Logo Design 2 of 2

Here are two others.

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logo design 1 of 2

Please comment on my potential logo.  There are three variations.  Thanks!

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Deficiency Judgments in South Carolina

Ignorance regarding deficiency judgments can cause both unnecessary worry and unncesessary harm if you do not act accordingly and with legal counsel. 

A deficiency is the difference between what the court says you owe on a mortgage and what the property sells for at a foreclosure sale.  South Carolina is a one action state.  That means that the action to foreclose and the action to obtain a deficiency judgment is the same legal action.   The first place to look is the complaint for foreclosure.  The deficiency is either demanded or waived.  If it is not expressly waived, then it is still demanded by the lender.  You can tell if it is waived by reading the Complaint.  Normally the first page of the complaint will have the words “Deficiency Demanded” or “Deficiency Waived” in the caption under the words complaint.  This will be to the right of the list of parties. 

If the deficiency is waived, the plaintiff cannot then later request a deficiency.  The only remedy a lender has in that action is to sell the house for full satisfaction of the debt.  They cannot later seek any more money on that debt.  (This does not include second mortgages and guarantees and other situations.  You will need to seek counsel for your specifi case.  You may owe taxes, but that is a subject for your CPA.)

If the lender is requesting a deficiency, then that means they will sell the house, obtain a judgment for the differnece in sale price and the amount owed, and then go after you for payment on the judgment.  There is no uniformity on banks and lenders as to which way they will go.   Most people believe only way to get rid of the deficiency after the sale is to pay it off or to file bankruptcy. 

South Carolina gives mortgagors Appraisal Rights.  This means that they can request an appraisal be conducted and that the higher of either the appraised value of the property or the foreclosure sale price  be applied to the debt.  This could either eliminate or reduce the judgment.  Appraisal rights are somewhat technical and you should consult counsel before trying to deal with these issues on your own.

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Sen. Lindsey Graham considers Nationalizing the Banks

http://is.gd/jHJl

Lindsey Graham, ostensibly a republican and from South Carolina, said that he would consider nationalizing the banks.  How far are we going to get from the free market that has brought us success?  Can anyone point to a nationalized project that has been successful—in any country?  I’d be interested to see that.

I realize that we are in a crisis with the high rate of bank failures and foreclosures, but this is not time to ruin everything that has made this country work for so long.

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The Summons–don’t ignore it.

Imagine you’r in the kitchen, trying to figure out what you’re going to eat for dinner.  Your husband’s not home yet and the kids are watching TV.  There’s a knock at your door.  You open it and there is a man or a woman casually dressed with a bundle of papers in hand. 

“Are you Mrs. X?” the person asks. 

“Yes,” you respond, crossing your arms as you stand in the doorway.  Your stomach dropping and your stance stiffening. 

“Does Mr. X live here as well?” they ask.

“Yes, he’s my husband,” you respond, thinking “what an ubsurd question. Get to the point!”

“I have to give you these papers.  One set is for you and the other for your husband.  I’m serving you with a Notice and Summons and a Complaint.  Have a good day.”  And the man or woman turns around a leaves you holding what is the beginning of a legal proceeding against you that may end in you losing your house. 

the documents look something like this:

STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA		IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS
COUNTY OF CHARLESTON		CASE NO.: 2009-CP-10-XXXXX
BANK NAME (MAYBE REALLY LONG AND FOREIGN TO YOU WITH WORDS LIKE POOLING AGREEMENT AND NUMBERS),
Plaintiff(s)
vs.		SUMMONS
YOU AND YOUR LOVED ONES.		Non-Jury Foreclosure Deficiency  (DEMANDED?/ Waived?)
Defendant(s).

TO THE DEFENDANT(S) ABOVE NAMED:

 

YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED and required to answer the Complaint in this action, a copy of which is herewith served upon you, and to serve a copy of your Answer on the undersigned at their offices located at LAWFIRM THAT WANTS YOUR HOUSE, within thirty (30) days after the service thereof, exclusive of the date of service; except that the United States of America, if named, shall have sixty (60) days to answer after service hereof, exclusive of  the date of service; and if you fail to do so, judgment by default will be rendered against you for the relief demanded in the Complaint. 

 

 

 

This is what a summons will look like, roughly.  Many will have additional text but if you read it carefully you will notice you only have 30 days to respond.  What this means is that if you do not respond, everything in the complaint that is attached ot the Summons will be taken as TRUE.  You need to seek experieced legal counsel and advice to decide how to deal with this problem. 

Many put the papers down without reading them and don’t realize that they require action within 30 days.  Those people may end up oweing more money than necessary and may end up losing their house more quickly than necessary. 

DO NOT IGNORE THE SUMMONS.

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Good News or More of the Same?

Companies are finding ways to increase revenue in troubled times and they are selling the one commodity that is the rarest: comfort.  Honda and Gandy Homes are making what seem to be very generous and humanitarian offers.  But do the offers really hold up and would they really benefit the consumer?   The honda offer to repurchase a new car for the value is not a good deal. 

First, how is the value determined?  Second, most new cars that are financed are upside down.  You give up your car, but you still owe money on it.  That seems like a raw deal to me. 

Gandy Homes is offering to pay your mortgage for 12 months if you lose your job.  If it is a two income household, they will pay half.  I’d like more details, but I kind of like this plan.  It is a realistic treatment of the current market situation.  The real question is if the obligation would survive bankruptcy of Gandy Homes (IF they did file, I’d say “No.”)  or whether or not Gandy will still be around in 2 years.  That being said, It would offer some comfort that you won’t lose your new home if you get laid off tomorrow.  In a state with unempoyment flirting with 9.5% this could be a good thing. 

The DANGER of both of these offers is that it seeks to get around the unreasonable fear some people are having but may also override the reasonable fear that we need to return to.  It is the illusion of comfort that got us into this mess in the first place.  We all need to return to individual risk management and not expect that someone else will bail us out on it.  Gandy, for example, could be allowing its self to be dragged under by this offer if too many bad loans are made.  I don’t think this is truly good news.  It is just more of the same attitude that got us in this possitionin the first place.

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