Date post: | 21-Mar-2016 |
Category: |
Documents |
Upload: | anita-belle |
View: | 238 times |
Download: | 7 times |
To TOC Page 1 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
Turning Lemons Into Lemonade
Shifting the Paradigm for Real Estate Investing
Anita E. Belle, J.D.
Legal Notice
To TOC Page 2 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
Copyright
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be
reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means
mechanical or electronic, including photocopying and
recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system
without written permission from the publisher.
Copyright © 2009 Anita E. BelleP.O. Box 19116
Detroit, MI 48219313-736-5505
Disclaimer
This e-book provides information about the law designed to
help readers safely cope with their own legal needs. But legal
information is not the same as legal advice -- the application
of law to an individual's specific circumstances. Although I go
to great lengths to make sure our information is accurate and
useful, I recommend you consult a lawyer if you want
professional assurance that my information, and your
interpretation of it, is appropriate to your particular situation.
Table of Contents
Legal Notice ......................................................................................................................2
Terms & Rights.................................................................................................................4
Dedication.........................................................................................................................5
Trapped in a Box?..............................................................................................................8
A Paradigm Shift ............................................................................................................28
The Multi-Generational Investment Network................................................................44
Running with the Vision.................................................................................................53
About the Author............................................................................................................55
To TOC Page 3 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
Terms & Rights
Thanks for your purchase.
Here are your rights to this package:
[Yes] Can be given away.[Yes] Can be packaged.[Yes] Can be offered as a bonus.[No] Can be edited.[No] Can be claimed as your own work.[No] Can be used as web content.[No] Can be broken down into articles.[No] Can be added to paid membership sites.[No] Can be offered through auction sites.[No] Can sell Resale Rights.[No] Can sell Master Resell Rights.[No] Can Sell Private Label Rights
To TOC Page 4 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
DedicationDedicated to the Glory of God.
If necessity is the mother of invention, then my
mother, Thelma Belle, made it necessary for me to study
land patents. Thank you and thanks to the rest of my
family.
If inspiration is the father of invention, then thank
you, Allen Brown, for inspiring me by love and fury.
Inspiration is like spiritual passion and fertilization.
Once there's conception, the womb takes over and brings
forth the creation. Thank you for this “baby”.
Thanks to Morella Riley Beyah for teaching me the
basics about land patents and introducing me to Art
Kirkland.
Thanks to the University of Florida for the legal
education. Even if the State of Florida took away my
ability to practice law for others, you taught me the basics
about how to represent myself. When I think how racists
To TOC Page 5 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
fought for years to keep blacks like Virgil Hawkins out
of your halls, now I see how knowledge can be dangerous.
I hope I've done you proud.
Thanks to the Wayne State law library for making
legal research facilities available to the public. Wayne
State University is also my alma mater for the bachelor's
degree. Thank you for providing the stepping stone for
success.
Thanks to my legal adversaries, particularly Greg
MacKay of Trott and Trott, the law firm representing the
banks trying to foreclose and repossess my mother's
house. I also want to thank Art Kirkland and Jess
Medina's daughter-in-law. (Please forgive me for not
remembering your name.) Iron sharpeneth iron. I raised
one issue. You countered with another, which provoked me
to raise another issue. We're uncovering branches to a
family tree for the genealogy of land. When we reach the
roots of this tree, I hope you and the judges will agree that,
in this game of Spades, the land patent is trump, the Ace
of Spades. (Unless you play with the jokers...)
To TOC Page 6 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
Thanks to the instructors of free courses teaching
about the purpose of an individual's life and the thought
of creation at Kabbalahlearningcenter.info.
Last but not least, it is said that blacks have their
own language or dialect called “Ebonics”. If I may be
permitted to respectfully speak to the President, in
“Ebonics”, on behalf of homeowners facing foreclosure:
Chicago, can you hear Motown singing?
We shall not, we shall not be moved.
We shall not, we shall not be moved.
Just like a tree that's planted by the waters,
We shall not be moved.
To TOC Page 7 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
Trapped in a Box?
President Barack Obama, during campaign speech in Detroit, Michigan on Labor Day, September 1, 2008.
his book is being first written in late January/early February
of 2009, after the inauguration of a new president in the
United States of America. As an African-American, I am
one of the 90+% of African-Americans and majority of non-blacks
who helped change history by electing the first African-American
president, Barack Obama. I'd like to take this opportunity to point
out that his first name, Barack, means “blessing” in Swahili (the
language of his father's native land of Kenya), Hebrew, and
probably Arabic as well (all three are Afroasiatic languages.)
Regardless of your political persuasion, whether you believe the
person of Barack Obama to be a messiah or anti-christ, I wanted to
begin this book with a spiritual message of hope. For those
thinking outside of the Box, this is our time for blessings.
T
To TOC Page 8 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
The actual person, with all due respect to Mr. Obama, may
simply be a Prince Hall mason carrying on business-as usual for
his masonic grand masters. If this is true, then the only thing that
will change in the White House is the complexion of the skin of the
commander-in-chief. Much ado over nothing could be made about
the Supreme Court's Chief Justice botching up administering the
oath of office. What will ultimately be important to the status quo is
if Obama took the masonic oath to keep his brothers' secrets.
Literally, the penalty for breaking the Masonic oath is death.
Even for presidents who were not freemasons, (for example,
Abraham Lincoln), the masons could conspire to assassinate,
select one person to be the fall guy, spin the “lone gunman” theory
for the trial and press, while the rest of the co-conspirators get
away with murder. (Did this conspiracy play out against John F.
and Robert Kennedy? Even Martin Luther King and Malcolm X?)
An alternative is to assassinate his character. I briefly alluded to
the power of the masons and Catholic secret societies in my earlier
e-book, “Land Patents: Scam or Revolution?”, available on
www.mylandpatent.com. I will go into further details in a future
book. Suffice it to say for now, I'm not expecting many immediate,
radical changes from a president because the invisible hand of
powerful secret societies might literally cut his throat or otherwise
make heads roll in order to keep the rest of us trapped in their Box.
In this president's defense, I will add that Obama would be
empowered to enact radical changes if a grassroots groundswell
movement supported or forced him to shift paradigms.
Before I get into developing the grassroots groundswell, let's
address a burning question: What is the Box?
To TOC Page 9 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
I am in Detroit, Michigan, the automobile capitol of the world.
My mother, uncles, cousins, and at least one sweetheart, are
members of the United Auto Workers (UAW), headquartered in
Detroit. General Motors (GM), the once-touted largest automotive
manufacturer of the world, is headquartered in Detroit. Chrysler
and Ford, the other two parts to America's automotive trinity, are
headquartered in suburbs of Detroit. Recently, GM and Chrysler
appealed to Washington, DC for a bailout, stating that their
corporate financial conditions are so dire that they were on the
brink of bankruptcy. Grudgingly, and at the 11th hour, Former
President George W. Bush okay'd a bailout. Nevertheless,
Michigan has the highest unemployment rate in the nation. With
the layoff of thousands of auto workers, there has been a spiral
effect on the rest of Michigan's economy. To be expected, laid off
workers no longer have the income to pay their mortgages.
Foreclosures are epidemic! In fact, you can buy a house (more truthfully, you can buy several houses) in Michigan for less money than it costs to buy a single car, whether new or used.
The Box would say that if things keep going the way they've
been going, even real estate investors, who could cheaply buy a lot
of land in Michigan, would be wise to invest their money elsewhere.
Even if the auto manufacturers escape bankruptcy (by the skin of
their teeth), they may do so at the sacrifice of the auto workers. No
one's job is security, including white collar workers, management,
and executives. Those still working may be doing so with lower
wages and fewer benefits. Unions, which I believe had a hand in
elevating workers to a socioeconomic status other than waged
slaves, would become a casualty of this recession/depression. No
job. No house. No health care. The Box would say that things are
To TOC Page 10 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
going to get worse if they'll ever get better. Add the snow and cold,
people are migrating out of Michigan so fast that somebody should
holler for the last person out to please turn off the lights.
If you're outside of Michigan, you might say, “Who cares?”
But I remember performing in a high school musical as part of a trio
that sang this short song:
Three rousing rahsA few huzzahsAnd a hip, hip, hip hooray.What's good for General Bullmoose Is good for the USA.
Skyline of Detroit, Michigan, with the world headquarters of General Motors, also called the Renaissance Center, in the forefront.
Even as a teenager, I remember wondering if General
Bullmoose was General Motors. Curiously, the “Lil Abner” musical
mixed political commentary with entertainment by alluding that the
motor driving the USA is in Michigan rather than Washington DC,
New York, or even sunny California. Of course, the Federal
Reserve Bank of New York may beg to differ.
