Foreclosure Court Milestone as Palm Beach County's Cases Creep Below 10,000

Mobile boards hung with candy-colored pages announcing the day's foreclosure hearings still stand sentry on the fourth floor of the Palm Beach County, Fla., courthouse — makeshift organizers erected during the unbridled early days of the housing crisis.

But the 15th Circuit Court quietly hit a milestone during the summer, reducing the number of pending foreclosure cases to below 10,000, according to a state report compiled this month.

In August, about 9,555 foreclosure cases remained on Palm Beach County dockets, a 71 percent plummet from June 2012, and down from an estimated 53,500 cases in 2010.

"We’re pleased with what we've been doing," said Palm Beach County Chief Judge Jeffrey Colbath. "The reason we’ve been successful is because we’ve been able to hire more manpower."

Florida lawmakers sent an additional $16 million to the state's 20 circuit courts two years ago to hire senior judges and case managers dedicated to foreclosure. That money goes away June 30, and Colbath is fearful of a foreclosure backlog backslide.

Palm Beach County's portion of the $16 million has paid for 15 additional case managers and two senior judges.

"I'm not optimistic the Legislature will make this a priority in the upcoming session," Colbath said.

Economists generally agree that resolving foreclosures is an important factor in the revival of Florida’s economy, as cleaning up vacant and abandoned homes can increase property values.

Statewide, 142,614 foreclosure cases were still pending in August. That’s a 62% reduction from June 2012 as measured by the Jan. 2 report from the state courts administrator.

Counties with the highest number of foreclosure cases still pending include Broward (16,356), Miami-Dade (15,306) and Pinellas (15,020).

In Palm Beach County, 30% of pending cases are more than two years old. Statewide, it's 29%.

Florida foreclosure defense attorneys have battled the statewide push to clear foreclosures from the docket, saying swiftness is being valued over due process. They say final judgments are awarded in favor of the lender while a homeowner is still being reviewed for a loan workout. A judge can delay a foreclosure sale for 120 days, but that’s not always enough time for bank and borrower to finish a modification.

"Many of these foreclosures shouldn't have happened," said Boca Raton-based defense attorney Margery Golant, who said she has multiple cases where borrowers qualified for a loan modification but ended up in foreclosure. "But a lot of judges think what’s bad for the economy is not getting the foreclosure done."

While the state courts' budget request for next year doesn’t include money dedicated strictly to foreclosures, it is asking for $5.6 million to pay for 92 case manager positions that will cover foreclosures and other cases, and $25.6 million to pay for 65 positions dedicated to trial court technology needs.

"If we lose two full-time judges and 15 case managers, the way we work will change greatly," Colbath said.

As much as the economy and housing market have improved, the fourth floor of the courthouse is still doing a brisk business.

In Senior Judge Richard Burk's courtroom last week, uncontested cases moved through quickly, but he sided with the homeowner on at least two occasions.

Taniia Beverly, 57, made her first payment on a loan modification this month, and Burk gave her a continuance instead of setting a foreclosure sale date.

Beverly, of Riviera Beach, said she ended up in foreclosure after expensive insurance was force placed on her even though insurance costs were included in her monthly mortgage payments.

"My loan has been sold four times, and each time I end up paying fees and costs that I don't understand," she said.

Burk also heard the case of Amos Myrtil, 73, and his wife Elisabeth, 70.

According to the West Palm Beach couple, they also had insurance force placed on them after their policy was canceled because they needed a new roof. They said they were never told the roof needed to be replaced.

Burk ordered the bank to mediation with the Myrtils, instead of granting a foreclosure sale.

"I wish you the best of luck getting this resolved," Burk said.

©2015 The Palm Beach Post. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency

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