Articles

The New York Governor finally signed into law the New York Foreclosure Abuse Prevention Act (FAPA) which may allow thousands of NY homeowners to dismiss their existing foreclosure lawsuits and possibly eliminate the mortgages on their homes. FAPA overturns the NY Court of Appeals’ decision in Engel, which allowed mortgage lenders to suspend the 6-year statute […]

State officials have complained to the Federal Housing Administration that mortgage servicers are not offering FHA loan modification programs to homeowners who are behind in their mortgage payments due to the COVID pandemic. The FHA introduced these loan modification programs and required mortgage servicers to offer these programs starting October 21, 2021. State officials have […]

New York State has expanded the eviction moratorium until May 1, 2021. However, tenants must fill out a form declaring they are experiencing financial hardship because of COVID, or that being evicted from their premises would constitute a health risk to members of their household. The form must be submitted, under penalties of perjury, to […]

Effective October 23, 2020, all residential and commercial foreclosures may proceed in the New York State Courts. Unfortunately, that means that foreclosure sales will be scheduled to begin soon. If you have a federally-backed mortgage or a Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac mortgage, single-family foreclosures are stayed until December 31, 2020. But remember, the CARES […]

Starting October 12, 2020, the NYS courts allowed all landlord-tenant proceedings to resume. Court conferences are also taking place. If you are experiencing a COVID-19 related hardship, you may present this to the court as a defense against eviction under the NY eviction moratorium and the New York State Safe Harbor Act. Rent is still […]

The federal stimulus package, which is also called the CARES Act, directs the IRS to send you a stimulus check. Under the CARES Act, your stimulus check is specifically exempt from being counted as income in your Bankruptcy case. However, once you file a Bankruptcy case, the expectation of your stimulus check and the actual […]

By: Allen A. Kolber, Esq.  Last week the Federal Bankruptcy Judge in White Plains, NY issued a warning that many people are filing emergency Bankruptcy cases to stop foreclosure sales.  The Bankruptcy Court warned that these individuals were abusing the system by paying only a partial filing fee, failing to file the required documents and […]

Bankruptcy Courts start to chisel away at the non-dischargeability of student loans: Under the Bankruptcy Code, Congress created certain exceptions to discharge of debt.   Student loans are specifically excepted from discharge under Sections 523(a)(8)(A)(ii) and 523(a)(8)(B): “(a) A discharge under section 727,1141,1228(a),1228(b), or1328(b)of this title does not discharge an individual debtor from any debt— (8) […]

Under the current NY law, every Foreclosure lawsuit that affects a residential property must be assigned to the Foreclosure Settlement Conference Part before the bank can proceed to the actual Foreclosure and Sale.  The purpose of the Settlement process is to allow the Homeowner to apply for a loan modification, and to require the bank […]

DEFENDING A FORECLOSURE LAWSUIT – 101 WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU ARE SERVED WITH A FORECLOSURE LAWSUIT A foreclosure lawsuit is like any other lawsuit.  It is the same as being sued for a personal injury or breach of contract case.  Under NY law, when a person is sued, she has 20-30 days to “Answer” […]

Bankruptcy Advice…….. Bankruptcy and your Credit Score: Four common myths surrounding Bankruptcy: Bankruptcy will destroy my credit forever – false I will not be able to get credit for the next 10 years – false I will never be able to lease a car or get a car loan – false I will never be […]

BANKRUPTCY IS NOT A FOUR-LETTER WORD By Allen A. Kolber, Esq. I usually try to write articles that are substantive and informative, but this week I need to rage against the machine a little bit. I am a bankruptcy attorney.  My business card and the sign in my office prominently display the fact that I […]

Bankruptcy Advice…….. Filing for Bankruptcy protection is called getting a “Fresh Start”.  I also tell people that filing a Bankruptcy case is a “Last Resort”. Unless you are facing an absolute emergency such as a foreclosure sale, warrant of eviction, or bank restraint involving a large sum of money, every client should think long and […]

Bankruptcy Advice…….. Stripping off Real Estate Holdings in a Bankruptcy Case During the real estate boom in the 2000’s, many of my clients purchased small groups of real estate holdings in Upstate New York or New Jersey.  These were either multi-dwelling housing or small commercial businesses for $50,000 to $60,000 apiece.  Aside from the rental […]