October 5, 2008The Tampa Tribune reports from Florida. “Ernie Harpster fell behind on his mortgage payments last year. The lender filed a foreclosure lawsuit. Harpster then did something troubled homeowners may never think of doing: He fought back. Harpster has been living payment-free for nearly a year in his Wesley Chapel home. His case is trickling through court, and there are no signs he will be kicked out anytime soon. ‘Not having a mortgage payment meant I didn’t have to file for bankruptcy because I could pay other bills, like credit cards and the electric bill,’ said Harpster, whose income as a real estate agent dried up along with the market. ‘But I’m not trying to take advantage of the situation. I tried to do what I thought was right. To me, it’s the bank’s fault this has stalled.’”
“‘A lot of people just roll over because they know they’re wrong, they haven’t paid their mortgage,’ said Timothy Kingcade, a Miami lawyer. ‘If you’re accused of a crime, do you walk in court and say, ‘I did it!’? You have a right to make the bank prove its case.’”
“Homeowners who protest sometimes find their cases pushed to the bottom of the pile, said Lutz lawyer Ralph Fisher. These lenders ‘are freaking out,’ he said. ‘We’re asking them how they own this mortgage, and they can’t answer.’”
http://thehousingbubbleblog.com/?p=4988
