In early May, JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, and Wells Fargo drastically slowed sales of foreclosures to nearly a halt. Regulations have been revised and new guidelines have been presented, mainly of the treatment of troubled borrowers during the last 60 days before losing a home.

Three banks - JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, and Wells Fargo - paused sales on late-stage foreclosures to ensure guideline accordance. For example, sales in the five Western states for Wells Fargo, the largest servicer, went from 298 to 17 in one week, reported by PropertyRadar. Bank of America, however, continued foreclosure sales without any delays.

“We manage our mortgage servicing operations in compliance with all laws, regulations and standards for sound business practices,” reported a Bank of America statement released in May 2013.

The 13 large mortgage servicers that have been under fire in recent years are still under scrutiny. A recent challenge has been continued compliance with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. The latest changes were slight, but very specific. Changes included:

• Adjustments to minimum guidelines
• Timing procedures to prevent wrongful foreclosures
• Robo-signing preventions

While these banks halted foreclosure sales, they are putting their resources toward researching new regulations and documenting their compliance.

As banks and real estate professionals are under the microscope like never before, it’s more important than ever for accountability and seeking after trustworthy vendors. Blue Streak Docs is a document retrieval company, specializing in deed searches, property title searches, and document recording. We take pride in focusing on the details so our clients can see the big picture! For more information about our services, give us a call today at 727-479-0007.