listed
for the August Sheriff Sale. All legal fees for Judith Santos
were waived following the meeting between Pups Foreclosure Crisis
Committee and Michael McKeever of Goldbeck, McCafferty and McKeever.
Her house has been pulled from the Sheriff Sale list and McKeever
will make sure that she gets the partial claim assistance that
was withdrawn by Midland Mortgage when his firm's legal fees were
an obstacle to a workout. Over 30 homeowners met with McKeever
following a brief hearing before Judge Rizzo.
McKeever also agreed to reduce fees his firm charges homeowners
for legal fees and costs in a foreclosure to $969. This is dramatically
below current figures. Ms. Santos's fees, for example for a simple
foreclosure were over $4,300. We are still working out the mechanism
for the new fees, but they will cover all homeowners eligible
for OHCD counseling (family of four is $54,000.) The Goldbeck
firm is one of the largest foreclosure firms in Philadelphia.
Homeowners celebrated the victory at PUP's weekly Foreclosure Crisis Committee Meeting.