Every year, hundreds of people and companies are sued on debts and delinquent mortgages. Some of these actions are, of course, legitimate and very much actionable. However, plenty of others are false, fabricated, and bring about a lot of unnecessary physical and financial stress and anxiety for the affected parties.
If you or anyone you know has been served with a foreclosure notice, or you fear that you may be served one, it is important that you understand your legal rights and the possible answers, affirmative defenses, and/or counterclaims that may be filed on your behalf by an experienced Florida foreclosure defense attorney.
The following list of legal defenses may be available to you and/or your loved ones when combating a foreclosure. This list is not meant to be exhaustive and some of the listed defenses may not be applicable to your case.
- Estoppels in the nature of equitable, promissory and/or collateral.
- Action being barred by the statute of limitation as applicable under the state laws.
- Action being barred by the statute of fraud as applicable under the state laws.
- Unclean hands.
- Payment of the mortgage.
- Misrepresentation.
- Right of rescission.
- Note being unenforceable as applicable under the state law.
- The foreclosing party failing to notify you of any assignment well within the time limit of thirty (30) days.
- The foreclosing party is not the genuine party of interest in the matter and hence is barred from making any claims against you or your loved ones.
- You or your loved ones did not contract with, or consent to bring about, any obligation to the foreclosing party; and hence the foreclosing party is barred from making any claims against you.
- You did not buy or generally come into legitimate ownership of any record involving the foreclosing party.
- Failure of applicable contractual precedence and absence of notice of default.
- Absence of any HUD counseling notice.
- Unlawful charges added to balance.
- No good faith and fair dealing.
- Inadmissible loan servicing.
- Failure of the foreclosing party to submit servicing of residential mortgage loan as per the controlling servicing requirements, before filing the foreclosure action.
I Can Just Fight the Foreclosure Myself, Right?
You have the right to defend yourself on a pro se basis. Every citizen has that right. Is it the best option to protect your rights and come out victorious against the foreclosing party? Probably not. Remember, many foreclosure companies are staffed by experienced professionals and lawyers who focus solely on litigating foreclosure cases. You will be putting yourself at a disadvantage by trying to fight them on your own.
Contact an Experienced Foreclosure Defense Lawyer Today
If you or a loved one receive a foreclosure notice from a big bank or mortgage company, do not give up hope. You have the ability to fight the foreclosure with the help of an experienced, aggressive foreclosure defense law firm. Contact Hoffman, Larin & Agnetti, PA today. This highly experienced Florida foreclosure defense law firm offers a free consultation and extremely reasonable payment plans.
