Arrow-right Camera
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Eye On Boise

Idaho homeowners who lost homes due to abuses due for payments

More than 300 Idaho homeowners who lost their homes to foreclosure are due for payments under a $470 million state and federal settlement with mortgage lender HSBC, Idaho Attorney General Lawrence Wasden announced, to address the company’s improper practices in mortgage origination, servicing and foreclosure. “This settlement holds HSBC accountable for its unacceptable mortgage servicing and foreclosure practices and it provides some relief for Idaho borrowers,” Wasden said in a statement. “Through tough servicing standards, the settlement will aid homeowners with enforceable changes to how their loans are serviced.”

Wasden said the Idaho borrowers, who lost their homes between Jan. 1, 2008 and Dec. 31, 2012, will be contacted about the payments. Among the improper practices cited in the settlement were robo-signing, improper documentation and lost paperwork. In addition to $59 million in payments for affected borrowers nationwide, the settlement includes requirements for the company to make foreclosure a last resort; to restrict foreclosure while a homeowner is being considered for loan modification; procedures and timelines for reviewing loan modification applications; and a right for homeowners to appeal denials. It also includes a year of oversight of the company’s practices.



Betsy Z. Russell
Betsy Z. Russell joined The Spokesman-Review in 1991. She currently is a reporter in the Boise Bureau covering Idaho state government and politics, and other news from Idaho's state capital.

Follow Betsy online: