A $330,000 home for $16?

by CASEY NORTON

Bio

WFAA

FLOWER MOUND — A little-known Texas law and a foreclosure could have a man in Flower Mound living on Easy Street.
Flower Mound's Waterford Drive is lined with well-manicured $300,000 homes. So, when a new neighbor moved in without the usual sale, mortgage-paying homeowners had a few questions.

"What paperwork is it and how is it legally binding if he doesn't legally own the house?" said Leigh Lowrie, a neighboring resident. "He just squats there."
Lowrie and her husband said the house down the street was in foreclosure for more than a year and the owner walked away. Then, the mortgage company went out of business.

Apparently, that opened the door for someone to take advantage of the situation. But, Kenneth Robinson said he's no squatter. He said he moved in on June 17 after months of research about a Texas law called "adverse possession."

"This is not a normal process, but it is not a process that is not known," he said. "It's just not known to everybody."

He says an online form he printed out and filed at the Denton County courthouse for $16 gave him rights to the house. The paper says the house was abandoned and he's claiming ownership.
"I added some things here for my own protection," Robinson said.
The house is virtually empty, with just a few pieces of furniture. There is no running water or electricity.

But, Robinson said just by setting up camp in the living room, Texas law gives him exclusive negotiating rights with the original owner. If the owner wants him out, he would have to pay off his massive mortgage debt and the bank would have to file a complicated lawsuit.
Robinson believes because of the cost, neither is likely. The law says if he stays in the house, after three years he can ask the court for the title.

He told News 8 his goal is to eventually have the title of the home and be named the legal owner of the home.

"Absolutely," he said. "I want to be owner of record. At this point, because I possess it, I am the owner."

Robinson posted "no trespassing" signs after neighbors asked police to arrest him for breaking in.
Flower mound officers say they can't remove him from the property because home ownership is a civil matter, not criminal.

Lowrie and her neighbors continue to look for legal ways to get him out. They are talking to the mortgage company, real estate agents and attorneys. They're convinced he broke into the house to take possession, but Robinson told News 8 he found a key and he gained access legally.

"If he wants the house, buy the house like everyone else had to," Lowrie said. "Get the money, buy the house."

Robinson said he's not buying anything. As far as he's concerned, the $330,000 house is already his and he has the paperwork to prove it.

Posted on July 14, 2011 at 11:34 PM

Updated today at 5:06 PM

Emergency Loan For Past Due Mortgages

  Emergency Homeowner's Loan Program

Home foreclosure are at an all time high but there is help and in a way that many could not have ever imaged, in the form of a loan to catch your deliquent mortgage payments.

This will be a refreshing program for some, since everyone is not in need of or desiring a loan modification.  While loan modification are an excellent alternative to foreclosure, one size does not fit all.

This new program that will allow quailfing individuals to get back on track and avoid foreclosure through a loan to cover past due mortgage payments, as well as a portion of mortgage payments up to 2 years not exceeding $50,000 the maximum loan amount.

The program is designed to provide mortgage payment relief to eligible homeowners experiencing a drop in income of at least 15 percent, directly resulting from involuntary unemployment or underemployment due to adverse economic conditions and/or a medical emergency. 

However, time is running out and as one can image the number of people in need of this assistance will far exceed the funds availble to assist quailifing individuals.

The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act provided $1 billion to the U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development to implement the Emergency Homeowners’ Loan Program (EHLP). This HUD program is being administered by NeighborWorks® America.

EHLP will be managed by HUD’s Office of Housing Counseling and administered through NeighborWorks® America or individual states that operate programs which are substantially similar to EHLP. Homeowners must apply for program assistance through participating housing counseling agencies. Homeowner applications will be available no sooner than July 2011.

Pre-Applicant eligibility screening period begins

June 20, 2011 through July 22, 2011

Click Here For FAQs About EHLP

Contact EHLP at ehlp@nw.org or call toll free at 855-FIND-EHLP or 855-346-3345

www.FindEHLP.org

How to Apply for EHLP

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) anticipates high demand for EHLP assistance. In order to ensure that program funds are made available in a fair and impartial manner, homeowners interested in applying must first complete a Pre-Applicant Screening Worksheet (see below). If there are more potentially eligible homeowners than there are funds available to assist them, these worksheets will be entered into a randomized selection process. EHLP counseling agencies will evaluate completed screening worksheets to make an initial, informal pre-determination of household eligibility. Homeowners whose completed worksheets meet this standard will be randomly selected, and these homeowners will be invited to apply for an EHLP loan in the order they are selected. Unfortunately, due to the limited amount of resources available through the EHLP, some qualified homeowners will not be selected to complete an application. Furthermore, some homeowners will complete an application but not will not ultimately be approved to receive assistance if their applications are incomplete or if they do not otherwise meet all of the program’s eligibility criteria.
Homeowners who are randomly selected will be called by their local EHLP housing counseling agency to schedule an appointment to complete the EHLP application packet. NOTE: There is no charge for this service. During the appointment, homeowners will be required to submit the specified documentation to support eligibility. It is very important for all homeowners to be familiar with all of the EHLP documentation requirements and have all specified documents prepared to submit at the time of their application appointment.
Click here to review the required document checklist.

The Pre-Applicant eligibility screening period will run from between June 20, 2011 through July 22, 2011. The homeowner application period will not begin until late July 2011. The Pre-Applicant screening procedures are described below, and include a link to a downloadable and printable screening worksheet.

Step 1. Complete the Screening Documents: Worksheet and Third-Party Authorization

Click here for screening documents.

Step 2. Submit both documents to an EHLP Agency

Click here to locate EHLP housing counseling agency(ies) serving your community, county or state.

Step 3. Be prepared to act quickly and submit all required documents if selected. IMPORTANT: If selected you will have 5 days only to submit all required documentation.

Click here to review the required document checklist.

Program Forms and Income Information

1. Pre-Applicant Screening Document
2. 3rd Party Authorization
3. Document Checklist
4. Employer No Longer in Business
5. Self-Employment Affidavit
6. IRS Form 4506-T

Income Eligibility

1. Texas Income Limits
2. HUD Incomes for States

Contact EHLP at ehlp@nw.org, 855-FIND-EHLP, or 855-346-3345

www.FindEHLP.org

More About Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation dba NeighborWorks® America:

www.nw.org

Other than Texas specific, EHLP content © 2011NeighborWorks® America