Dirma Rodriguez, Disabled Daughter Forced Out Of Home Even After BofA Modification

A Los Angeles-area woman and her severely disabled daughter were forced to flee their home of 25 years in a matter of minutes, allegedly in large part because of Bank of America.

Dirma Rodriguez fell behind on her payments after taking out a loan to renovate her house, the Los Angeles Times reports. The reason for the renovation? Rodriguez's daughter needed to better accomodate her daughter, who has cerebral palsy. BofA modified her loan, but then sold the house to a flipper at a foreclosure auction, who moved to evict her.

There's still hope though. After the Occupy Fights Foreclosure movement intervened, BofA said it's considering giving Rodriguez a loan modification that would give her her home back.

Though tragic, Rodriguez's story isn't that unusual for a variety of reasons. First of all, despite a pledge from President Obama in 2009 that his Home Affordable Modification Program would help 3 to 4 million struggling homeowners, there have only been 768,773 active permanent modifications as of last month. That means millions of homeowners are still having trouble paying off their loans with little hope in sight to stave off foreclosure.

Secondly, Rodriguez isn't the first homeowner that's needed the intervention of the Occupy movement to keep her house. Helen Bailey, an elderly Civil Rights Era-activist, will now be able to stay in her Nashville, Tennessee home, thanks in larger part to Occupy Nashville and other organizations who started an online petition and ultimately convinced JPMorgan Chase not to foreclose on Bailey's home.

Finally, BofA has a history of foreclosing on homeowners under unusual circumstances. Earlier this week Atlanta homeowner Pamela Flores accused the bank of foreclosing on her home even after bank officials advised her to skip payments. Last year, BofA threatened to foreclose on an elderly Florida couple after they paid their bill too early. In addition, one Texas man was faced with the prospect last year that BofA would foreclose on his home, which was already destroyed in Hurricane Ike.

But in what is perhaps one of the saddest cases, a quadriplegic man living in Oregon has been battling with banks, including BofA, to keep his home since 2003.

Check out some of the biggest foreclosure fails in recent months:

Loading Slideshow

• Columbine Shooting Survivor Fighting Foreclosure With Occupy LA's Help

  Richard Castaldo survived the shooting at Columbine High School 13 years ago and now he is fighting to <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/27/richard-castaldo-columbine-foreclosure-occupy-la_n_2198146.html?utm_hp_ref=business" target="_hplink">rescue his home from foreclosure</a>. The people of Occupy Los Angeles are helping Castaldo and others like him to save their homes.

• USDA Forecloses On 78-Year-Old Cancer Patient

  The USDA foreclosed on 78-year-old Texas resident Alicia Ramirez, reportedly <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/06/alicia-ramirez-cancer-eviction_n_1747933.html?utm_hp_ref=business" target="_hplink">after she was diagnosed with cancer.</a> While the USDA has thus far allowed Ramirez to remain in her home, a court order evicting the senior citizen could be issued at any time.

• Foreclosure Victims Lose Belongings After Free Yard Sale Goes Wrong

  The Vercher family of Woodstock, Georgia, offered to give away a <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/25/vercher-family-woodstock-craigslist-foreclosed_n_2017738.html?1351188857" target="_hplink">number of household items in a Craigslist ad</a> after their house was foreclosed on. Instead, they ended up losing nearly all of their belongings when people began taking items from inside the house.

• Wells Fargo Offers Cancer Patient 'Assistance' Then Forecloses

  Terminal breast cancer patient Cindi Davis could no longer keep up with her mortgage payments due to the cost of her medical bills. Faced with media scrutiny, her lender <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/14/wells-fargo-forecloses-cancer-patient-cindi-davis_n_1883956.html?1347635836" target="_hplink">Wells Fargo told a local radio station it was seeking "assistance"</a> for Davis just weeks before setting the date to auction her home for December 19th, 2012.

• Coca-Cola Heirs Lose $37.5 Million To Foreclosure

  Descendants of Coca-Cola founder Asa Candler have been hit hard by the housing bust with their <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/17/candler-family-foreclosure-losses_n_1890911.html?1347906436" target="_hplink">real estate development company losing $37.5 million to foreclosure since the Great Recession began</a>. (Pictured: the former mansion of Coca-Cola heir Asa Griggs "Buddy" Candler, Jr.)