The Box would also say that even though the effect of the
auto companies declaring bankruptcy may lead to the state
government declaring bankruptcy, such a catastrophic economic
To TOC Page 11 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
event would be localized to Michigan. If you haven't figured it out
yet, the Box is lying. (And I don't say that because I'm the daughter
of a GM retiree.) True, the auto companies need some
reorganizing. True, the auto companies can't take for granted that
the fate of a nation rests on their shoulders and waste money on
stupid luxuries and poor-quality products. However, my bias and
moral conscience intervenes when health care and pensions for
senior citizens is considered “stupid” legacy costs. Furthermore,
decentralizing environmental impact rules to the legislative whims
of 50 different states is another action equivalent to pulling the plug
on an industry and a state already on life support. Michiganders,
irrespective of race, overwhelmingly supported Obama in the 2008
election. From the GM Cadillac that is Obama's presidential
limousine to Detroit's own Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin, gracing
his inauguration with a song, we don't deserved to be betrayed.
But I digress.
What is true is that the two major purchases in the “American
dream” is a house and at least one car. The Box would say bail out
the banks because of the housing crisis. In the predecessor book,
Land Patents: Scam or Revolution?, I went into more detail
about how the banks caused the housing crisis. Like a college
course, I deem my Land Patent book to be prerequisite reading for
this book. Otherwise, I'd have to repeat too much. For now, let me
say that banks and, to a lesser extent, insurance companies, are
part of the Federal Reserve Box that is imploding. This is why
we're suffering, both as a nation and internationally. Cuba Gooding
Jr. made famous the movie line, “Show me the money!” The first
problem is the money. We can't save the Federal Reserve.
Constitution lovers shouldn't want to.
To TOC Page 12 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
Sometimes, the Box pushes for the “right” thing to be done,
but for the wrong reasons. Of course, if the right thing is done for
the wrong reasons, without a correction, the right thing will become
wrong. What I see happening is that the federal bailout of bank
loans for foreclosed mortgages can be the right thing. The wrong
reason is to save the bank. After all, banks are committing fraud:
1. First by failing to loan constitutional money as consideration
for their promissory note contracts,
2. Second by issuing mortgages and notes on property for
which the land patent is not assigned or transferred, and
3. Third by repeatedly selling the promissory note without notice
to the borrower.
A state-legislated document, whether called the warranty
deed or trust deed, is issued in the land patent's stead. The right
reason is for the federal government to correct the land patent
issue. After all, it was the federal government that granted the land
patents while the states were federal territories. Moreover, HUD
regulates closings and should have required that, in the 32 states
with land patents, the documents disclosed at closing should
include assignments of the land patent. Is the federal government
simply negligent or complicit in another conspiracy to fraudulently
separate people from the fruits of their labor, redistributing wealth
from the relatively poor to the rich?
Let me boldly assert that both the state and federal
governments are active participants in this conspiracy. Maybe their
superficial motive for “forgetting” the land patent is to standardize
one closing procedure that would apply both to the former
territories that had land patents and the former colonies or other
To TOC Page 13 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
states that did not. Of course, this motive hints at a more ominous
motive beneath the surface. If the love of money is the root of all
evil, then an explanation for the federal government to forget
mentioning that the legal title contained in land patents should be
disclosed at closings is in order to make it easier for banks to mortgage and foreclose on borrowers.
My legal reasoning for a conspiracy is this: The land patents
of the early 1800s give legal title to the heirs and assigns forever.
This legal title can be mortgaged, but a bank's interest in using the
property to secure the loan would best be served by an assignment
of rights to the lender. Let's say the homeowner/borrower wanted
to take out a second mortgage or home equity loan. This would
require another assignment. God forbid if a third mortgage is
wanted. Compound this problem with the phenomenon that mortgages are repeatedly bought and sold, then there would be more assignments on top of assignments. Add to this
problem the fluctuations in equity, home value, and adjustable rate
mortgages. God forbid that the borrower defaults on one or more
of the mortgages. It may be difficult for a court to equitably and
uniformly distribute these rights among all the competing interested
parties, but most certainly, a court proceeding would be necessary.
There is little likelihood foreclosures could be handled without
judicial intervention and lengthy litigation. An alternative to this
scenario could have been for banks to simply issue land contracts:
After a borrower has paid off the terms of the land contract, the
borrower could then receive the assignment of the land patent.
However, it was more profitable for banks to simply mortgage and
foreclose based on color of title from the state-created deeds. One
problem: What happens when a person wants to buy a house for
To TOC Page 14 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
cash or if the promissory notes are satisfied?
America runs on debt, so if a person ever pays off their debts,
then the promissory note (which should be canceled) is satisfied.
Not only does the bank often fail to give the borrower the original
promissory note, the bank also does not transfer the full legal title
to the homeowner, that legal title being the assignment of the land
patent. Similarly, if a property owner with a mortgage were to sell
the property to a cash purchaser, neither the property owner or the
mortgage company has a legal title or land patent assignment to
transfer to the purchaser. Oftentimes, the mortgage company no
longer has the promissory note either. Hence, the only thing that
can be conveyed at closing is a color of title.
Let's look again at the closing documents home buyers are
NOT given: Let's say a home was purchased for $100,000, has a
mortgage for $90,000, but the homeowner went into default. The
loan balance is $105,000, but the real estate market is depressed,
so the bank agrees to a short sale of $60,000. The homeowner,
now seller, goes to the closing where a buyer agrees to purchase
the property for $60,000 cash. When the seller walks away
homeless, does the seller at least get back the original promissory
note to signify that the mortgage is canceled? Does the buyer, who
just spent $60,000 cash, get the assignment of land patent to
signify legal title to the property? No, the seller, at best, gets a
satisfaction of mortgage and the buyer gets a color of title and title
insurance. The seller is at risk that the holders of the promissory
note will still try to collect on part or all of the $105,000 debt
because a satisfaction of mortgage is not the same as a
cancellation. The buyer is at risk because the holders of the
To TOC Page 15 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
promissory note that has not been canceled still have the right to
foreclose on the property for the $105,000. Title insurance for the
purchase price of $60,000 does not cover the risk.
Banks pretend that the above scenario would never happen
because of their secret agreements (otherwise known as
unregulated business practices) to honor satisfactions of
mortgages and color of titles. However, with mortgage fraud so
prevalent, bank closures, multi-billion dollar Ponzi schemes, and
the world going through a financial meltdown, the time has come
for property owners and buyers to no longer blindly trust the banks.
Given that real estate is usually the most expensive purchase most
people will ever make, such an investment should justify the need
to protect the investment with a perfect title of ownership.
Property owners who ever mortgage their property with the
banks cannot give perfect or legal title. Legal title would not even
be in their chain or abstract of title. Consequently, bankers try to
“make up” to their customers for the mere color of title with title
insurance in the amount of the purchase price. But what if you
want a specific property and perfect title, not title insurance? You
must do a title search (also called abstract of title) back to the land
patent's heirs and assignees or otherwise quiet their claims by
having a court declare you the land patent assignee.
If cash purchasers of real estate could go to court to quiet
title, nothing prohibits a borrower from doing likewise, particularly
after the borrower has occupied the property for the time required
under the state's laws for adverse possession. Preferably, this kind
of lawsuit would be initiated before any mortgage default or
foreclosure proceedings. Then a court could order the assignment
To TOC Page 16 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
of land patent to be duly recorded in the county or parish's registrar
of deeds. Such a document would not mean the land patent
assignee can stop paying the mortgage, but it would be harder for
the bank to foreclose nonjudicially. In the foreclosure proceedings,
I recommend suing the mortgage company for fraud in failing to
disclose or transfer the legal title at the closing, among other
issues. These are some of the issues being raised in my mother's
lawsuits.
Allow me to digress further regarding my mother's lawsuits.
These cases are turning on the issue of the promissory note. As
some of you may know, my mother is the victim of a mortgage
fraud that has afflicted many senior citizens, African-Americans,
and other non-sophisticated borrowers: She lost title to investors
who lease-optioned the property back to her. Never mind that
when she re-purchased the property, it was for a purchase price in
violation of the lease option due to an over-inflated appraisal.
There were other glaring irregularities, but most important was that
she was promised one interest rate, yet due to the mortgage
company failing to file the deed and mortgage for 2-1/2 years (!), this neglect effectively imposed a higher-than-contracted interest
rate upon her in the guise of a higher escrow for property taxes. In
other words, the principal and interest she was supposed to pay
was $750, but with the “property taxes” escrow, her monthly
payments exceeded $1300. By the time the lost deed and
mortgage were recorded, she was in default. However, what we're
employing as a strategy to stop the foreclosure is demanding
discovery of the original promissory note because this would show
the real interest rate my mother agreed to pay.
