U.S. Regulators Examining Departures at Mortgage Registry (MERS) [View all]

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Disclosure: I am a homeowner that has sued MERS in the state of Pennsylvania. One reason I sued MERS is that they are not a lawful mortgagee under PA statutes which leaves me with a void mortgage clouding my property Title.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-04-16/u-s-regulators-examining-departures-at-mortgage-registry.html

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"The closely held Reston, Virginia-based firm, a unit of Merscorp Holdings Inc., is also facing scores of lawsuits and state probes that challenge its business model as well as the legality of its filings in hundreds of county courthouses."

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“If the use of MERS is found not to be valid, we could be obligated to cure certain defects or in some circumstances be subject to additional costs and expenses,” Bank of America reported in a February filing. “Our use of MERS as nominee for the mortgage may also create reputational risks for us.”

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“A large portion of the loans we own or guarantee are registered in MERS’s name and the related servicing rights are tracked in the MERS System,” Fannie Mae’s report said, adding that if the firm couldn’t function in the same way, lenders could be forced to go back to time-consuming and expensive methods of recording land transfers."

Comment: That “time-consuming and expensive methods of recording land transfers” is actually the lawful method in PA and many other states which doesn’t create a cloud upon Title.

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“Beyond Washington, MERS is a target of lawsuits filed by local governments and borrowers. Municipal and county officials accused MERS of cheating them out of filing fees, which was previously a reliable stream of revenue. Other suits have argued it overstepped its authority in foreclosures. MERS has won some victories while other cases remain unresolved. In Pennsylvania, a federal judge has allowed county officials to gather a class-action suit against the firm.”

Comment: In PA, one of our county Recorder of Deeds sued MERS to compel them to file all the missing mortgage Assignments in the county land records as required by law and pay the associated fees. The lawsuit is Class Action now. By law those Assignments must be filed within 6 months otherwise the mortgage is “fraudulent and void.” If you are a Pennsylvania homeowner with MERS in your mortgage, that information should be important to you.