Foreclosure Lock-Outs Go Unreported

We have been reporting on the booming foreclosure industry for a while and the "trashing out" of the American dream.  We are learning that illegal lock-outs are a lot more common than we had thought.  An illegal lock-out occurs when the lender and its proeprty management company break into a home and change all the locks despite having no legal right to do so.  Illegal lock-outs are happening all over the country -- from Massachusetts to Ohio to Arizona to New Jersey to Florida.

We have been telling homeowners and borrowers that the lenders, servicers and "lock-out" companies have big problems communicating with one another during the foreclosure process.  Our suspicions seem to have been confirmed by what appears to be an American Banker article posted on Safeguard Properties' website with a title "Seizing the Wrong Home: Rare, But a PR Nightmare."  The following quote appeared in the article:  "'It's what you call a new weakness,' said Joe Bada, chief executive of Five Brothers Mortgage Co. Services and Securing Inc., a Warren, Mich., company that inspects and manages foreclosed properties for lenders. 'There's just so much happening at the same time. The means of communicating haven't been refined. Information is not moving fast enough from one department to the other.'"

This communication gap results in borrowers and homeowners being locked out of their homes for no valid legal reason.  The article infers that these illegal lock-outs are rare, but are they really that rare?  Who is keeping the statistics on the number of illegal lock-outs and seizures of homes?  The lender, the servicers and their "trash-out" companies are not exactly disclosing these stats.  Is the Treasury keeping track or even listening?  Borrowers and homeowners often feel helpless and victimized when an illegal trash-out occurs.  We represent borrowers and homeowners who have been illegally locked-out of their homes and not a single lender, servicer or "trash-out" company has paid the borrowers and homeowners the damages they deserve until they've hired the right lawyer.