By: Adam B. Brandon
Florida’s Fifth District Court of Appeal recently emphasized the need for lenders to strictly comply with the notice requirements of a mortgage prior to foreclosure. In Samaroo v. Wells Fargo , the borrower appealed the circuit court’s entry of a summary final judgment of mortgage foreclosure. Finding that the bank failed to strictly comply with all of the notice requirements contained in the mortgage, the 5 th DCA ruled against the bank and overturned the foreclosure judgment.
Before it initiated the litigation, the bank sent a demand letter to inform the borrower that the loan was in default and that the bank elected to accelerate the loan. The letter further informed the borrower that partial payments would not cure the default. However, the letter failed to explicitly mention that the borrower had the right to reinstate the loan after acceleration. This omission was a problem because the mortgage stipulated that any notice of default must inform the borrowers of the right to reinstate their loan after acceleration.