To TOC Page 17 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
Back to the evolution of land patents: I can imagine that, back
in the day, real estate with assignments of land patent were easier
to sell than real estate with mere colors of title because the land
patent assignment conveyed legal title. Banks had to cover up
their cover up of the lack of conveying legal title, so they lobbied
state legislatures to effectively render land patents obsolete by
replacing them with colors of title. This happened in Michigan with
the Marketable Record Title, Act 200 of 1945, MCL 565.101 et seq.
This Act permitted abstracts of title to be researched no further
back than 40 years, so that at the time the Act was enacted, the
furthest back marketable title would be recorded was until 1905.
MCL 565.106 extinguishes any prior claims. Of note is that land
patents in Michigan were issued at least as early as 1820. My
mother's lot can be traced back to a land patent issued in 1833. At
that time, while Michigan was a federal territory, the federal
government gave the land patentee, Benjamin Woods, a fee simple
title and declared the rights which would inure to his heirs and
assigns forever. Michigan became a state in 1837. Did Michigan
decide that forever should end in 1945? When did forever end in
your state?
If the Michigan law effectively eliminated legal title to land,
then isn't such a law an unconstitutional exercise of eminent
domain, in violation of the Takings Clause in the Fifth Amendment
to the U.S. Constitution? Not only was private property taken for a
non-public use, but also without just compensation. The U.S.
Supreme Court has ruled it is legal for a state to take private
property, even if for non-public use, as long as the state could
somehow justify the taking by increasing the tax base and
economic development. Kelo v. City of New London, 545 U.S. 469
To TOC Page 18 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
(2005).1 Of course, it has yet to be addressed how homeowners
for the past 64 years, from 1945 to the present, have been
compensated by the State of Michigan for the taking of their legal
titles. If the Michigan law is construed to not extinguish legal title,
(such a politically-based court decision would favor the state by
preventing money-strapped Michigan from having to pay
reparations to 60+ years worth of homeowners,) then the same law
can be used to go to court and have the occupant of the property
declared the assignee of the land patent. On the other hand,
banks might use this law as a defense to mortgage fraud by
claiming that legal title is no longer necessary, only marketable title.
Yet such a defense is circular, leading us back to the issue as to
whether marketable title effectively replaces legal title, and if so,
then isn't marketable title unconstitutional?
The banks and states would be hard-pressed to find a U.S.
Supreme Court decision that supports any contention that
marketable title is indistinguishable from legal title. So far,
numerous precedents that have not been overturned have found
the land patent to be the legal title in fee simple.2 Indeed, the
relatively recent Summa decision3 is illustrative of why legal title is
important. Howard Hughes' Summa Corporation obtained a land
patent from heirs of the original patentees. The land patent was to
Ballona Lagoon, a narrow body of water connected to a man-made
1 Michigan amended its state constitution to restrict the way its municipal corporations take private property for private economic development and property tax use. See Michigan Constitution of 1963 Article X, §2 as amended on November 7, 2006 in reaction to the Kelo decision.
2 Congress has the sole power to declare the dignity and effect of titles emanating from the United States and the whole legislation of the government, in reference to the public lands, declare the patent to be the superior and conclusive evidence of legal title. Until it issues, the fee is in the Government, which by the patent passes to the grantee, and he is entitled to enforce the possession in ejectment. Bagnell v. Broderick, 38 U.S. 436, 450 (1839). A patent for land is the highest evidence of title and is conclusive against the government and all claiming under junior patents or titles... United States v. Stone, 69 U.S. 525, 535 (1864). The presumption is that the patent is valid and passed legal title. Minter v. Crommelin, 59 U.S. 87, 88 (1855).
3 Summa Corp. v. Cal. State Lands Commission, 466 U.S. 198 (1984).
To TOC Page 19 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
harbor located in the City of Los Angeles on th Pacific Ocean. The
city and county tried to exercise a public trust easement over the
lagoon, but the U.S. Supreme Court found that the state needed to
assert these rights at the time the land patent was initially issued by
the federal government in or around 1851, otherwise California's
claims against the land patentees were forever barred. If Howard
Hughes had settled for merely a state-created marketable color of
title over Ballona Lagoon, then the state could take away just as
easily as it could give. With the federal land patent, his corporation
at least had legal title to give the corporation more ammunition to
fight in court against over-encroachments.
Although some land patent websites equate the fee simple
with allodial title, this is not completely accurate. The fee simple is
a term derived from fief and is part of the feudal land system. The
only two states that offer allodial title are Nevada and Texas, and
these titles are only partially allodial.4 Yes, most of America is a
feudal system as evidenced by the Takings Clause of the Fifth
Amendment. Land patents do not stop eminent domain or property
taxes.5 The U.S. Supreme Court has recognized the states' ability
to tax property as part the constitutional rights reserved to the
states. Land patents make it harder, but not impossible, to
mortgage the property or forfeit it to property taxes by elevating the
property to a status in which challenges regarding the patentee's
rights must be decided in court of equity rather than nonjudicially.
At the minimum, land patents defeat the power of sale clause in
mortgages and give assignees an absolute title.6 In this way,
4 See “Allodial Title” at http://www.reference.com/browse/allodium?jss=15 See for example Wright v. Mattison, 59 U.S. 50 (1856). See also Glen W. Fisher's History of Property Tax in the
United States, http://eh.net/encyclopedia/article/fisher.property.tax.history.us. 6 See “Foreclosure by Power of Sale” at http://realestate.findlaw.com/foreclosure/foreclosure-by-power-of-sale.html
To TOC Page 20 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
Americans can decide that their feudal lords will not be the banks.
Banks and mortgage companies may foreclose by a power of sale
in the following 29 states. More than half of these states, the ones
highlighted in red, are also land patent states:
● Alabama ● Alaska ● Arizona ● California ● Colorado ● District of Columbia ● Georgia ● Hawaii ● Idaho ● Maine ● Maryland ● Massachusetts ● Michigan ● Minnesota ● Mississippi ● Missouri ● Montana ● Nevada ● New Hampshire ● North Carolina ● Oregon ● Rhode Island ● South Dakota ● Tennessee ● Texas ● Utah ● Washington
To TOC Page 21 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
● West Virginia ● Wyoming
At least if a court declares you to be the assignee of the land
patent by operation of adverse possession, then you have a
fighting chance to have a court declare the mortgage note void for
fraud. If enough of us flood the courts, then land patents can
become the revolution that frees us from the Federal Reserve Box.
Although more banks may be willing to negotiate now that
Obama's stimulus plan has been passed, here's another way to
stop a foreclosure and help a bank see the wisdom of negotiating a
reasonable loan modification: Demand to see the original promissory note. The original, not a copy, not an affidavit, not a
“certified” copy (unless certified by a government agency). Just like
Federal Reserve Note, the Uniform Commercial Code, enacted in
every state, recognizes the original promissory note as a
negotiable instrument.
Banks will lie and say that the original promissory note was
lost or destroyed. The reason that's a lie is because the
promissory note is a negotiable instrument. Most likely, it's your
promissory note that's created this global mortgage crisis because
the notes were used for mortgage-backed securities. This is the
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's definition of
mortgage-backed securities:
Mortgage-Backed Securities Mortgage-backed securities (MBS) are debt obligations that represent claims to the cash flows from pools of mortgage loans, most commonly on residential property. Mortgage loans are purchased from banks, mortgage companies, and other originators and then assembled into pools by a governmental, quasi-governmental, or private entity. The entity then issues securities that represent claims on the principal and interest payments made by borrowers on the loans in
To TOC Page 22 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
the pool, a process known as securitization.
Most MBSs are issued by the Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae), a U.S. government agency, or the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac), U.S. government-sponsored enterprises. Ginnie Mae, backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government, guarantees that investors receive timely payments. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac also provide certain guarantees and, while not backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government, have special authority to borrow from the U.S. Treasury. Some private institutions, such as brokerage firms, banks, and homebuilders, also securitize mortgages, known as "private-label" mortgage securities.
Found at http://sec.gov/answers/mortgagesecurities.htm
Another explanation of mortgage-backed securities is available at
http://www.pimco.com/LeftNav/Bond+Basics/2007/Mortgage+Basics.htm :
There are several steps involved in creating a mortgage-backed security:
• A mortgage lender, such as a bank, extends a loan to a homeowner. • The mortgage lender then sells the loan to one of the government sponsored enterprises (agencies),
such as Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac (see below for more on MBS issuers) or to a private entity, like a bank or finance company. The lender may still service the mortgage, making this process invisible to the borrower.
• The agency or private entity then takes a number of the mortgage loans it has purchased and bundles them together into a "pool" (the actual number of individual mortgages in the pool can vary from a few loans to thousands of loans).
