Congressman Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) secured another victory in his campaign to protect Ohio homeowners from foreclosure after JP Morgan Chase decided to freeze ongoing foreclosures because of serious mistakes the company has made with homeowners’ paperwork. This announcement follows last week’s news that GMAC Mortgage had employed so-called “robo signers” who could process and sign hundreds of thousands of foreclosure documents as quickly as possible thus accelerating foreclosures, some of which may have been in error. 

Kucinich, as Chairman of the Domestic Policy Subcommittee, has been engaged in a longstanding campaign to protect constituent homeowners from foreclosure.  Northeast Ohio was the epicenter of the foreclosure crisis and Kucinich has been at the forefront of addressing issues related to that crisis.  He held 10 hearings on the crisis, including 2 in Cleveland.  After Ohio was left out of the Administration’s Hardest Hit Fund, Kucinich was able to rally support and secure $172 million for Ohio in a second round of funding.  Just yesterday, Kucinich was able to announce an additional $250 million in funding for the program.  

In an Oversight and Government Reform hearing on June 24, 2010, Kucinich blistered JPMorgan Chase CEO for running roughshod over consumers. Kucinich told David Lowman, CEO of Chase Home Finance, Inc., that Chase “denies loan modifications without supplying a reason” and “leaves borrowers facing foreclosures in limbo.” During that Oversight and Government Reform hearing, Kucinich secured a commitment from Mr. Lowman to work with Congressman Kucinich to address the concerns of homeowners in Northeast Ohio. That relationship has helped Kucinich’s staff to relay his constituent’s concerns to the company. 

 

“I explained to JPMorgan Chase that time and time again I have heard from my constituents that JPMorgan Chase consistently ignored the rights of the borrowers who are their customers. When it comes to peoples’ homes and their life savings, there can be no mistakes.”  

While welcoming the news that lenders are “systematically reexamining” their documents, Kucinich expressed some skepticism: “It troubles me that these lenders are halting foreclosures only in those states like Ohio, which require a court to approve the foreclosure – not in the 32 states that allow a lender to foreclose without court review.  Does this suggest that sloppy and possibly illegal practices should be tolerated in states where there is no judicial oversight?  Or that JP Morgan Chase is still avoiding its responsibilities to protect all of its American customers equally.”

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