COVID-19 RELIEF

• If You Are Having Trouble Obtaining Adequate Relief from Your Mortgage Servicer

• New Mexico Protects Garnishment of Stimulus Checks

• Post-Forbearance Options for Homeowners

• Creditors, Mortgage Servicers, Landlords and Debt Collectors Are Ignoring COVID-19 Protections

• New Mexico Superintendent of Insurance Sets Up Call Center to Address Health Insurance Questions Related to COVID-19

• Mortgage Servicers Are Providing Incomplete and Inaccurate Information About COVID-19 Relief Plans for FHA Mortgages

• Consumer Groups Urge the New Mexico Supreme Court to Stop Unfair Garnishment of Stimulus Checks

• Unfair Garnishment of Stimulus Checks in New Mexico

• COVID-19 Protections Available for Fannie Mae Mortgages

• Auto Insurers Are Reducing Premiums, Giving Refunds and Promising Not to Cancel for Non-Payment

• New Mexico Acts to Protect Renters and Consumers

• Be Wary of COVID-19 Scams

• Banks and Mortgage Servicers Must Report Mortgage as Current if Mortgage in COVID-19 Relief Plan

• COVID-19 Relief for Federal Student Loan Borrowers

• COVID-19 Stimulus Checks Are Partially Protected From Garnishment

• Protecting Your Family Financially in COVID-19 Times

Treinen Law Office has dedicated itself to helping New Mexicans take advantage of relief plans that are out there to help out during this time.  We are not charging for this service.  Nearly all creditors, including mortgage servicers and banks, have put in place COVID-19 policies.

These policies typically include forbearance plans that allow for no payments for some months.  The CARE Act requires mortgage servicers to put in place forbearance plans that defer payments for up to six months.  Above is a video to help folks get going on the process of obtaining relief via these forbearance plans.

It is expected that getting into these plans will be difficult.  We are here to help when you get stuck.

Following the 2008 recession, as part of the government bailout of the mortgage industry, Congress put in place regulations that required mortgage servicers to offer loan modifications.  This program largely failed to stave off foreclosures and save homes.  Many banks and servicers failed to implement effective programs.  Homeowners had trouble getting into the plans because servicers gave then the turn-around, asking for the same documents over and over and proceeding with foreclosures while homeowners were stuck in the endless cycle of submitting and resubmitting documents.

Most mortgage servicers are set up to deal with a 1-3 percent default rate.  With COVID-19, experts are predicting a much higher default rate.  Depending on how long folks are out of work, it is expected to reach as high as 40 percent.

On behalf of consumers in New Mexico, Treinen Law Office sues credit reporting agencies and the businesses that report to these agencies, payday and title lenders, mortgage companies, mortgage brokers, car dealers, RV dealers and manufacturers, debt collectors, robo-callers, banks, sellers of solar systems, real estate brokers, for-profit colleges and universities, and other businesses that act unscrupulously or treat consumers unfairly, both on an individual and a class basis.

Rob Treinen’s efforts on behalf of consumers have resulted in over 30 published opinions favorable to consumers from the New Mexico Supreme Court, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals and lower courts, including opinions that struck down unfair arbitration schemes used by rip off businesses. Some of these lawsuits have also resulted in favorable press coverage.