• The agency or private entity then sells claims on the cash flow generated by the pool of mortgages, in the form of securities, to investors. After the initial sale, MBS trade on the open market.
• Mortgage payments, consisting of interest and principal, are passed through the chain, from the mortgage servicer to the bondholder.
What all this means7 is that Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, or
some purchaser of the mortgage-backed security owns your
promissory note. These purchasers could be anywhere in the
world, hence the reason America's troubles have caused a
worldwide recession or depression. Of course, no one ever told
you. No one ever recorded an assignment of the promissory note
in your county or parish's recorder of deeds. So if you wonder why
your bank or mortgage company is so unwilling to negotiate a
reasonable mortgage modification, why banks are so eager to
foreclose even though bank-owned real estate is so unprofitable, 7 Josh Clark wrote an insightful article about how mortgage-backed securities caused Babylon to fall, available at
http://money.howstuffworks.com/mortgage-backed-security.htm
To TOC Page 23 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
why Congress is so slow to draft legislation that gives bankruptcy
judges the power to modify loans, it's because investors
purchased your promissory note with the expectation that the
exact terms of the note will be fulfilled.
This is the mortgage fraud for which even the U.S.
Government is complicit. After all, Congress bailed out Fannie,
Freddie, Ginnie, and a host of banks and investment firms that
were involved with mortgage-backed securities. In fact, Fannie,
Freddie, and Ginnie are guaranteed with the full faith and credit of
the U.S. Government. Moreover, the U.S. Government is able to
grant itself sovereign immunity and declare itself above its own
laws. Like prostitution, mortgage-backed securities were a
relatively victimless crime as long as property values were rising: If
you couldn't afford your mortgage payments, you could either re-
finance or sell your home at a profit. The crime was that you didn't
know who owned your promissory note and even though you
weren't truly victimless you had other remedies.
Now, however, when property values began to fall, so did
Babylon: American homeowners, upon whose backs the wealth of
the world depended, should demand to see the original promissory
note before relinquishing possession of their home. (To be fair,
international mortgage-backed securities were also issued in
Europe, Canada, Hong Kong, and Australia.8) In some
circumstances, like my mother's, a court of equity may decide that
due to the mortgage company's monkey-business that fraudulently
manipulated her interest rate, a lost promissory note requires the
court to issue an order canceling the mortgage. In other
8 See press release “Merrill Lynch Launches Ground-Breaking Guide to International Mortgage and Mortgage-Backed Securities Markets, http://www.ml.com/index.asp?id=7695_7696_8149_8688_8585_7783
To TOC Page 24 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
circumstances, the lost promissory note can be the basis for
negotiating a loan modification with your bank-turned-collection
agency.
Bottom line, I'm not promising something for nothing. If you
want your house for free due to your own greedy, egoistic
intentions, then land patents and demanding production of original
promissory notes won't help you. Courts want to be fair, even to
banks. Indeed, their bias is in favor of the bank. But there are
many people who aren't greedy, just needy: They have been laid off
from their job, or no longer work a lot of overtime, or became
disabled, or their home lost value, or their adjustable rate mortgage
adjusted more than their income, or they are victims of mortgage
fraud. These are the people with the honest intention of just
wanting to keep a roof over their heads. These are the relatively
poor people, the relatively little guys, who even lawyers will tell to
give up and move out.
One exceptional lawyer who doesn't dish out “give up” advice
is Chris Hoyer9, a fellow graduate of the University of Florida
College of Law, now practicing in Tampa. Chris is part of the
Consumer Warning Network (CWN) that is advocating the
“Produce the Note” strategy to help homeowners save their
homes.10 The CWN website contains documents that you may use
to request production of the note. (Personally, in the initial letter to
lenders, I like to make a Qualified Written Request, according to
HUD guidelines, so I can make a full TILA and RESPA compliance
analysis. In the case of home equity loans, TILA violations allow
the loan to be rescinded or canceled. This strategy has helped one
9 For biography, see http://www.jameshoyer.com/attorney_chris_hoyer.html10 See http://www.consumerwarningnetwork.com/2008/06/19/produce-the-note-how-to/
To TOC Page 25 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
other person, this time in New York, stay in their home for the past
two years.) Need Legal Help? Use the LegalMatch Priority Service to Find Pre-
screened Lawyers in Your Area Now!
What follows on the next page is a tweaked version of the
letter Hoyer made available on the CWN website referenced
above. It is a scaled-down version of my Qualified Written Request
interrogatory that will be available through the M-GIN newsletter.
The Qualified Written Request allows 60 days for the mortgage
company to respond and will not stop a foreclosure. Indeed, if
you're already in default, use the Qualified Written Request in
conjunction with a Chapter 13 bankruptcy and challenge the
mortgage company's claim that you owe them. Declaring
bankruptcy can stop the foreclosure.
More and more judges are coming out of the rubber-stamp
box and demanding that the banks strictly comply with the law
before foreclosing on homeowners. We are finally in an era where
there's justice for homeowners. Because of this, my mother, a
victim of an egregious case of mortgage fraud, has lived in her
house two years without paying a mortgage. You, too, can fight to
keep your home. There's hope for you.
To TOC Page 26 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
Date:
TO: [Name of lender] [Address of Lender]
[City, State, and Zip]
Re: My request for a copy of the Promissory Note QUALIFIED WRITTEN REQUEST Name: [your name] Property Address: [address of property subject to mortgage] Loan Number:
Dear _________________:
This is a "qualified written request" under Section 6 of the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA). I understand that under Section 6 of RESPA you are required to acknowledge my request within 20 business days and must try to resolve the issue within 60 business days.
I am the owner of certain real property located at [property address ], which is security for a loan made by [company which issued the loan] to me on [date of the loan] .
Please produce for my inspection the original Promissory Note which I signed on [date note was signed] . Please also produce for my inspection the Truth-in-Lending Disclosure Statement, the HUD-1, other closing documents, accounting of my payments, and accounting justifying the imposition of any of your fees.
If you have any questions regarding my request, please call me at __[your daytime phone number]_ .
Very truly yours,
To TOC Page 27 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
A Paradigm Shift
arning! What I'm about to advocate may have the
consequence of creating a land crunch to offset the
banks' credit crunch. What I'm about to advocate may
increase property values. Indeed, what I'm about to advocate may
be a hedge against the inflation that is sure to come. (I say that
inflation is sure to come because the federal government's
borrowing of billions of dollars from the Federal Reserve cannot
help but decrease the value of the Federal Reserve Note, a.k.a.,
the U.S. Dollar.) The greed in this world has gotten so bad that it
has become necessary to start over with a more just distribution of
wealth and power.
W
Simply put, I advocate taking a few old things and making
them new again:
1. I advocate buying land for cash and obtaining a color of title
at closing.
2. I advocate going to court in a quiet title action against the
land patentee's heirs and assigns. Each state provides for
service of process by advertisement in a publication of
general circulation. Find out which publication meets your
state or county's requirements. Have a judge issue an order
declaring you, the one holding a color of title, to be the
assignee of the land patent and holder of the legal title.
To TOC Page 28 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
3. I advocate having that judgment also declare that, because
prior existing mortgages were satisfied, then those mortgages
are therefore canceled.
4. I advocate filing that order in the county or parish's recorder
of deeds.
5. I advocate no further mortgaging of the land.
6. The paradigm shift also advocates no longer accepting
Federal Reserve Notes as payment whenever renting or
selling the land, but to instead use silver and gold coins
minted by the U.S. Government.
7. Convert the gold and silver coins to Federal Reserve Notes,
at a premium, if you need or want to.
Some people don't want to declare their independence from
the banks and debt. They think that the idea of not mortgaging the
land will mean they can't sell it or borrow a home equity loan.
However, those following the strategy I outline below will have a
hedge against inflation by possessing precious metals instead of
Federal Reserve Notes.
The first objection is how to buy real estate for cash. The
problem is that most people don't have the cash. However, if you
bring me the right deal, I can arrange the cash. I will teach you
about the right deal in the monthly Multi-Generational Investment
Network (M-GIN) newsletter.
The second objection deals with going to court to be declared
the assignee of the land patent. Don't we have to find all the heirs
and prior assignees? That depends. Usually not.
The states' color of title, in Michigan called “marketable title”,
To TOC Page 29 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
gave birth to title insurance companies who issued policies that
exploited the fact that the original land patentees of the 1800s were
dying off. Title insurers issued policies effectively assuming the risk
that the land patent heirs and assignees would not know about or
go to court to enforce their rights to evict lot trespassers.
Accordingly, title insurers typically refuse to issue a policy on
property that has a recorded assignment of land patent.
