PHH Mortgage Corporation v. Zachery R. Wilson, Katelynn M. Wilson, and “JOHN DOE #1” THROUGH “JOHN DOE #12,” the last twelve names being fictitious and unknown to plaintiff, the persons or parties intended being the tenants, occupants, persons or corporations, if any, having or claiming an interest in or lien upon the premises, described in the complaint

CourtDistrict Court, N.D. New York
DecidedJune 11, 2026
Docket6:25-cv-00876
StatusUnknown

This text of PHH Mortgage Corporation v. Zachery R. Wilson, Katelynn M. Wilson, and “JOHN DOE #1” THROUGH “JOHN DOE #12,” the last twelve names being fictitious and unknown to plaintiff, the persons or parties intended being the tenants, occupants, persons or corporations, if any, having or claiming an interest in or lien upon the premises, described in the complaint (PHH Mortgage Corporation v. Zachery R. Wilson, Katelynn M. Wilson, and “JOHN DOE #1” THROUGH “JOHN DOE #12,” the last twelve names being fictitious and unknown to plaintiff, the persons or parties intended being the tenants, occupants, persons or corporations, if any, having or claiming an interest in or lien upon the premises, described in the complaint) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, N.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
PHH Mortgage Corporation v. Zachery R. Wilson, Katelynn M. Wilson, and “JOHN DOE #1” THROUGH “JOHN DOE #12,” the last twelve names being fictitious and unknown to plaintiff, the persons or parties intended being the tenants, occupants, persons or corporations, if any, having or claiming an interest in or lien upon the premises, described in the complaint, (N.D.N.Y. 2026).

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK

PHH MORTGAGE CORPORATION,

Plaintiff, 6:25-cv-876 (ECC/CBF) v.

ZACHERY R. WILSON, KATELYNN M. WILSON, and “JOHN DOE #1” THROUGH “JOHN DOE #12,” the last twelve names being fictitious and unknown to plaintiff, the persons or parties intended being the tenants, occupants, persons or corporations, if any, having or claiming an interest in or lien upon the premises, described in the complaint,

Defendants.

Christina R. Bruderman, Esq., for Plaintiff Hon. Elizabeth C. Coombe, United States District Judge: MEMORANDUM-DECISION AND ORDER Plaintiff PHH Mortgage Corporation brings this diversity action pursuant to Article 13 of the New York Real Property Actions and Proceeding Law (RPAPL) seeking to foreclose a mortgage encumbering 710 Crosby Road, Utica, New York 13502 (the Subject Property). Dkt. No. 1. Defendants Zachery R. Wilson and Katelynn M. Wilson have failed to answer the complaint or otherwise appear in this action.1 Presently before the Court is Plaintiff’s motion for default

1 Plaintiff also brought this action against “John Doe #1” through “John Doe #12,” but now seeks to remove these defendants because they have not been served with copies of the summons and complaint and “are neither necessary nor proper party defendants.” Dkt. No. 20-1 at 7. Because none of the Doe defendants has been identified and served with the summons and complaint and it has been more than ninety days since the complaint has been filed, the Doe defendants are dismissed. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 4(m). judgment and judgment of foreclosure and sale, as well as for the appointment of a referee. See Dkt. No. 20. For the following reasons, Plaintiff’s motion is denied without prejudice to renew. I. FACTS2 On November 24, 2020, Defendants executed a promissory note to Plaintiff in the principal amount of $113,982.00 (the Note). See Dkt. No. 1 ¶ 9; Dkt. No. 1-2. The Note was secured by a

mortgage on the Subject Property executed by Defendants to Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc. (MERS) as nominee for Plaintiff (the Mortgage). See Dkt. No. 1 ¶ 9; Dkt. No. 1-3. The Mortgage was duly recorded with the Oneida County Clerk as Instrument #2020-017177 on December 7, 2020. Dkt. No. 1-3. Thereafter, MERS assigned the Mortgage to Plaintiff by Assignment of Mortgage dated and recorded on July 3, 2024 as Instrument #2024-007590. Dkt. No. 1-4. Under the Mortgage and Note, Defendants were obligated to make monthly principal and interest payments of $488.27, starting on January 1, 2021. See Dkt. No. 1-2 § 3; see also Dkt. No. 1-3 at 5 § 1.3 The Note provides that Defendants are in default if they “do not pay the full amount of each monthly payment on the date it is due.” Dkt. No. 1-2 § 6(B). Upon Defendants’ default,

the Note allows Plaintiff the right to accelerate the full amount of the unpaid principal, with interest, and collect “reasonable attorneys’ fees” incurred in enforcing the Note. Id. §§ 6(C), (E). Plaintiff alleges that Defendants defaulted under the Note and Mortgage by failing to make the required monthly payments beginning on May 1, 2024, leaving an outstanding principal balance of $105,922.29. Dkt. No. 1 ¶ 12; Dkt. No. 20-5 ¶¶ 7, 15 (affirmation of indebtedness).

