California Mortgage Settlement Monitor Reports on Dual Tracking

Mortgage Servicing

On October 2, California’s Monitor of the commitments made by the nation’s five mortgage companies pursuant to the national mortgage servicer settlement issued her first report. The report focuses on the progress the mortgage companies have made in complying with settlement restrictions on the use of dual tracking. The report’s primary finding is that the servicers used the full 180-day implementation period allowed by the national settlement to end dual tracking, the practice whereby mortgage companies, seeking to protect their interests, allow a foreclosure to proceed even though the borrower has applied for a mortgage modification. The report does not allege any noncompliance with the settlement and acknowledges that complaints about dual tracking by the settling companies declined as the October 3, 2012 compliance deadline approached.