Too many consumers think they can just handle their foreclosure case by themselves, but WATCH OUT!
In a month-long period beginning June 1, about 110 lawsuits were filed in Palm Beach County against former homeowners by a Texas-based debt collection company named Dyck O’Neal. The same firm filed more than 300 cases in Broward County and nearly 200 in Miami-Dade County.
The lawsuits seek to collect deficiency judgments — the balance left on borrowers’ unpaid mortgages after deducting for what was recouped at a home’s foreclosure sale.
Homeowner attorneys interviewed by The Palm Beach Post were surprised to learn that Dyck O’Neal is filing on behalf of federal mortgage backer Fannie Mae, which has stepped up its efforts to collect back mortgage debt.
Until now, deficiency judgments were so rarely sought that many homeowners gambled the banks would never come after them — walking away from homes they could afford but that were so underwater the investment no longer made sense.
