Property Law Developments—Joseph William Singer

Litigation concerning subprime mortgages granted by Countrywide Financial Corp. (now owned by Bank of America) has been settled in Massachusetts. Attorney General Martha Coakley obtained agreement to lower the principal amount owed by borrowers whose properties are worth less than the outstanding debt (so-called “under water properties”) by as much as 30 percent. Some borrowers who lost their homes through foreclosure of such mortgages may get some compensation from a $2.4 million fund set up for that purpose. The agreement will provide about $18 million in mortgage help for Massachusetts homeowners and it  is part of a wider nationwide settlement that will provide about $3 billion to 45,000 homeowners across the nation. The settlement builds on a 2008 agreement between Bank of America and numerous state attorneys general to provide loan modifications for certain borrowers. read article