Written by Charleston Foreclosure Defense Attorney, Graves H. Wilson, Jr.
I spend a lot of time driving up and down the Interstate Highways in South Carolina – business trips, family and friends. It’s during those times that my brain seems to go into autopilot. I have experienced many an epiphany while behind the wheel. Difficult legal questions may become unraveled. Other times I find myself transported into the world of “What if?” while musing on the problems of my clients.
It was not so long ago that I was trying to get a brand new law firm started. Office supplies had to be purchased. Expert witnesses had to be consulted. Rent was due. Legal staff wanted their paychecks. I didn’t even own a home to support an equity line of credit to help through the rough times. But for a close friend who trusted my legal abilities and personal integrity enough to make a couple of interest-free loans, I might not be writing this today. My point, and I do have one, is that I can empathize with those of you who are struggling with this bombed out economy. No, I don’t presume to know what you are going through. But I have experienced the cold sweats that kept me awake while pondering where I would get the money to make a looming payroll.
Having been there, I feel the pain of homeowners who are at the end of their ropes. The people I see in my office seeking my assistance are not deadbeats looking to rip off a bank for a free home. They are hardworking, dedicated businessmen and women and laborers who would like nothing more that to wake up to a busy work schedule with an honest payday. Many’s the time I have wished for a magic wand so I could cure my clients’ financial and legal problems.
Of course there are no magic wands. Fairy tales are for children. But there is recourse. Guaranteed in the Constitution of our United States is a thing called “due process.” Even banks must adhere to set rules before they can take our property from us. While a homeowner is expected to follow the rule and make the monthly mortgage payment, the lender must follow a very complex set of rules before it will be allowed to foreclose the mortgage and evict the homeowner. My job is to find out where they failed to do so and point out the deficiencies in court.