Wednesday, February 09, 2011

The Tentacle - Kevin Dayhoff: Veteran Foreclosures – A National Disgrace http://tinyurl.com/4cuxb78

February 9, 2011

Veteran Foreclosures – A National Disgrace http://tinyurl.com/4cuxb78

Kevin E. Dayhoff

The Soldiers' and Sailors' Civil Relief Act (SSCRA) of 1940 was passed into law just prior to World War II to provide certain legal protections for members of the military in such matters as civil actions, foreclosures, and bankruptcy caused by lengthy absences from home while on duty.

Never heard of this law? Well, you are not alone. Apparently some of the nation’s largest financial institutions – that should know the law – have never heard of it, either.

Just last Thursday, The New York Times carried a front-page story involving an Iraq veteran who lost his home through foreclosure.

What is particularly upsetting about the story is that it is alleged that the servicemember had his home taken away from him in violation of a law intended to protect active military personnel from creditors, according to The Times. “(A)gents of Deutsche Bank foreclosed on his small Michigan house, forcing Sergeant Hurley’s wife, Brandie, and her two young children to move out and find shelter elsewhere…”

The Iraq and Afghanistan wars have seen our nation utilize a large number of reservists and National Guard men and women in uniform. The deployments have often caused financial hardships, especially when military personnel find themselves trying to make ends meet on military pay that is far less than what they make in their civilian lives.

The New York Times article notes: “Even though some of the nation’s military families have been sending their breadwinners into war zones for almost a decade, some of the nation’s biggest lenders are still fumbling one the basic elements of this law — its foreclosure protections.”

And last week USA Today carried an article by Gregg Zoroya, “20,000 military members, vets faced foreclosure in 2010,” which began with the chilling news that “…veterans, active-duty troops and reservists who took out special government-backed mortgages lost their homes last year — the highest number since 2003.”

According to various disturbing media reports, the “rate of foreclosure filings in 2010 among 163 Zip Codes located near military bases rose 32% over 2008, according to RealtyTrac, a foreclosure research firm. This compares with a 2010 increase in foreclosures filings nationally of 23% over 2008... http://www.thetentacle.com/ShowArticle.cfm?mydocid=4219

The Tentacle - Kevin Dayhoff: Veteran Foreclosures – A National Disgrace http://tinyurl.com/4cuxb78

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