Nevada Enacts Homeowner's Bill of Rights

Foreclosure Mortgage Servicing

On June 3, Nevada enacted a Homeowner’s Bill of Rights, SB 321, to establish protections from foreclosure for owner-occupied property securing residential mortgage loans. The Nevada bill, among other things, (i) requires that at least 30 calendar days before recording pre-foreclosure documents or commencing a judicial foreclosure action and at least 30 calendar days after a borrower’s default, the mortgage servicer, mortgagee or beneficiary of the deed of trust must provide to the borrower certain information concerning the borrower’s account, the available foreclosure prevention alternatives, and a statement of the facts supporting the right of the mortgagee or beneficiary to foreclose, (ii) requires that an institution contact, or attempt to contact, the borrower before filing pre-foreclosure documents or commencing a foreclosure, (iii) prohibits dual tracking, (iv) establishes “single point of contact” rules, and (v) allows borrowers in a judicial foreclosure action to elect to participate in a state foreclosure mediation program. These new requirements apply to notices of default and elections to sell that are recorded on or after October 1, 2013. The bill exempts institutions that foreclosed on 100 or fewer owner-occupied homes in the preceding annual reporting period, as established by their primary regulator.