Nick Wooten is the founder of Nick Wooten, LLC. Nick has been a licensed attorney since May of 1998. Nick has spent the vast majority of his career representing consumers in all types of civil litigation relating to consumer issues, personal injury and wrongful death claims since 1998. Currently, Nick is focusing on litigation against mortgage servicers in the Eastern Division of the Northern District of Illinois which includes Chicago and its suburbs. Nick is admitted as a member of the general and trial Bar for the Northern District of Illinois, and the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals.
A mortgage servicer is a company to which some borrowers pay their mortgage loan payments and which performs other services in connection with mortgages and mortgage-backed securities.
Nick looks at his job as trying to throw sand in the wheels of the mortgage services’ bus. We talk about the history of mortgage servicers after the last housing crisis in 2009.
Maybe you got your loan from Quicken or Bank of America, then the serving of that loan was sent to mortgage servicers. Their names are often changing, but they are not household names.
When you deal with a mortgage servicer you are usually talking with someone earning minimum wage, they can often be located offshore. They are not known for high customer service standards.
What do you do if you’re having a problem with your servicer?
- Document everything you can as extensively you can (write out everything you can remember)
- Keep a chronological timeline of everything that has happened
You can handle your own disputes, but watch out for online credit disputing where you may be agreeing to arbitration. You may get to a point where you don’t feel like you can handle it on your own. The critical point is when you get that notice of default document. It comes in certified and regular mail. That’s when you should look for a lawyer.
What do you look for when you’re looking for a lawyer to help you with these issues?
- Experience with mortgage servicers. This has been going on for decades and getting someone with experience can make a big difference.
- Look for someone who specializes in foreclosures.
- Check reviews and case history and ask the lawyer, if they get upset it might be a sign it’s not a good fit.
- If you are put off by how they talk or act, keep in mind that you are likely going to be in a professional relationship with this person for years. Trust your gut.
