Wilson ex rel. Wilson v. Bank of America, N.A.

48 F. Supp. 3d 787, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 134208, 2014 WL 4744555
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Pennsylvania
DecidedSeptember 24, 2014
DocketCivil Action No. 14-2498
StatusPublished
Cited by27 cases

This text of 48 F. Supp. 3d 787 (Wilson ex rel. Wilson v. Bank of America, N.A.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Wilson ex rel. Wilson v. Bank of America, N.A., 48 F. Supp. 3d 787, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 134208, 2014 WL 4744555 (E.D. Pa. 2014).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM

BUCKWALTER, Senior District Judge.

Currently pending before the Court is a Motion to Dismiss filed by Defendant Bank of America, N.A. (“BOA” or “Defendant”). For the following reasons, the Motion is granted in part and denied in part.

I. FACTUAL BACKGROUND

According to the facts set forth in the Complaint, Plaintiff Bella Wilson (“Plaintiff’ or “Wilson”) is the sole owner of a two-story row house at 6014 Ogontz Avenue, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (the “Property”). (Compl. ¶ 8.) The mortgage on the Property (the “Mortgage”) is owned and serviced by Defendant BOA. (Id. ¶ 9.) The Mortgage was originally made to Plaintiffs deceased son, Damian Wilson, who purchased the house in December 2006 with funds from a BOA mortgage loan. (Id. ¶ 10.) Damian Wilson died on September 21, 2007, and left Plaintiff as his sole heir. (Id. ¶¶ 10-11.) Plaintiff made several mortgage payments to BOA until receiving assurances from Damian’s friends, who had been living in the house with him just prior to his death, that they would maintain the payments. (Id. ¶¶ 11, 13.) Although Plaintiff attempted to confirm with BOA that the mortgage was being maintained, BOA would not provide account information to her. (Id. ¶ 14.) •

[790]*790On April 8, 2008, Plaintiff was granted Letters of Administration by the Register of Wills for Philadelphia County, thereby making her the formal legal representative for Damian’s estate. (Id. ¶ 15.) Thereafter, BOA changed the name of the account holder for the Mortgage to “Estate of Damian Wilson.” (Id. ¶ 16.) The Mortgage is presently “underwater,” meaning that the debt is in excess of the value of the Property. (Id. ¶ 17.) In April 2009, Plaintiff discovered that the people living in the house had moved out and damaged the property. (Id. ¶ 18.) She contacted BOA and indicated that she wanted to take control of the Property and make repairs, provided that BOA would work with her in bringing the mortgage account current. (Id.) The BOA representative mentioned the possibility of a “loan modification.” (Id.)

These events coincided with the economic collapse that occurred in 2008 and the resulting response by the federal government, which included the enactment of the Home Affordable Modification Program (“HAMP”) on February 18, 2009. (Id. ¶¶ 19-20.) HAMP is funded by the federal government, primarily with funds from the Troubled Asset Relief Program (“TARP”), 12 U.S.C. § 5211. (Id. ¶ 23.) Because BOA accepted $25 billion in TARP funds and additional loan guarantees, it was required to participate in HAMP for the mortgage loans where it functioned as the mortgage “servicer,” and it entered into a written HAMP participation agreement with the Treasury Department on April 17, 2009. (Id. ¶ 24.) This participation agreement required BOA, among other things, to implement and operate a HAMP program in accordance with the program directives issues by Treasury, Fannie Mae and/or Freddie Mac. (Id. ¶ 25.) Under HAMP, qualified homeowners who are delinquent or otherwise financially distressed are eligible for a permanent modification of their mortgage so as to lower their monthly mortgage payment to affordable levels, and servicers must structure a hypothetical modified loan in accordance with a sequence called the “waterfall.” (Id. ¶ 26.) The terms of the modified loan are based on the borrower’s monthly gross income, applying the waterfall. (Id. ¶ 27.) Once the hypothetical loan modification is determined, the servicer applies a “net present value” (“NPV”) test which, if passed (“NPV-positive”), qualifies the borrower for the modification. (Id. ¶ 28.)

HAMP directives define a two-step procedure for determining HAMP eligibility: (1) the participating servicer gathers financial information from the homeowner and, if the homeowner is qualified, offers a three-month Trial Period Plan (“TPP”) agreement based on its calculation of the appropriate modified mortgage payment; and (2) if the homeowner completes the required three TPP payments and continues to provide the relevant documentation, the servicer enters into a permanent loan modification agreement with the homeowner. (Id. ¶ 29.) HAMP program directives expressly provide for qualifying the surviving heirs of deceased borrowers. (Id. ¶ 30.) The program directives also require BOA to evaluate all loans in its servicing portfolios for possible eligibility for HAMP. (Id. ¶ 31.)

Soon after BOA signed its HAMP participation agreement, it identified the Mortgage at issue as one potentially eligible for a HAMP modification, and, in accordance with BOA’s instructions, Plaintiff submitted HAMP-related documentation to BOA. (Id. ¶ 32.) The Mortgage was qualified for HAMP in that it was NPV-positive and, by application of the waterfall, the Mortgage could be made current and affordable through a combination of reducing the interest, extending the term, and/or deferring a portion of the principal. [791]*791(Id. ¶ 33.) Nonetheless, on May 20, 2009, BOA initiated a foreclosure action against the Property, naming as defendants “the Estate of Damian Wilson” and “Bella Wilson, as Administratrix and Heir.” (Id. ¶ 34.) As part of the foreclosure packet served on her, Plaintiff was encouraged to seek the assistance of a housing counseling agency and to participate in the local state court’s Mortgage Foreclosure Diversion Program. (Id. ¶ 36.) Shortly thereafter, Plaintiff arranged to meet with a housing counselor, executed a deed to the Property from herself as Administratrix to herself as the sole heir, and remained in contact with BOA. (Id. ¶ 37.) After meeting with a housing counselor on June 9, 2009, Plaintiff began the process of becoming qualified for the HAMP loan modification. (Id. ¶ 38.)

On July 2, 2009, Plaintiff, her counselor, and BOA appeared at a “conciliation conference” under the state court’s Foreclosure Diversion Program, at which point BOA acknowledged that the HAMP application was being processed, represented that the loan would be modified if Plaintiff provided proof that the deed naming her as owner had been duly recorded, and entered into a written agreement with Plaintiff to suspend the foreclosure action. (Id. ¶ 39.) This agreement was submitted to the court and subsequently entered as an order. (Id.) Thereafter, on July 6, 2009, Plaintiff recorded the deed to the Property from the Estate to herself. (Id. ¶ 40.)

On July 25, 2009, by letter addressed to “the Estate of Damian Wilson” at the Property address, and referencing the Mortgage account number, BOA advised Plaintiff that, “[biased on an initial review of your current financial situation, you may be eligible for a loan modification as part of the federal government’s Home Affordable Modification Program to help homeowners.” (Id. ¶ 41.) The letter included the offer of a three-month Home Affordable Modification Trial Period Plan (“TPP Agreement”) providing for a “trial period payment” (“TPP”) of $636.24 per month commencing September 1, 2009. (Id.) The letter further advised Plaintiff that the amount of the TPP was “based on the income information that you previously provided to us,” and asked Plaintiff to provide supplemental financial information and a Hardship Affidavit explaining the circumstances of the delinquency. (Id.

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Bluebook (online)
48 F. Supp. 3d 787, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 134208, 2014 WL 4744555, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/wilson-ex-rel-wilson-v-bank-of-america-na-paed-2014.