October 3, 2013

Several of our clients have recently received letters from Ocwen Loan Servicing in response to inquiries as to who owns the homeowner’s loan. The response from Ocwen is a form letter, which states: “There is no single investor of the loan. The loan is one of many in a securitized investment trust (with name of the trust). Ocwen is the servicer of the loan, and not necessarily the owner of the loan. Although the ownership of the loan may change, the ownership has no bearing on the servicing of the loan.”

Look at that series of admissions very carefully. We know that Ocwen is a servicer, and is never an “owner” of a loan. A servicer is (allegedly) working to service the loan on behalf of some owner. Who is that owner? Ocwen does not know, and admits that the ownership may change.

Servicing rights are conveyed by a servicing contract. Who is Ocwen working for? It does not say. What rights have been conferred upon Ocwen by whoever owns the loan? Ocwen does not say. What amount is the owner claiming is owed and under what facts? Ocwen does not say.

Ocwen does admit that the loan was securitized. This admission implicates all of the securitization issues, including authority of the servicer, whether the loan was properly transferred to the trust, whether there were any paydowns or payoffs of the note through insurances, credit default swaps, reserve pools, etc. depending on the current state of the law in whatever jurisdiction a foreclosure is pending. As you know, some states have case law which permits inquiry into the issues; some do not; and some are undecided.

This letter alone warrants intensive discovery in any foreclosure case in view of the admissions of Ocwen, which admissions generate a wealth of issues of fact for discovery and trial as well.

Thank you, Ocwen!

Jeff Barnes, Esq., www.ForeclosureDefenseNationwide.com