Important Notices

April 22, 2009

Governor Schwarzenegger signs the California Foreclosure Prevention Act

On February 20, 2009, Governor Schwarzenegger signed into law the California Foreclosure Prevention Act (Civil Code Section 2523.52 et seq.).

The California Foreclosure Prevention Act provides specified borrowers with an additional 90 days in the home foreclosure process, unless the mortgage loan servicer responsible for servicing the borrower's loan establishes that it has implemented a comprehensive loan modification program, as described in Civil Code Section 2523.53. To qualify for the exemption, the servicer must obtain an order confirming the exemption from the additional 90 day requirement of the Act, from one of the following: the Commissioner of Corporations, the Commissioner of Financial Institutions, or the Commissioner of Real Estate.

The Departments of Corporations, Financial Institutions, and Real Estate are required to adopt regulations to clarify the application of Civil Code Sections 2523.52 and 2523.53 (Section 2523.53(d) of the California Foreclosure Prevention Act).

In accordance with Government Code Section 11346(b), the Departments seek to involve parties who would be subject to the regulations and other interested parties in discussions regarding the proposed regulations. Accordingly, the Departments are providing an internet link to the draft regulations and draft servicer survey to the public and interested parties, and invite interested parties to submit comments on these documents by MAY 6, 2009. Please note that there are three documents to be reviewed: (1) Invitation for Comments; (2) Draft California Foreclosure Prevention Act Regulations; and, (3) Foreclosure Prevention Loan Modification Data Report Form. The three documents are found under the heading PRO 05/09 - Foreclosure Prevention Act Regulations. The link to the documents is http://www.corp.ca.gov/OLP/rulemaking_laws.asp#fpa or the proposal may be found through the Department of Corporations website at http://www.corp.ca.gov.

If you have any questions, please contact Ken Sayre-Peterson, Assistant General Counsel, at 916-322-1570 or at ksayre-peterson@dfi.ca.gov.