South Florida lenders are engaging in predatory practices leaving homeowners with legal costs they do not owe. These lenders are bring foreclosure actions, which ultimately are dismissed and then unbeknownst to the homeowner, unilaterally add their attorney’s fees to the homeowner’s mortgage causing a higher mortgage and often a default. See the story on NBC 6 news in which Jon Herskowitz represents a number of these victims.
As explained in this article by NBC’s Miami affiliate, the practice is a violation of Florida’s Consumer Collection Practices Act because banks are enforcing a debt they know are not legitimate.
One victim of such practices is Miami local, Zacarias Cabrera. He has fought for nearly 10 years to save his home from foreclosure and he’s won every battle to date. But now he faces a different tactic from the banks: they’re tacking attorney fees onto his mortgage balance.
What adds even more insult to injury—the fees are not legally justified, according to Cabrera’s attorneys. Under Florida law, a plaintiff has to win a lawsuit before a court orders payment for attorney fees and costs. In Cabrera’s case and many others, the foreclosures were dismissed—not won—yet the bank unilaterally assessed fees without the knowledge of the homeowners that range from hundreds to thousands of dollars.
If you feel that you have been a victim of predatory practices by a lender or their servicer, please contact Jon Herskowitz at Baron, Herskowitz, and Cohen.
