My Story

Sunday, November 27, 2011

Our last Thanksgiving

Our Family in front of our home 

Me and my beautiful granddaughters 

My oldest daughter, Jen, and her Family

A special memory book


Thank you all who contributed!



It was a memorable Thanksgiving! 

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Thanksgiving Day

Hello dear friends and family,

Let me start by saying Happy Thanksgiving. I hope you find a moment in the bustle of cooking, preparing, and visiting, to remember the things you are thankful for this day, and that your holiday is filled with joy and love. I will be spending the day with all of my children and grandchildren, enjoying our time together and the time we have left in our family home. Today will be the "last hurrah" for my family in the only place we have all called home for 39 years. My long, 2+ year fight is over, and I have been forced to give up my home by December 18. As you can imagine, I am heartbroken, but I trust in God for strength, peace, and guidance as I head out in a new direction in life.

I will be moving the weekend of December 10th & 11th to allow my dear friend Majel from church, time to organize and prepare for an estate sale the weekend after. My oldest daughter Jenny, her husband Steve, and my 2 beautiful granddaughters have graciously opened their home to me while I begin the process of applying and finding, suitable low cost housing in Orange County. So far, the research I've done suggests it could take a while for something to open up, but my amazing daughter and her family have allowed me all the time I need to ensure I find what I need. If I choose, I also have an offer from one of my nearest and dearest friends, Sue, to spend some time in Missouri, but my children and grandchildren would prefer I stay close.

My daughter Lauren, and her husband Mike just moved into a place in Orange County and have opened their home to me as well to spend a day, or even an overnighter to catch up with old friends, go to church Sunday morning, and maybe even drop in on the "dog park" group! Jenny's home is able to accommodate not only me and my wheelchair (with some limitations), but Kai (my large Black Labrador) as well. As sad as I am that I am unable to bring my adult male (neutered) cats as well. I was fortunate enough to have found homes for all but one. If you feel a tug at your heart, and you are an animal lover like me, please give me a call or email me for more details.

I want to thank all of you who have stood by me during this trying time. You've held my hand, hugged me tight, wiped my tears, prayed with and for me, reminisced, laughed, cried, and made me feel like I could fight one more day, I thank you. I am so very truly blessed by the gift of your love and friendship and appreciate every moment you have given me. This year I am thankful for the love and support of my family and friends, the memories my home of 39 years has given me, and my faith. God is good. Please continue to keep us in your prayers. Thank you and love to you all.
Love in Him,
Casey

Thursday, November 17, 2011

Update on 11-19

Hello friends,
Please continue to pray. Vecchio wants me to pay "fair market value" rent to continue living in my home during this appeal process.  They state that the rent is $2700. month ( $90 day)! (that's far more than the mortgage which became beyond my reach)  They also want me to pay back rent from August 31st until the present day. I have a few people looking into comps to see if they find different figures.  Pray that an equitable amount can be decided upon.  I need to keep possession of my home until my lawsuit against Wells Fargo has a court date set.  I appreciate your love, support, but most importantly, your prayers.  Casey


Thanks to Lauren, Megan Moyer, and Linda Rose for supporting me by sitting in court each day. 

We're in a recession and Wells Fargo's profit is up??



http://www.forbes.com/sites/steveschaefer/2011/07/19/alls-well-with-wells-fargo-profits-up-29-to-3-9b/



According to this article that was in Forbes, although people are loosing their home and struggling-Wells Fargo continues to gain profit. CEO John Stumpf of wells was quoted in Wells Fargo news release back on Tuesday, July 19, 2011

“While the economic recovery continues to be slower than expected, there are signs that businesses are investing for growth, and we’re here to help them. We’re enjoying strong loyalty and market share growth as we continue to focus on helping our customers emerge from the economic downturn.


So Mr. Stumpf, how are you helping us now? 36 years of paying mortgage isn’t enough?  

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Trial Update Day 2 11/16


Trial update:

My mom went back again today at 8:00am until 4:00pm. She's exhausted so I'll give you all the update. Basically the argument today between the 2 lawyers was "what question are we going to ask the jury." My mom was called up to testify during the case and they asked her the question; 
"When did you find out about the auction?" 
Her other lawyer immediately objected and the judge called them both back in his chambers for 30 minutes. My poor mom had to sit there that whole time and wait. When they returned, it was a back and forth battle of arguments about case law. At this point it seems the case can go either way. The biggest question is: if my mom wins against Vecchio, will Wells even work with her to modify her loan? 
In the mean time while this case is going on and especially if she wins, she will have to pay rent. Her lawyer advised her to find a broker or someone qualified to give her "fair market rental value" to stay in the house during the appeal. If anyone knows someone who can do this, please let us know!

Court will be finished on MONDAY. My mom will be going in at 8:30.  So for now keep praying for peace and hope. 

Here are the facts: 
There is a basic for an appeal if she loses, but it doesn't fix anything and these appeals can drag on for months and she will have to pay rent.
So on Monday, if my mom wins, it gives her more time to now fight Wells Fargo but if she loses, she will receive a 5 day eviction. If she does receive a 5 day eviction, we will have to order an extension very quickly to give my Mom more time to pack and figure out where she's going. 


Also, If anyone has any tents and camping gear, please let us know! We might be occupying! 

Thank you again for your support and prayers!