• Mom Evicted On Mother's Day

  After she and her husband were allegedly duped into a bad loan, California mom Sheri Prizant faced the possibility of being evicted from her home on Mother's Day, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/11/sheri-prizant-eviction-mothers-day_n_1507681.html?1336741860" target="_hplink">MSNBC</a> reports.

• CT Family Never Missed A Payment

  Shock Baitch and his wife Lisa of Connecticut <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/30/bank-of-america-foreclosure_n_802861.html" target="_hplink">were threatened with foreclosure by Bank of America</a> after never missing a payment. BofA mistakenly told credit agencies they were seeking a loan modification. "Now I am literally and financially paying for it," Baitch told <a href="http://ctwatchdog.com/finance/bank-of-americas-christmas-present-foreclose-even-though-not-a-payment-missed" target="_hplink">CTWatchdog.com</a>.

• Man Gets Free Home After Lender Shutdown

  Facing foreclosure, Perry Laspina of Jacksonville, Florida ended up with a home practically for free after his mortgage lender was shut down by parent company Wells Fargo, <a href="http://realestate.aol.com/blog/2011/04/14/foreclosure-foul-up-wins-man-a-free-home/" target="_hplink">AOL Real Estate reports</a>. Laspina got the home "because of the significant decreased value of the property," a bank spokesman said.

• BofA Forecloses On Building With Own Branch Office

  In Boynton Beach, Florida, Bank of America filed a foreclosure lawsuit against the owner of a building that houses one of its own branches, <a href="http://www.bizjournals.com/southflorida/news/2011/05/27/foreclosure-roundup.html?page=all" target="_hplink">South Florida Business Journal reports</a>.

• Threatened Over $0.00 Unpaid Mortgage Payment

  A Massachusetts man was told he'd <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/08/massachusetts-homeowner-receives-foreclosure_n_872518.html" target="_hplink">face foreclosure unless he paid an outstanding mortgage payment worth $0.00</a>. "I'm going to write a check to them for zero dollars and have it clear? I couldn't help but laugh," he joked with local <a href="http://www.wwlp.com/dpp/news/i_team/I-Team:Man-gets-a-$0-foreclosure-notice" target="_hplink">News 22 WWLP</a>.

• Home Allegedly Ransacked By Mortgage Company

  Chris Boudreau of Brooksville, Florida <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/06/florida-home-ransacked_n_890656.html" target="_hplink">told local news that his house was ransacked by his mortgage company</a>, 21st Mortgage Corporation, who he says even shredded his wife's wedding dress. "When she saw what happened...she was crying her eyes out," <a href="http://www.wtsp.com/news/local/article/199268/8/Mans-home-trashed-by-mortgage-company" target="_hplink">he told WTSP 10 News</a>.

• Mortgage Payment Made Too Early

  A senior couple in Pasco County, Florida faced foreclosure not for missing payments, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/22/senior-florida-couple-faces-foreclosure-mortgage-early_n_933147.html" target="_hplink">but for making one too early</a>. According to a Bank of America representative, they made themselves ineligible for a mortgage modification under the Home Affordable Modification Program when they did not make their payment in the "month in which it [was] due."

• Foreclosure In 'World's Richest Apartment Building'

  Property developer Kent Swig and his soon-to-be ex-wife Elizabeth faced foreclosure from their apartment at 740 Park Avenue, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/26/foreclosure-hits-property-developer-billionaire-building_n_937676.html" target="_hplink">a New York City address often cited as "the world's richest apartment building."</a>

• Untransferred Title Leads To Unfair Foreclosure

  Brian and Khanklink Pyron of Houston, Texas were <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/10/brian-khanklink-pyron-foreclosure_n_1003339.html" target="_hplink">threatened with foreclosure despite keeping current on their payments due to an untransferred title</a>. "We did everything we were supposed to do," Brian Pyron told <a href="http://www.myfoxhouston.com/dpp/news/local/110926-family-hit-by-surprise-foreclosure?CMP=201110_emailshare" target="_hplink">MyFoxHouston</a>.

• Foreclosure On Hurricane-Destroyed Home

  Brad Gana, of Seabrook, Texas was threatened with foreclosure by Bank of America even though his <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/31/foreclosure-crisis-bank-of-america-hurricane-ike_n_1068080.html" target="_hplink">house had been completely destroyed years earlier in Hurricane Ike</a>. "Bank of America is ruthless in their incompetency," <a href="http://www.click2houston.com/news/Bank-Forecloses-On-Home-Destroyed-By-Ike/-/1735978/4718190/-/vpooliz/-/index.html" target="_hplink">he told Houston 2 News</a>.

