Bank Of America Delays Foreclosures In 23 States

Bank of America delays home foreclosures in 23 states due to make sure there were no flaws in its existing processes.

In a statement, the bank revealed it has been reviewing its current processes to ensure certain affidavits complied with correct procedures. The bank will freeze the process to fix “affidavits in foreclosure cases” yet to be judged in the 23 states where there is jurisdiction over foreclosures. Bank of America did not issue an estimation of the number of homeowners that might get affected by the delayed foreclosure.

Prior to the announcement, JP Morgan Chase already revealed that it will also put about 56,000 homeowners’ foreclosures on hold after discovering that employees possibly approved foreclosures without assessing loan files. According to a Chase spokesman, the bank is reviewing its process–with the help of an external counsel for a couple of weeks–to verify whether it followed the standards.

Last week, Ally Financial, formerly known as GMAC, made an announcement that it will halt foreclosures in the 23 states.

Recent reports have been of major concern for mortgage lender Freddie Mac. Recent foreclosures have been clouded with doubt as to whether they complied with appropriate guidelines.

The lender, said in a statement, that it will be providing servicers with instructions to ensure their practices did not bypass the state law or Freddie Mac’s servicing requirements. Freddie Mac also stressed the importance of the industry’s cooperation to keep borrower’s right protected and the foreclosure process’ transparency intact.