Herein lies the opportunity to shift the paradigm, particularly
in a place like Michigan where land is cheaper than a car. This will
take discipline because this is called living outside of the Federal
Reserve Box and freeing the land:
1. Buy a property for cash in a state that used land patents.
Request an abstract of title in addition to title insurance.
Obtain the color of title.
2. If you already own the color of title, find out your state's
adverse possession law. (See table below.) If you have lived
in the property longer than necessary to comply with the
state's adverse possession law, then you don't need to
request an abstract of title or title search for the property. In
Michigan, the abstract will only be traced back 40-50 years.
3. Obtain a certified copy of the land patent. For details on how
to trace the lot legal description back to the land patent,
please read “Land Patents: Scam or Revolution?”.
4. Go to court to quiet title and have a judge declare you to be
the assignee of the land patent under the legal doctrine of
laches and/or adverse possession.
5. If the judge grants the petition, then record the land patent at
To TOC Page 30 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
the registrar of deeds. The registrar should record the
document in a manner such as a land patent, under the
grantor/grantee index, as a judgment, an assignment, or in
such a way that any subsequent title search would easily find
the land patent assignment.
6. If the judge doesn't grant the petition, then appeal that
marketable title is not the same as legal title, and you have
the right to legal title. Appeal that the mortgage company
failed to disclose the differences in title at the closing. Appeal
that state laws permitting power of sales should be
unconstitutional under the 14th Amendment. A right not
enforced is considered abandoned or waived.11 If your
marketable title doesn't entitle you to legal title, then demand
to know who has the legal title. (That question will be even
more puzzling than the question as to who now owns the
promissory note!)
7. In the judgment of assignment of land patent, if you own the
land free and clear, ask the judge to also issue you a
cancellation of all prior-existing “satisfied” or “discharged”
mortgages. Please don't ask the judge to cancel your
existing mortgages. He or she won't do it except if you are
demanding production of the original promissory note and
making other mortgage fraud claims. However, if you still
owe a mortgage but can convince a judge to simply declare
you the assignee of the land patent, record this judgment. In
non-judicial foreclosure states, this judgment should help to
convert the foreclosure into a judicial proceeding, at which
time you'll demand the original note and other documents.11 Moran v. Horsky, 178 U.S. 205, 208 (1900).
To TOC Page 31 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
Presently, it has been my experience that title insurance
companies regard the land patent assignment as a cloud on the
title. I think it's weird to perceive legal title as a cloud, but if title
insurers didn't, then there would be no need for title insurance, and
hence they'd go out of business. Consequently, when a land
patent assignee tries to mortgage or sell the land, title insurers ask
for a renunciation of the land patent assignment. Don't renounce!
The result will be that mortgage companies won't loan to buyers or
refinance without title insurance. But that doesn't stop you from
owner-financing the land patent on land contract or lease-
purchase agreement using silver and gold coins as payment.
After the land patent is duly recorded, you can rent out the
property or sell it via owner-financing. A recommended source for
obtaining silver coins is, of course, Silver Snowball,
http://tinyurl.com/silversnowball . Both silver and gold coins can be
obtained at SavonCoins, http://tinyurl.com/savoncoins or GovMint
at http://tinyurl.com/govmint .
Gold or silver coin payments can be made in person, by
insured delivery, or via electronic transfer through companies.
Although an e-silver system is still needed to electronically transfer
silver, I strongly recommend iGolder at www.igolder.com . Two
decent alternatives are www.goldmoney.com and E-gold at
http://tinyurl.com/egoldpayments . Most people may be annoyed to
have to convert their Federal Reserve Notes into precious metals,
so to attract renters, make the rent less than the current market
value for that area. As you receive silver and gold, you declare
yourself independent from the Federal Reserve. I don't even
To TOC Page 32 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
recommend storing gold coins in a bank's safe deposit box
because the box contents are not FDIC-insured. It's best to get a
home safe, special insurance, or increase your homeowner's
policy.
For those who already own at least one property, but have a
mortgage, then you must determine if you've owned the property
for a time period that fulfills your state's statute of limitations for
adverse possession.
The doctrine of "adverse possession" is one of the most interesting in the field of real property law. The character of the law reflects the pioneer spirit of a growing world in both North America and Europe over the last few centuries.
If a person moves into possession of property, improves it and possesses it in a public manner, then after a certain amount of time he will acquire title to the property even though it is actually owned by someone else. The idea for adverse possession has at its root that land should not lie idle. If it does, it is wasted to the community. Therefore, if someone moves onto the land and makes it productive, that person may earn the right to claim it as his or her own. It is also reflective of the imprecise nature of ancient land sales: a person who believes he owns land, establishes himself on it in public, and if not hindered after a period of time, should be entitled to own the land.
The basic requirement for adverse possession is that the claiming party must take exclusive possession of the property. This type of possession is called "open and notorious" or proactive and absolutely not secretive possession. Some states require that the possession be "under color of title," or that the person must believe that he has the right to possess it and has some form of document or is relying on some fact that while not actually conveying title, appears to do so. In addition, many states require concurrent the payment of property taxes for a specified period of time, and a few states also require that improvements be made upon the land. Eventually, the possessor is required to file for title with the county recorder. The actual owner then has a limited amount of time in which to challenge the newcomer's title. Essentially, the owner's only argument is to claim some sort of disability; such as age, mental instability, or imprisonment. The owner is not required to do much in order to stop the possessor from acquiring title; merely sending the possessor a note granting permission to be there will usually suffice. Various rules exist regarding the continuousness of the possession and the ability to "tack" various periods of possession together in order to satisfy the time of possession requirement; see your state codes or the code of the state in which you are interested for more detailed information.
To TOC Page 33 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
Table 41: Adverse Possession
State Code Section
Prescriptive Period
Occupation
Time to Challenge
Improvements
Payment of Taxes
Title from Tax Assessor
ALABAMA 6-5-200 20 yrs. Bradley v. Demos 599 So.2d 1148
and Color of Title: 10 yrs. and Payment of Taxes: 10 yrs.
10 yrs. required
ALASKA 09.45.052
and Color of Title: 7 yrs.
Not required but is considered proof Alaska Nat. Bank v. Linck 559 P.2d 1049
ARIZONA 12-522 et seq.
2 yrs. (if occupied with no claim to title)
and Color of Title: 3 yrs. or 5 yrs. if city lot
3 yrs. after cause of action arrives
Taxes plus cultivation: 5 yrs.; Cultivation only: 10 yrs.
5 consecutive yrs. before suit to recover
ARKANSAS 18-61-101, 18-11-101 et seq.
7 yrs. Can't eject after 5 yrs.
After disability lifted: 3 yrs.
7 successive years; 15 yrs. consecutively for wild and unimproved land creates presumption of color of title
CALIFORNIA Civ. Proc. §§318, 325, 328
and Payment of Taxes: 5 yrs.
With disability: 20 yrs.; After disability lifted: 5 yrs.
5 years required
COLORADO 38-41-101, et seq.
18 yrs. and Color of Title/Pay
After disability lifted: 2
7 years
To TOC Page 34 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
State Code Section
Prescriptive Period
Occupation
Time to Challenge
Improvements
Payment of Taxes
Title from Tax Assessor
ment of Taxes: 7 yrs.
yrs.
CONNECTICUT
52-575 15 yrs. After disability lifted: 5 yrs.
DELAWARE Tit. 10 §§7901, et seq.
20 yrs. After disability lifted: 10 yrs.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
16-1113, 16-3301
15 yrs. With disability: max. 22 yrs.; After disability lifted: 2 yrs.
FLORIDA 95.16, 18, 191, 192
and Color of Title: 7 yrs. and Payment of Taxes: 7 yrs.
One way to possess land
7 yrs. 4 yrs.
Table 41: Adverse Possession—Continued
State Code Section
Prescriptive Period
Occupation
Time to Challenge
Improvements
Payment of Taxes
Title from Tax Assessor
GEORGIA 44-5-161, et seq.
20 yrs. and Color of Title: 7 yrs.
Prescriptive period does not run until disability removed.
HAWAII 657-31.5, et seq.; 669-1
20 yrs. After disability lifted: 5 yrs.
IDAHO 5-203, et seq.
and Color of Title: 5 yrs. and Payment of Taxes:
After disability lifted: 5 yrs.
Taxes plus cultivation 5 years
Required
To TOC Page 35 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
State Code Section
Prescriptive Period
Occupation
Time to Challenge
Improvements
Payment of Taxes
Title from Tax Assessor
5 yrs. ILLINOIS 735
ILCS 5/13-101, et seq.
20 yrs. and Color of Title: 7 yrs. and Payment of Taxes: 7 yrs.
