Reply #8: A simple solution: due process

[Trekologer]

I don't think that there should be a blanket bailout of banks or homeowners. I say this as someone with a mortgage who's house has lost value and is likely worth much less than what it was bought for. But here is a simple solution: let due process play out.

If a bank wants to collect, they must prove that they are the holder of the note. If the bank cannot prove that they are the holder of the note, the home owner should still pay their mortgage payments into an account to be paid if/when the note holder can be found. If, after the unclaimed property time period expires, the note is ordered void and the homeowner gets the money back.

If a bank wants to foreclose, they must prove that they are the lien-holder on the deed. If they cannot prove this (and the sham of MERS is ruled invalid), then the lien is taken off the deed. This doesn't mean that money to pay back the loan isn't still owed (see above), just that the loan is no longer secured by the property; it would become an unsecured loan, like a credit card.

It may be rough at first, and a bunch of banks will go bust, but the banks set up this system that is falling down around them. They set up MERS to cheat county offices out of paying for document filing fees and dodge the risk of making loans (and the need to
ensure that the person you lend money to is qualified). So be it.