Decline in NM Foreclosures Only a Temporary Reprieve?

Over the past year or so, foreclosure filings have declined in New Mexico, as elsewhere around the nation, particularly in those states that utilize judicial foreclosure.  Doing foreclosure mediation, among other things, I was well aware of this trend.  It is generally chalked up, by practitioners, to the banks' regrouping efforts necessitated by widespread problems with foreclosure documentation and affidavits, and to a lesser extent

Is Media Making Our Kids Too Sexy Too Soon?

As a domestic relations mediator and child protection worker (CASA and GAL)--and a parent--I have occasion to wonder if the media is making our kids too precocious too soon.  In So Sexy So Soon (2008), authors Diane E. Levin, PhD and Jean Kilbourne, EdD weigh in and conclude that is the case.  While I do not agree with all of their premises or prejudices, there is still considerable merit to their book

Hard Times Get Tougher?

I am an Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Professional in New Mexico, and I wrote earlier in the year on another blog about "the new normal" of low, slow growth.  Recently, the Chief Economist for the Bank of New York Mellon, Richard B. Hoey, suggested that the situation could now be quite worse.  

Bankruptcy, Short Sale and Deed in Lieu in Foreclosure

A significant part of my neutral practice involves New Mexico foreclosure mediation, and I have written several posts recently regarding foreclosure.  See Foreclosure Mediation - Limitations and Concerns and How a Mediator Can Help in Foreclosure - More Thoughts.  Today, I'd like to look at a couple of particularly thorny issues that often arise in foreclosure mediation.  

First, it may be that the homeowner will need to consider whether he or she is even able to afford the home.  If the homeowner is not offered a loan modification that will

Foreclosure Mediation - Limitations and Concerns*

As part of my New Mexico mediation practice, I find I am increasingly being referred residential foreclosure mediation cases.  This is no accident as today, an increasing number of states and/or individual state courts are utilizing foreclosure mediation programs to manage the current "foreclosure crisis." Some states with such programs, either state-wide or local include: Connecticut; Delaware; Florida—various judicial districts; Kentucky—Jefferson County; Maine; Maryland; Michigan; Nevada; New Jersey; New Mexico—First and Thirteenth Judicial Districts; New York; Ohio—various counties; Oregon; Pennsylvania—various counties; Rhode Island—Providence. 

A recurring and thorny dilemma for mediators today is how to conduct and what are the proper parameters for a foreclosure mediation or settlement facilitation.