Mortgage

This plenary will consist of small group huddles with judges and fellow attendees to work through case problems.

If you suddenly became the owner of Batman’s secret cave, would you know how to value it, lease it or sell it? Could you transfer it in a § 363 sale, or could you cancel any claims Batman and others may have on the permanently installed Bat Computer? This session reveals the panelists' oddest adventures in real estate, and the latest in commercial real estate trends.

This panel will focus on post-petition accrual of equity in real estate, the recent Supreme Court decision regarding tax violations, preferences, whether direct mortgage payments are considered “payments under the plan.”

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act play increasingly critical roles. This panel will introduce and explain the most important features of the FDCPA and RESPA.

The global pandemic has had an incredible impact on mortgage issues in consumer bankruptcies and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. From the CARES Act forbearances, to resolving those forbearances through a waterfall of options including partial-claim mortgages, deferral agreements and modifications, to HAF funds, potential sales and other loss-mitigation options, this panel will discuss the pandemic's effects on consumer bankruptcies and the various issues that creditor and debtor attorneys will have to navigate.

Sponsored by ABI's Real Estate Committee According to Trepp, $109 billion in commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) loans was issued in 2021. These loans are popular among income-producing-property investors for a variety of reasons, including favorable rates, attractive loan-to-value ratios, a streamlined underwriting process and more. However, given their structure as investment vehicles, technical nuances come into play in workout and restructuring situations because of the special servicers and trustees involved. While bankruptcy filings are rare because filing typically violates a loan covenant known as a “Bad Boy provision," for some borrowers this path makes sense. This program will focus on these issues and more to prepare attorneys, financial advisors and other professionals for future restructuring assignments in this unique space.

Rule 3002.1 exists to protect debtors and creditors from unnecessary disputes over the status of current and former chapter 13 debtors’ mortgage loans. A recent Second Circuit opinion (In re Gravel) calls into question the ability of bankruptcy courts to impose monetary sanctions on mortgage-servicers that fail to comply with Rule 3002.1’s requirements. In this session, the panelists will cover both Gravel (and the dissent) and a recent bankruptcy court opinion (In re Blanco) that rejects the reasoning in Gravel. Can the two cases be reconciled? What is the standard that must be established to justify the imposition of sanctions when mortgage-servicers fail to comply with Rule 3002.1’s requirements, and what are the limitations on the amount of sanctions that can be considered appropriate? The panelists will discuss these questions along with additional legal actions and notices that consumer attorneys should take in these cases, as well as using an adversary proceeding in lieu of a motion.

The Eastern and Western Districts of Wisconsin, along with Florida’s Middle District, have all set up successful mortgage-mediation programs. This panel will spill the details on how they did it, particularly the ways in which they used web-based portals for document exchanges. Also on tap: the role of mediators and the court’s role in overseeing order processes and timelines.