Florida Senate - 2012                                     SB 628
       
       
       
       By Senator Sobel
       
       
       
       
       31-00581-12                                            2012628__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to residential foreclosure
    3         proceedings; providing a short title; creating s.
    4         501.1379, F.S.; defining terms; prohibiting certain
    5         acts by mortgage collection firms; providing that
    6         violations are deceptive and unfair trade practices;
    7         providing penalties and remedies; providing for the
    8         award of attorney fees and costs under certain
    9         circumstances; providing an effective date.
   10  
   11  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   12  
   13         Section 1. This act may be cited as the “Florida Mortgage
   14  Collection Fairness Act.”
   15         Section 2. Section 501.1379, Florida Statutes, is created
   16  to read:
   17         501.1379 Mortgage collection firms; prohibited practices;
   18  penalties and remedies.—
   19         (1) As used in this section, the term:
   20         (a) “Mortgage collection firm” means:
   21         1. An attorney or law firm engaged to represent a party
   22  filing a residential mortgage foreclosure action; or
   23         2. A person engaged in debt collection services for a
   24  residential mortgage loan.
   25         (b) “Mortgage modification agreement” means a written
   26  agreement to modify the interest rate or other terms of a
   27  residential mortgage to avoid default of the mortgage or
   28  foreclosure proceedings.
   29         (2) A mortgage collection firm may not:
   30         (a) Offer evidence in a residential mortgage foreclosure
   31  proceeding that the firm knows to be false.
   32         (b) Knowingly breach a bona fide mortgage modification
   33  agreement.
   34         (c) Retake possession, without judicial process, of
   35  residential real property for a party filing a mortgage
   36  foreclosure action upon such property, unless such property is
   37  abandoned for more than 30 days.
   38         (3) A violation of subsection (2) is a deceptive and unfair
   39  trade practice and constitutes a violation of the Florida
   40  Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act. A mortgage collection
   41  firm that violates subsection (2) is subject to the penalties
   42  and remedies provided in part II of this chapter, including the
   43  award of reasonable attorney fees and costs under s. 501.2105.
   44         Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2012.