Posted by T. Fish on 12/06/03

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Mr. Parkerson was kind enough to respond to my previous
question concerning a homeowner's association attorney
doubling the amount owed from $1600 to $3500 (mostly her
fee)in a foreclosure case after she agreed to a six month
payment plan for the $1600. This forced us into bankruptcy.

We live in Florida, and filed a chapter 13 bankruptcy
before any foreclosure hearing took place. Within thirty
minutes of filing we informed the attorney by telephone.
She requested we fax our stamped cover copy. We did within
an hour of the telephone call, and it was received by her
office. Two weeks later she sent a letter in which she
increased the amount owed by $1200 for
unnamed "violations," and "bankruptcy fees," neither of
which were part of the amount owed on the day we filed.
Also her previous fee document had dates showing when each
amount was incurred, while the new fees are not dated. I
thought the filing of bankruptcy was supposed to stop
further action on a foreclosure until the creditor's
meeting, or until the judge makes a determination.

In other words, even though a bankruptcy filing is supposed
to stop a foreclosure dead, is still it okay for the HOA
attorney to keep tacking on fees? Also can an attorney's
fees be challenged as excessive in bankruptcy court?

Our previous mortgage foreclosure lasted eighteen months,
and in mediation the arbitrator noted that the bank erred
in foreclosing by not applying our payments to P & I (which
we had been saying all along) As a result we reached a
settlement in which we did not have to pay attorney fees,
late fees, or penalties; just eighteen months of regular
mortgage payments in a lump sum. The expenses associated
with fighting the mortgage foreclosure for eighteen months,
as well as my becoming disabled, made us fall behind on the
HOA fees. Yet the bank's attorney had only asked $1500 for
doing much more work for a much longer time than the HOA
attorney. We just don't get it.

T. Fish

Re: Adding More Fees After Bankruptcy Filed, 2/09/04, by bill.

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