2 The following facts are drawn from Plaintiff’s complaint, supporting declarations, and accompanying exhibits, and are accepted as true for the purposes of this motion.

3 Unless otherwise noted, citations to page numbers refer to the pagination generated by the CM/ECF system. Plaintiff commenced this action on July 7, 2025 to foreclose on the Subject Property. Defendants were served with the summons and complaint on August 15, 2025, see Dkt. Nos. 4, 5, 6, 10, 11, 12, but failed to appear in the action. The Clerk of the Court issued an Entry of Default against Defendants on December 29, 2025, and issued an Amended Entry of Default on February

4, 2026 to include the Doe defendants in the case caption. See Dkt. Nos. 15, 19. Plaintiff moved for default judgment on February 4, 2026. Dkt. No. 20. II. DISCUSSION A. Legal Standards Rule 55 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure sets forth a two-step process for entry of a default judgment. See Enron Oil Corp. v. Diakuhara, 10 F.3d 90, 95-96 (2d Cir. 1993). First, the Clerk of Court enters the default pursuant to Rule 55(a) by notation of the party’s default on the Clerk’s record of the case. See id.; see also Fed. R. Civ. P. 55(a) (“When a party against whom a judgment for affirmative relief is sought has failed to plead or otherwise defend, and that failure is shown by affidavit or otherwise, the clerk must enter the party’s default.”). This first step is nondiscretionary. See United States v. Conolly, 694 F. App’x 10, 12 (2d Cir. 2017). Second, after

the Clerk of Court enters a default against a party, if that party fails to appear or otherwise move to set aside the default pursuant to Rule 55(c), the plaintiff may apply to the Court for a default judgment. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 55(b)(2). Considering the Second Circuit’s “oft-stated preference for resolving disputes on the merits,” default judgments are “generally disfavored.” Enron Oil, 10 F.3d at 95-96. “The decision whether to enter default judgment is committed to the district court’s discretion . . . .” Greathouse v. JHS Sec. Inc., 784 F.3d 105, 116 (2d Cir. 2015). When evaluating a plaintiff’s application for a default judgment, “a court is required to accept all [] factual allegations as true and draw all reasonable inferences in [the plaintiff’s] favor.” Finkel v. Romanowicz, 577 F.3d 79, 84 (2d Cir. 2009). “Nevertheless, it remains for the court to consider whether the unchallenged facts constitute a legitimate cause of action, since a party in default does not admit conclusions of law.” Doe v. Rees, 24-cv-274 (MAD/ML), 2025 WL 834786, at *4 (N.D.N.Y. Mar. 17, 2025) (quoting LaBarbera v. ASTC Labs., Inc., 752 F. Supp. 2d 263, 270 (E.D.N.Y. 2010) (internal quotations

and citations omitted)); see also TAGC Mgmt., LLC v. Lehman, Lee & Xu Ltd., 536 F. App’x 45, 46 (2d Cir. 2013) (“[P]rior to entering default judgment, a district court is required to determine whether the plaintiff’s allegations establish the defendant’s liability as a matter of law.”) (internal quotations and citations omitted). B. Liability of Defendants on Mortgage Foreclosure Claim 1. Common Law Elements of Foreclosure Action Under New York law, to foreclose on a mortgage, a plaintiff must demonstrate (1) the existence of a mortgage; (2) ownership of the mortgage; and (3) the defendant’s default in payment on the loan (which is secured by the mortgage). See OneWest Bank, N.A. v. Hawkins, No. 14-cv- 4656, 2015 WL 5706945, at *5 (E.D.N.Y. Sept. 2, 2015) (citing Campaign v. Barba, 23 A.D.3d 327, 327 (2d Dep’t 2005)); see also Greystone Bank v. Skyline Woods Realty, LLC, 817 F. Supp.

2d 57, 62 (N.D.N.Y.

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PHH Mortgage Corporation v. Zachery R. Wilson, Katelynn M. Wilson, and “JOHN DOE #1” THROUGH “JOHN DOE #12,” the last twelve names being fictitious and unknown to plaintiff, the persons or parties intended being the tenants, occupants, persons or corporations, if any, having or claiming an interest in or lien upon the premises, described in the complaint, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/phh-mortgage-corporation-v-zachery-r-wilson-katelynn-m-wilson-and-nynd-2026.