After disability lifted: 2 yrs.
7 yrs.
INDIANA 32-21-7-1 et seq.; 34-11-1-2
10 yrs. (15 yrs. if cause of action arose before Sept. 1, 1982)
After disability lifted: 2 yrs.
Required
IOWA 614.8, 17, 560.2
Within 1 year (after 7/1/80)
and Color of Title/Payment of taxes; 5 yrs.
After disability lifted: 1 yr.
With occupancy, one way to possess land
KANSAS 60-503, et seq.
15 yrs. With disability: max. 23 yrs.; After disability lifted: 2 yrs.
KENTUCKY 413.010, .060, .020
15 yrs. and Color of Title: 7 yrs.
After disability lifted: 3 yrs.
LOUISIANA C.C. Art. 3473, et seq.
10 yrs. and Color of Title: 10 yrs.
MAINE Tit. 14 §§801, et seq.
20 yrs. and Color of Title/payment of taxes: 20 years
After disability lifted: 10 yrs. notwithstanding 20 yrs. have expired
Required on uncultivated lands in unincorporated areas
To TOC Page 36 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
State Code Section
Prescriptive Period
Occupation
Time to Challenge
Improvements
Payment of Taxes
Title from Tax Assessor
MARYLAND Cts. & Jud. Proc. §5-103, 201
20 yrs. After disability lifted: 3 yrs.
MASSACHUSETTS
260§21 20 yrs.
MICHIGAN §600.5801, 5851
15 yrs. After disability lifted: 1 yr.
10 years
MINNESOTA 541.02, 15
15 yrs. and payment of taxes for 5 consecutive years
With disability: 5 yrs. (except for infancy); After disability lifted: 1 yr.
Table 41: Adverse Possession—Continued
State Code Section
Prescriptive Period
Occupation
Time to Challenge
Improvements
Payment of Taxes
Title from Tax Assessor
MISSISSIPPI
15-1-7, 13, 15
10 yrs. and Color of Title: 10 years and Payment of Taxes: 2 years
With disability: 31 yrs.; After disability lifted: 10 yrs.
2 yrs. 3 yrs. after 2 yrs. from day of sale by tax collector
MISSOURI 516.010, .030
10 yrs. After disability lifted: 3 yrs., max. 21 yrs.
MONTANA 70-19-401, 411, 413
5 yrs. and Color of Title: 5 yrs. and Color of Title/Payment of Taxes: 5 yrs.
After disability lifted: 5 yrs.
Required
NEBRASKA 25-202, 213 10 yrs. With
To TOC Page 37 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
State Code Section
Prescriptive Period
Occupation
Time to Challenge
Improvements
Payment of Taxes
Title from Tax Assessor
disability: 20 yrs.; After disability lifted: 10 yrs.
NEVADA 11.070, 110, 150, 180
5 yrs. and Color of Title: 5 yrs. and Color of Title/Payment of Taxes: 5 yrs.
After disability lifted: 2 yrs.
Required
NEW HAMPSHIRE
508:2, 3 20 yrs. After disability lifted: 5 yrs.
NEW JERSEY
2A:14-30 to 32; 2A:62-2
30 yrs. or 60 yrs. if woodland
and Color of Title: 30 yrs. and Payment of Taxes: 5 yrs.
After disability lifted: 5 yrs.
NEW MEXICO
37-1-22 10 yrs. and Color of Title/Payment of Taxes: 10 yrs.
After disability lifted: 1 yr.
Required
NEW YORK Real Prop. Acts & Procedures 501, et seq.
10 yrs. and Color of Title: 10 yrs.
One way to possess land
NORTH CAROLINA
1-38, et seq.; 1-17
20 yrs. and Color of Title: 7 yrs.
After disability lifted: 3 yrs.
NORTH DAKOTA
28-01-04, et seq.; 47-06-03
20 yrs. and Color of Title: 20 yrs. and Color of
After disability lifted: 10 yrs.
One way to possess land
10 yrs.
To TOC Page 38 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
State Code Section
Prescriptive Period
Occupation
Time to Challenge
Improvements
Payment of Taxes
Title from Tax Assessor
Title/Payment of Taxes: 10 yrs.
OHIO 2305.04 21 yrs. With disability: 21 yrs.; After disability lifted: 10 yrs.
OKLAHOMA
12§93, 94 15 yrs. After disability lifted: 2 yrs.
5 yrs.
Table 41: Adverse Possession—Continued
State Code Section
Prescriptive Period
Occupation
Time to Challenge
Improvements
Payment of Taxes
Title from Tax Assessor
OREGON 12.050, 160
10 yrs. With disability: 5 yrs.; After disability lifted: 1 yr.
PENNSYLVANIA
Tit. 42§5530
21 yrs.
RHODE ISLAND
34-7-1, et seq.
10 yrs. After disability lifted: 10 yrs.
SOUTH CAROLINA
15-67-210, et seq.
10 yrs. and Color of Title: 10 yrs.
One way to possess land
SOUTH DAKOTA
15-3-1, et seq.
20 yrs. and Color of Title: 20 yrs. and Color of Title/Payment of Taxes: 10 yrs.
With disability: 20 yrs.; After disability lifted: 10 yrs.
One way to possess land
To TOC Page 39 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
State Code Section
Prescriptive Period
Occupation
Time to Challenge
Improvements
Payment of Taxes
Title from Tax Assessor
TENNESSEE 28-2-101, et seq.
7 yrs. After disability lifted: 3 yrs.
20 yrs.
TEXAS Civ. Prac. & Rem. §16.024, et seq.
10 yrs. and Color of Title: 3 yrs. and Color of Title/Payment of taxes: 5 yrs
With disability: 25 yrs.
Taxes plus cultivation: 5 yrs.; Cultivation only: 10 yrs.
Required
UTAH 78-12-7, 12
7 yrs. and Color of Title/Payment of Taxes: 7 yrs.
Cultivation only: 7 yrs.
Required
VERMONT Tit. 12 §501
15 yrs.
VIRGINIA 8.01-236, 237
15 yrs. and Color of Title: 15 yrs
With disability: 25 yrs. max.
WASHINGTON 7.28.050, et seq.
7 yrs. and Color of Title: 7 yrs. and Color of Title/Payment of Taxes: 7 yrs.
After disability lifted: 3 yrs.
Required
WEST VIRGINIA
55-2-1, 3
10 yrs. After disability lifted: 5 yrs.
WISCONSIN 893.16, 25 to 27
20 yrs. and Color of Title: 10 yrs. and Color of Title/Payment of Taxes: 7 yrs.
With disability: 5 yrs., except when due to insanity or imprisonment. After disability lifted: 2 yrs.
One way to prove possession.
WYOMING 1-3-103, 10 yrs. After
To TOC Page 40 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
State Code Section
Prescriptive Period
Occupation
Time to Challenge
Improvements
Payment of Taxes
Title from Tax Assessor
104 disability lifted: 10 yrs.
I greatly appreciate the above hard work and legal research cited on the website http://law.jrank.org/pages/11865/Adverse-Possession.html
I cannot vouch for how accurate or current is their “Information on the law of Adverse Possession”.
Law students remember the general elements of the doctrine
of adverse possession by the ECHO mnemonic: The squatter must
have
● Exclusive,
● Continuous,
● Hostile, and
● Openly notorious possession of the land for a statutorily
prescribed number of years.
The beauty of this definition is that banks can't squat,
meaning, a bank can have color of title by virtue of a foreclosure,
but strict interpretation of adverse possession precedents would be
hard-pressed to rule that artificial persons, such as banks and other
corporations, can physically possess or occupy the land. Only a
natural person can. Accordingly, there's an opportunity for
homeowners to sue to quiet the title of the land patentee's heirs,
thus becoming the court-ordered land patent assignee.
Those who haven't resided at the property long enough to
meet the adverse possession requirements can use the legal
doctrine of laches and tacking to tack onto their ownership the time
periods beforehand that the land patentee's heirs and assigns
neglected to exercise their property rights. Again, the purpose for
To TOC Page 41 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
engaging in land patent litigation is not that the land patent, alone,
can cancel an existing mortgage. However, land patents are not frivolous scams! By itself, the land patent assignment serves
only to defeat the power of sale clause in mortgages issued in
certain states, thus making the mortgage companies pay more by
taking your foreclosure to court. Coupled with demanding the
promissory note, the land patent assignment can then serve to
cancel mortgages or make mortgage companies more willing to
really negotiate loan modifications.
Now you understand why the Box disbarred me. Lawyers can
control the direction of litigation. I kept thinking outside of the Box.
