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Christie_1We’ve just learned that the U.S. Supreme court denied the 10k-20k forgiveness of federal student debt that was pending.  We were expecting that.  Unfortunately, most of our clients owe so much more anyway, and the other programs out there are doing so much more to get rid of this debt.

There are some things that will be coming out due to this decision that everyone should be aware of:

  • Servicers are being instructed to provide borrowers a 3-month “grace” or “safety net” period during which borrowers will not be treated as delinquent if they miss payments (though interest will continue to accrue). That 3-month period may be extended.
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arkovich_law-narrowThe FHA Covid-19 Forbearances allow for reduced or suspended payments without specific terms of repayment, for six months at a time, up to 18 months.  Deadline for applications was May 11, 2023.  The end of the health emergency is now over.  If you’ve lost your income, job change or divorce for instance, you may have qualified for this relief.

A FHA Covid-19 Modification is called Advance Loan Modification.  If a mortgage loan is in forbearance, the review will occur within 30 days of forbearance ending.  For those mortgage loans are not in forbearance, if the loan is 90 plus days delinquent it must be reviewed for a modification offer on or before 10/30/2024.  This is still in effect!

January 2023 new guidelines:  a substantial change is that the guidance now applies for non-occupied borrowers.  Some other notes:

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Christie_1We’ve seen some confusion out there about whether those with disability discharges for federal student loans are required to provide income information going forward.  This is because the new rule hasn’t yet gone into effect.  But it will before the repayment pause ends so no worries.

https://www.ed.gov/news/press-releases/education-department-releases-final-regulations-expand-and-improve-targeted-debt-relief-programs

The rule eliminates the three-year income monitoring requirement that too often caused borrowers to lose their discharges solely because they failed to respond to paperwork requests.

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arkovich_law-narrowCredit reports have more errors than ever right now.  Student loans, car loans, really – any kind of credit out there, is often reported inaccurately on your credit reports. It costs you nothing to have us take a look.  Our Fair Credit Reporting Act cases are ALL on a contingency basis – no fees/costs unless we are successful.  Our clients are netting significant settlements – money that you can use to pay off other debt – or start a family/business, whatever you’ve always wanted to do, but never had a lump sum saved to take the plunge.

Take these steps and let’s work together to get it done!

  • Go to annualcreditreport.com
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Christie_1I just became aware of a new procedure to provide “an intent to separate a joint consolidation loan” when a client received this:

As you are already aware, you and XX have a FFEL Joint Consolidation Loan. ED has indicated that FFEL Joint Consolidation Loan borrowers who take the necessary steps to separate their loans will receive the benefit of the one-time IDR account adjustment, even if the application does not become available until after the adjustment occurs in 2024. The adjustment will be applied retroactively for both borrowers when both applied to separate their joint consolidation loan. For separate applications, the remaining co-borrower who did not apply to separate the joint debt will not receive this benefit until and unless the borrower applies to consolidate the remaining loan into a Direct Consolidation Loan.

You must notify the ED Ombudsman Group of your intent to apply for separation of your joint consolidation loan by contacting ED’s Office of Federal Student Aid (FSA) at:

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arkovich_law-narrowLenders will often try to get a note and mortgage into evidence with a simple endorsement in blank of the promissory note.  This can be defeated.

The mortgage is the issue.

A mortgage follows a “note” but a mortgage does not follow a non-negotiable instrument. Since Florida Statutes Ch. 673 does not apply, the transfer of the mortgage is governed by chapter 679, which requires a written assignment. The attempted transfer of the non-negotiable instrument should be ignored.

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cramdown-picWe write a column – that has become 1-2 pages due to all the stuff going on — called the Student Loan Sidebar in our local Cramdown publication to all bankruptcy practitioners including debtor attorneys, the creditors’ bar and our judiciary.

Because not everyone has access to this publication, we also have a copy added to our home page of our website.  Here is the Spring Sidebar:

https://www.christiearkovich.com/files/student-loan-summer-2023.pdf

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arkovich_law-narrowThe United States Trustee Program (USTP) has resumed audits of individual chapter 7 and chapter 13 bankruptcy cases under the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 on March 13 ,2023.

What does this mean if your case is selected?

The USTP contracts with independent firms, utilizing certified public accountants and independent licensed public accounts, to perform audits of individual chapter 7 and chapter 13 cases randomly selected by the USTP. The purpose of the audit is to determine the accuracy, veracity, and completeness of petitions, schedules, and other information required to be provided by the debtor under sections 521

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SouthTampaWorkspace1Our ad came out in the Hillsborough County Lawyer Magazine today for our new Workspaces in South Tampa.  Yay!  During the pandemic when our team started working remotely, we fully renovated our office space to offer a “sometimes” office as needed for both us and our colleagues.  We offer several different packages, from a simple mailbox/reception services to a place to sit with a laptop, an office (with a door!) a few days a month with some conference room time, to a fixed office that only you occupy.  Come and go as you please with your door code, easy online reservations and payment, free ample parking and lots of services like high speed scanning, wide-screen monitors, shredding and notary, extra comfy and professional desk/chairs, sitting areas, a pub kitchen and more!  Come and check us out if you are a professional/attorney and are in need of a place to be occasionally or full-time!

We’re a little different than a larger co-working space because we understand the needs of our attorneys, have cross-referral networking opportunities, and don’t nickel and dime the small stuff.  Also, no binding year long contract.

SouthTampaWorkspaces.com  – more pics and pricing.

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