Trial Update 11/15





Hi everyone, Lauren here. My mom was too exhausted last night to type the results about court and I know you would all like detailed updates; so here it goes! We met up at the courthouse at 8:15 for her trial at 8:30. We were scheduled to see a commissioner instead of a judge though especially because my mom filed paperwork and paid to have a jury and see a judge. Her lawyer recommended this because he said that they would have a better chance with a jury on their side.



 So court started about 8:40 and there were a lot of people there all filing property disputes (renters owing landlords money and such). We sat in there for an hour and a half listening to the rest of the peoples cases until My mom’s case, which of course was last to be called. They talked only for about 20 minutes disputing about the trial. The other lawyer said he did not receive any paperwork about it being a jury trial. He was, needless to say, he was not very nice. An awful representative oh how a lawyer should behave. We were dismissed shortly after that to see a judge at 11:00 in another courtroom. So we took some time to pray and go to the bathroom and back into another room. When we got in the judge was very nice. The room was a lot smaller and the only people in there were the ones in the case, which was the judge, lawyers, me, my mom, the owner of Vecchio and one 1 other man. They argued once more to the judge because the other lawyer did not want a trial hearing. He was so nasty, cocky and arrogant.

Upon the judge’s request, he said we had a right to a jury trial, and would grant the other lawyer a little more time. So they went on break until 2:00 to give both lawyers time to prepare and time to gather the jury. I had to go to work unfortunately leaving my mom there. We went to lunch and prayed and took some time to settle before we had to go back. Once court was back in session, the used the 3 hours (from 3-5pm) just to pick a jury. My mom said the lawyer turned into Mr. charming once the jury was around to try and win them over. Once 5:00 rolled around they wrapped up for the day and come back tomorrow.

My mom is currently there now. I just spoke to her over the phone and she said that they were making headway and that her lawyer has brought up really good points. Please keep praying and sending good luck our way!

Thank you to everyone who has been praying for my mom in this situation. As much as I wish it was sometimes, this blog was not created to blast Vecchio and Wells Fargo but a place to check on updates, prayer requests and how you can help. This morning during chapel I was brought to tears during worship because I felt an overwhelming presence of God. I opened my bible Read Psalm 140: 4-8
 “O Lord, keep me out of the hands of the wicked. Protect me from those who are violent, for they are plotting against me.
 The proud have set a trap to catch me; they have stretched out a net; they have placed traps all along the way.
 I said to the Lord, “You are my God!” Listen, O Lord, to my cries for mercy!
 O Sovereign Lord, the strong one who rescued me, you protected me on the day of battle.
 Lord, do not let evil people have their way. Do not let their evil schemes succeed, or they will become proud.
                         

God has his hands over this trial. Our hope is in the LORD first that he will be with us in this battle. In the mean time, we are continuing to pray, give updates and blast Wells Fargo on twitter :) At this point we’re trying to do what we can go get my mom noticed so maybe a news channel will pick up her story. Please pass along this blog info to anyone so we can share my mom’s story and help others who are also struggling in keeping their home.

Love you all,                                                                                                                                                    

      Lauren

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

My Story


My troubles began in 2008.  I was a single disabled mom with only my youngest (of five) children living at home.  I had an adjustable rate mortgage, which was "good" for five years, then would take a significant jump in payment.  I had dealt with large banks previously, but a friend had good luck with an online loan.  That was a huge mistake!  I never saw my broker face to face.  Everything was handled over the phone…starting with my loan application.  My loan was to be fixed for ten years and have taxes and insurance impounded.  A mobile notary came out and rushed me through the paperwork.  For instance, she flipped past the application pages saying, "This is just the information you gave and has been typed up".  The owner/broker of the business, Ben Majoubi said it would be a Wachovia loan so I thought everything was as it was stated. You can't imagine the shock, and how ill I felt, when I realized I had been cheated! My taxes and insurance weren't impounded which added another $230 to my payment, and my payment adjusted yearly (not fixed for 10). But the biggest shocker was that they falsified my income of $32,240 to working at a company I had never heard of (for 3 years) making $106,000.

Immediately I sent a registered & certified letter to the president of Wachovia begging for help.  With the increase in my mortgage payment, I wrote that I would go through my savings in 8 months.  No one responded.  Soon after, Wells Fargo bought Wachovia, and my loan was lost in the shuffle.  At one point I applied for a loan modification, but 6 months later they couldn't even find the paperwork.

During this time I hired a lawyer, Walter Hackett, and he was trying to work with Wells Fargo to get some kind of loan modification going, but it all lead to dead ends.

Then in July 2011, I received a single page letter from Wells Fargo saying that I may be able to receive a loan modification from the government. So I sent in a single page worksheet that accompanied the letter that I got from Wells Fargo. I anxiously waited for a response and without a response the bank pulled a fast one and 20 days later the bank auctioned off my house. Wells Fargo sold my home to Vecchio for $1 more than the loan was owed. 

Fast forward to present day. I am currently in a hearing against Vecchio because they sold my home to another company when by law it should be sold in a public auction. I am fighting to keep my home and get a loan modification. I have been cheated, swindled, manipulated and lied to by Wells Fargo and Vecchio. 

It is awful not just for myself, but so many other people loosing their home because of these banks. My plea for the past two years to John Stumpf and Wells Fargo is just a loan modification so I can keep my independence as a disabled woman and watch my grandchildren and children grow in my home.