Masons and Catholic secret societies created the Box. I'm a
woman, and an African-American descendant of slaves, but
females can't be freemasons. I'm not even a member of their
women's branch, the Eastern Stars. By raising the question that
slavery isn't really over in America, I place at issue the very issue of
freedom. Maybe the Eastern Stars were hoping I'd join, so they let
me get a law degree and a Florida Bar license to practice for
awhile. Many other lawyers and judges joined their fraternal
organizations, but I didn't. They didn't like my controversial
litigation and the revelation of their many lies and judicial biases.
So while George W. was president and his brother Jeb Bush was
governor of Florida, I became a victim of COINTELPRO
surveillance and sabotage.
Perhaps it was this surveillance that gave rise to my receiving
a telephone call before the first Land Patent book was released.
The caller, from California, warned that the book was so explosive,
it would destabilize worldwide financial markets. It's flattering to
To TOC Page 42 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
think a black woman in Detroit can have so much power. Let's see
how I can use that power for good. Stay tuned to the Multi-
Generational Investment Network's newsletter.
To TOC Page 43 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
The Multi-Generational Investment Network
ama, God bless her, loves to recycle. She grew up
during the Great Depression, a period in American
history which might later be referred to as the First
Depression. She learned the value of not throwing everything into
the trash. Maybe, as she gets older, she's afraid of being thrown
away.
MLikewise, senior citizens like my parents, have touched my
heart. They are a natural resource. I'm not advocating recycling
them like what was done in the old movie “Soylent Green”.
However, in the midst of this terrible financial crisis, one program
extends credit to a group of people without worrying about them
qualifying or mortgage payments. The special group is senior
citizens and the program is reverse mortgage.
Let me quickly clarify: Reverse mortgages can be the
antithesis of land patent assignment. In Detroit, I have seen it
happen many times. The elder would work at the auto companies,
completely or almost pay off his or her home, only to have a fast-
talking mortgage broker swindle him or her our of the home's equity.
Potential heirs would inherit a mortgage payment, if anything.
Whether you call the mortgage canceled or satisfied, once it
happens, it's a beautiful thing. It's peace of mind. Under most
To TOC Page 44 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
circumstances, I DO NOT recommend reverse mortgages. Under
most circumstances, I advocate getting court-ordered assignments
of land patents for elders to help protect them from swindling
mortgage brokers. This way, parents don't have to be adjudged
incompetent to handle their own financial affairs in order for a
mortgage company to hesitate closing on a property with a land
patent assignment in the title search.
On the other hand, some elders may want to downsize,
upgrade, move closer to family and friends, or move to a warmer
climate. Perhaps family members have been rendered homeless by
the current foreclosure crisis and need to move in with the elder.
These are the circumstances under which it is helpful that an elder
isn't in an assisted living facility or nursing home. Dependent on the
elder's health and the family's resources, these are the
circumstances for which a reverse mortgage may be useful. This
allows a family to “recycle” the elder's ability to obtain a home.
Suppose a retired auto worker in Detroit owns his house free
and clear. Right now would not be a good time to sell the house,
given Detroit properties are selling for less than cars. However,
what if the retired auto worker always wanted to live in a desert
climate like Phoenix or Las Vegas. Why not land patent his Detroit
property, lease or give it to his children, then get a reverse mortgage
for property in the desert? He would not have mortgage payments
as long as he lived in the property. If his children want to be able to
inherit the property after his demise, then they must simply make
sure he has enough life insurance to cover the reverse mortgage.
After the life insurance pays off the reverse mortgage, the heirs can
land patent the property, live in it, rent it, and/or sell it.
To TOC Page 45 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
Currently, there's a controversy on the purchase reverse
mortgage front: HUD announced in October 2008 that purchase
reverse mortgages would be available in January 2009 and would
be based upon the home's appraised value. That would have
been a great economic stimulus plan! In today's real estate market,
this could mean senior citizens like my mother could upgrade to a
great property with a purchase price below its appraised value. That
way, she could buy the property with no money down and maybe
even get cash back at the closing. However, despite the Obama
family's historic move into the White House, (just the name of the
presidential residence smacks of racism), many blacks are still
“paranoid” about racial segregation, with good reason.
In 2009, America is still racially segregated. (According to the
2000 census, with an 80+% black population, Detroit ranked #1 in
racial segregation for large metropolitan areas.)12 The joke in the
'hood is that the original purchase reverse mortgage stimulus plan
was scrapped to keep black families from moving in with Madea into
a mini-mansion in the suburbs. We'd turn the purchase reverse
mortgage program into reparations, living mortgage-free to the
maximum of Madea's life insurance policy or the new HECM loan
limits, whichever is less. There goes the neighborhood!
Comedian Tyler Perry's “Madea”, showing her support for the right to bear arms.
12 See Table 5-4 in Residential Segregation of Blacks or African Americans: 1980 to 2000, http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/housing/housing_patterns/ch5.html
To TOC Page 46 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
By December 2008, HUD issued a statement reconsidering its
generous stimulus plan, saying that it might make the plan more
restrictive. Restrictions would include making the purchase reverse
mortgages based on the purchase price because there has been a
lot of past abuse using inflated appraised values. Other possible
restrictions included a downpayment, no downpayment assistance
or gifts, no seller financing, and a lot of other prohibitions that could
render the purchase reverse mortgage program effectively useless.
So far, HUD hasn't made a final determination of what it wants, thus
the program waits in limbo.13
Even if HUD doesn't want Madea, Ugly Betty's Poppy, and Jeff
Foxworthy's (you might be a redneck...) grandparents moving into
the gated MacMansions, there's still an opportunity to make
lemonade. In fact, during these hard economic times when families
must either stand united or fall divided, the lemonade will shift the
paradigm from individualism to family wealth building.
A word of caution: I'm not advocating that anyone take
advantage of senior citizens! This real estate investment strategy
does not envision taking your wheel-chaired grandparents out of the
nursing home and putting them on the third floor of a mini-palace.
Indeed, as more and more people become unemployed, it is
conceivable that at least one adult offspring of the elder will be
available to take care of their parents and/or grandchildren. Visiting
nurses and home health care services may become more of the
norm than nursing homes and senior living facilities. And if any
senior is mentally or physically unable to handle his or her own
13 See “What Happened to HUD's Plan to Allow Seniors to Buy Homes with Reverse Mortgage?”, http://www.seniorjournal.com/NEWS/ReverseMortgage/2009/20090217-WhatHappened.htm
To TOC Page 47 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
financial affairs, he or she can exercise a power of attorney or the
caregiver could be court-ordered the elder's guardian and
conservator. State laws differ, but typically the courts require the
conservator to periodically submit a report accounting for the elder's
assets. A judge could replace the family member/caregiver as
conservator and appoint someone else, like an attorney, as the
conservator if the court finds the original conservator committed
wrongdoing.
Without taking advantage of a senior, let's use a simple
example of how to take the lemon, plummeting real estate prices,
and make lemonade. Suppose a married couple, John and Jane
Doe, has two children, and lives in Detroit. Suppose the parents
both work for the same employer, like General Motors, and gets laid
off. This is a devastating worse case scenario that has happened to
some people. Suppose six months pass and they can't find new
jobs. Suppose that, despite everything I just mentioned in previous
chapters about preventing foreclosure, the couple loses their house.
Suppose Jane's 80 year old widowed mother, Judy, is relatively
healthy and lives in a senior citizen apartment. Judy has a life
insurance policy of $200,000.
Now suppose you are a real estate investor that comes across
a four bedroom, two bathroom house for $40,000. The house could
easily appraise for $100,000. It is senior accessible, having a
bedroom and bathroom on the ground floor. Using a gold or silver coin as consideration, you option to buy the house, then sell your
option to Judy for $50,000 or the equivalent in gold and silver. You profit $10,000! Repeat this formula ten times a year, and you could earn $100,000! I urge you to convert some or all of that cash
To TOC Page 48 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
into gold and silver as a hedge against inflation.
Given Judy's age and the appraised value of the house, she
is qualified to get $68,000 with the reverse mortgage. Judy, John,
Jane, and the little Does move into the house and live happily ever
after with no mortgage payments. When Judy dies, her life
insurance policy can pay off the mortgage. When the house is free
and clear, Jane, Judy's heir, can go to court to ask that the judge
enter an order assigning her the land patent rights. Indeed, Jane
can do this as part of the probate of Judy's estate.
Of course, there are many risks to this scenario: What if John
doesn't like Judy and would rather be homeless than live with his
mother-in-law? What if Judy likes to interfere when John and Jane
argue or tries to veto John and Jane's discipline of their children?
I'm kidding. Sort of. Family dynamics are important. However,
money problems contribute to other stressors, therefore a serious
problem develops if Judy's life insurance premium, which could
average around $500 a month, goes unpaid. If Judy dies during the
policy lapse, John and Jane Doe risk being homeless again. Let's
face it, some people want something for nothing. They got a house
with no qualifying, no money down, and no mortgage payments.
