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Below is a recent article on the status of the Mortgage Debt Relief Program. While the information provided is pretty self-explanatory, we still continue to believe the law will be extended … someday. Without it, foreclosures and bankruptcies would increase dramatically, negatively affecting the masses. Foreclosures have been dropping dramatically over the past year, but without help from Congress they could begin to rise again. In 2007, Congress passed a tax exemption for mortgage debt forgiveness. This exemption expired at the end of 2013 and has not been extended, as some predicted it would be. The recent foreclosure crisis was...

Steps of a Personal Injury Lawsuit in Washington State

Jan 16 2014

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Have you ever been curious to know what the process is behind a personal injury claim? Here, we define the typical steps… Summons and Complaint The insurance company has refused to make a reasonable offer of settlement on your injury claim. As a results, we have filed suit on your behalf. We have sued the responsible parties and their insurance companies with a document called a “Summons and Complaint.” The question is then, “what happens next?” Answer After the papers are served to the defendants and their insurance companies, they hire attorneys to represent them and to serve us with...

Extension of the Mortgage Debt Relief Act

Jan 07 2014

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Following is a great piece published in the Washington Post earlier today with commentary from attorney Scott Weitz. The rumor going around is that there is something in writing to extend the law discussed, but Congress hasn’t put it to a vote yet. Be sure to check our blog for future updates. There’s a tax break for struggling homeowners that Congress shouldn’t have let expire just before the new year. If not extended, some people selling their homes could get big tax bills. As the housing crisis drove people into foreclosure, many borrowers were not aware that forgiven debt, including on...

Nationwide Survey: Pricing Power on Public Universities

Nov 25 2013

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In a recent article, The Wall Street Journal highlights a very interesting trend that must be looked at over the next 10-20 years. We’ve been beating the table for several years stating that many (not all – especially those who have a specialized degree) would be better served entering the workforce rather than taking out extraordinary debt to finance an education. Following are excerpts from the article with commentary from attorney Scott Weitz. Nearly half of the nation’s colleges and universities are no longer generating enough tuition revenue to keep pace with inflation, highlighting the acceleration of a downward spiral that...

Three Factors that Could Shape the Fate of Housing Overhaul

Nov 15 2013

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At last month’s annual mortgage-industry trade show, most political and industry analysts agreed that there aren’t great odds that Congress will pass a bill addressing the future of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac before 2014, let alone 2016. Congress cannot end Fannie or Freddie because they provide lending and/or guarantees for a majority of loans these days. Abolishing Fannie and Freddie would destroy the housing market — and Congress knows it. Several developments could make the next five or six months among the more consequential periods for housing-finance policy since the companies were taken over by the government five years ago. Following...