Essentially, they got a free house until Judy dies. All they needed to
do was pay her life insurance premium. Eventually, they pay will for
it, one way or another. If property values rise before Judy dies, and/
or John and Jane need to relocate to find better jobs, then they can
refinance or sell the home.
Some of you may have gotten giddy when I mentioned how
much money you or I could make in flipping wholesale properties,
but I'd rather emphasize the benefits to the end purchasers. Greed
To TOC Page 49 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
and selfishness got America, the world, in the economic mess we're
in. Prosperity is more sustainable when it's not based on exploiting
others. My personal goal is to get homeowners to the land patent
stage, so I see reverse mortgages and life insurance as a means to
that end. I want to set up people for success, not failure. Our
ambitious goal should be to make the word “foreclosure” extinct from the American vocabulary. One way of doing this is by
structuring life insurance to cancel out reverse mortgages.
For certain reverse mortgages to be a win-win situation, then
a critical component is making sure that the elder has enough life
insurance to cover the mortgage. Referring back to the example of
John, Jane, and Judy: Let's suppose that, in addition to Jane, Judy
has two other adult offspring, Joe and Jim. If Judy already has a
$200,000 life insurance policy, it may be set up with all three adult
children as beneficiaries. Joe and Jim may not want Judy to make
Jane the sole beneficiary in order for Jane to repay the reverse
mortgage after Judy's death. Although Jane's equally-divided
portion of Judy's $200,000 policy is more than $60,000, this won't
be enough to payoff Judy's reverse mortgage. Of course, John and
Jane Doe could simply move again. However, many seniors life
insurance policies aren't for such a high payout amount. As a
result, the elder and caregiver family members may need to take
out an additional life insurance policy in order to cover the reverse
mortgage.
In general, life insurance is a policy whose premiums increase
as the age of the policyholder increases and the payout benefit
increases. Consequently, policyholders who are senior citizens pay
relatively expensive premiums for relatively large payout benefits.
To TOC Page 50 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
Some insurers won't even issue a life insurance policy to a senior,
except for a meager burial policy. The burial policy, usually $50,000
or less, will make sure Judy has a permanent resting place, but
won't be enough to cover the reverse mortgage so John and Jane
can stay in Judy's house. Netquote.com and
http://www.advantageoneinsurance.com/life-insurance-for-senior-
citizens.php are one-stop shops to find sizeable life insurance
policies to protect an elder's house.
If reverse mortgages are going to be a permanent fixture
among financial products, then younger-than-senior-citizens would
do well to get life insurance policies while the premiums are
relatively inexpensive. I recommend Insurance for Your Children
from GerberLife and RBC's Leave your home to your family not the
bank!!! No agent! All online! Life insurance coverage in minutes!!!
The Multi-Generational Investment Network seeks to unite
families like the Does with bargain properties. Some bargain
properties are available as bank REOs (real estate owned)
foreclosures. You can find these properties on listings such as on a
Free list of every Bank & Government Foreclosure in the Nation! In
Detroit, an REO property can be stripped of its copper, other metals,
toilets, and even the kitchen sink (seriously!) by the weekend. In
short, foreclosed REOs become fixer-uppers. Unless you're
especially handy, you may need to hire a contractor in order to bring
the property into compliance with any city or county occupancy
codes. Click here to find quality contractors for your construction
project! National Contractors.com
Some families prefer condominiums rather than single family
homes. I recommend that you find your condo at Condo.com. View
To TOC Page 51 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
photos, floor plans, take a virtual tour and more!
Indeed, some people in upside mortgages may prefer not to
negotiate with or sue the bank. I will admit, negotiations and
lawsuits are emotionally stressful. For some, short of winning the
lottery, there is no mathematical way for them to afford their house
and no legal remedy to cancel the mortgage. The best they can do
is delay the inevitable, using the time wisely in order to find another,
perhaps even better, place to live. Others would rather move out of
their current home in order to start over or upgrade into a better
home with Grandma and a reverse mortgage. People in these
situations can click here for Moving Resources .
Contact me via email at [email protected] for
referral to my reverse mortgages sources.
Bottom line, working with the niche real estate market in the
Multi-Generational Investment Network (M-GIN) can be a win-win
situation for investors and end-purchasers. The M-GIN monthly
newsletter will discuss details on how we'll accomplish this goal.
With this book comes an opportunity for you to become an M-GIN
affiliate, or simply pass on the book to others. It costs only $1.00 (in
Federal Reserve Notes) to join as affiliate, but don't let the low cost
fool you. It's work! So for those willing to accept the challenge of
changing America's paradigm, Welcome to the Program!
To TOC Page 52 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
Running with the Visionf the course of history can be altered by the smallest change,
then I'm looking for a few good folks who are willing to be the
agent of a positive change. Forgive me if I sound like Barack
Obama, but this is true: I wanted to design a program that can profit
people who don't have money. I live in Michigan, the state with the
nation's highest unemployment rate. I don't (yet) have a factory to
put the unemployed to work. All I have is an idea. A vision. Without
a vision, people perish, but if I write the vision, someone will run with
it. Will you run with this vision?
I
What must you do? Freely you have received, so freely give.
I had a dream of making this book free and I worked until I could
make that dream a reality. Please make the book viral by giving it
away to as many people as possible. Use Craigslist, Kijiji, word-of-
mouth referrals, and other means to educate people facing
foreclosure. However, you will be given a means by which to use
the e-book to develop a contact list. Through the M-GIN newsletter,
you will be taught how to market both on the Internet and in your
community. If you have the confidence, we'll make sure you have
the information with which to even make public presentations. As
you network, helping people, you may not get rich quick financially,
but you will acquire wealth eventually. More importantly, the families
you unite and/or keep in their homes will be grateful. That's a
treasure in heaven and the paradigm shift. Be encouraged, and
stay diligent.
To TOC Page 53 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
We live in somber times. Some don't have the luxury of
investing time or money. They need quick results, if only small
ones. The M-GIN newsletter will teach you how to put a little
change in your pocket until the bigger money comes. To give you a
hint of one way to make money is by selling the e-book “Land Patents: Scam or Revolution?” While silver is below $15 an
ounce, I recommend selling a coupon code for this e-book for
$35.00 Federal Reserve Notes at www.goldmoney.com .
GoldMoney is rather intrusive in order to deter money-laundering.
However, once the identity is verified, which could take two business
days, the buyer can do a transaction from which you, the affiliate,
get one ounce of silver and I get the other ounce and the remaining
transaction fees. The coupon code will be a link to a page where
the buyer will get the book, Land Patent: Scam or Revolution?, for 1
cent. Of course, those who don't want to go through the bother of
the coupon code can get the “Land Patent: Scam or Revolution?” e-book at the regular $50 price via PayPal for $50,
with $25 going to you (the affiliate) and $25 to me.
In conclusion, we can be a small but diligent army that affects
the world's economic policy. We can slow or halt the tide of America
becoming a place in which the land, even the labor of the people,
belongs to banks. Sometimes enemy banks. As we lose more and
more of our economic independence, our political independence
erodes as well. Frederick Douglass, an African-American
abolitionist, once said that, “The limits of tyrants are prescribed by
the endurance of those whom they oppress.” Have you lost your
job, your business, your house, your car, maybe even a spouse?
Have you had enough? God has heard our prayers. Join me.
To TOC Page 54 http://www.AnitaBelle.info
About the Author
Teruah 5769
Anita E. Belle obtained her Bachelor of Science degree from Wayne
State University in Detroit, Michigan in 1985. She obtained her Juris Doctorate
from the University of Florida in 1994 and was a member of the Florida Bar
from 1995-2003. She litigated the Nicaraguan Contra' Narcotics Trafficking
Litigation in which she accused the CIA and other federal agencies and
individuals of racketeering and conspiracy to distribute illegal narcotics into
America's segregated African-Americans and cause harm to all Americans.
She has litigated reparations cases based upon the invalidity of the 13th and
14th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution. She sought refugee protection in
Canada when her life was threatened in the United States. America's good
friend and neighbor refused to protect her. Her complaints about America's
human rights abuses were ignored by the U.S. courts and U.N.'s special
rapporteur for human rights defenders. She now lives again in Detroit and
continues to be a whistle-blowing (or shofar-blowing) activist. She serves as
executive director of the new non-profit organization, Constitution Keepers Inc.
and CEO of Baraka Enterprises LLC. She has one handsome son and three
gorgeous grand-daughters.
The above photo is circa 2008.
To TOC Page 55 http://www.AnitaBelle.info