• $1 Coding Error Leads To Foreclosure

  Utah's Shantell Curtis and her family were threatened with <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/03/bofa-foreclosure-missing-1-already-sold-home_n_1074538.html" target="_hplink">foreclosure by Bank of America on a home they had already sold years prior</a>. On top of that, the whole episode concerned the matter of just a $1 coding error.

• Investigative Journalist Becomes Foreclosure Victim

  George Knapp, chief investigative reporter for Las Vegas CBS affiliate KLAS, found he was a <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/29/foreclosure-crisis-investigative-reporter-george-knapp-victims_n_1119480.html?ref=business" target="_hplink">victim of the very brand of foreclosure fraud he was investigating</a> for a news report. Him being the reporter, the episode put him in a "very weird spot," <a href="http://www.poynter.org/latest-news/als-morning-meeting/153585/local-tv-station-tackles-mortgage-mess-as-investigative-reporter-discovers-hes-a-victim-too/" target="_hplink">he told the Poynter Insitute</a>.

• BofA Falsely Threatens Paralyzed Man With Foreclosure

  Robert Galanida, a 41-year-old man paralyzed from the shoulders down, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/12/bank-of-america-sends-false-statements-paralyzed-eviction_n_1202463.html" target="_hplink">battled Bank of America for nearly a decade</a> because it repeatedly sent him false statements threatening foreclosure.

• Tracy Morgan Refuses Mother Foreclosure Help

  In January 2012, actor Tracy Morgan reportedly refused to give his mother <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/31/tracy-morgan-foreclosure-mother_n_1244641.html" target="_hplink">$25,000 she needed to avoid foreclosure</a>, instead offering only $2,000.

• Bank Of America Plaza Foreclosure

  The Bank of America Plaza in Atlanta was sold at a foreclosure auction in February after its landlord, BentleyForbes, could no longer afford mortgage payments, <a href="http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-02-14/american-foreclosure-bottoms-at-atlanta-tower-auction-mortgages.html" target="_hplink">BusinessWeek reports</a>. BofA <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/10/bank-of-america-plaza-foreclosure_n_1197040.html" target="_hplink">was a tenant in the building at the time</a> but had no other connection besides sharing the tower's ironic name.

• JPMorgan Tries To Foreclose On Civil Rights Activist

  Even while it promoted a February 2012 campaign to "fulfill" the "vision" of Martin Luther King Jr., <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/07/helen-bailey-foreclosure_n_1260078.html?ref=foreclosure-crisis" target="_hplink">JPMorgan Chase threatened 78-year-old civil rights activist Helen Bailey with foreclosure</a>. The bank ultimately allowed Bailey to stay in her home indefinitely after Occupy Nashville helped bring national attention to the issue, <a href="http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2012/02/14/425255/helen-bailey-foreclosure/" target="_hplink">Think Progress</a> reports.

• Foreclosure At Luxury Retirement Home

  Despite being billed as "cosmopolitan living for ages 60+," the luxury <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/02/fox-hill-foreclosure_n_1314970.html" target="_hplink">Fox Hill Senior Condominiums was threatened with foreclosure</a> in March after its lenders said they were backing out.

• Man Fined For Not Mowing His Old Lawn

  David Englett was charged with fines by the city of Arlington, Texas for not mowing the lawn of <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/02/david-englett_n_1317276.html" target="_hplink">a house he had already lost to foreclosure years earlier</a>.

• 101-Year-Old Woman Evicted From Home

  Texana Hollis was evicted from her home due to foreclosure in September 2011, then <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/22/texana-hollis-evicted-detroit-woman_n_1222452.html?ref=foreclosure-crisis" target="_hplink">denied a subsequent promise that she could move back in</a> by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. It wasn't until April 2012 that <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57409700/texana-hollis-evicted-at-101-allowed-back-home/" target="_hplink">she was finally granted permission to return to the home</a> she's lived in for 60 years.

• BofA Forecloses On Woman After Telling Her To Miss Payments

  According to Pamela Flores, an Atlanta homeowner, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/10/bank-america-foreclosure-miss-mortgage-payment_n_1414988.html" target="_hplink">Bank of America advised her to stop making payments</a> on her loan in order to negotiate a modification. After doing so, the bank foreclosed on her anyway, claiming she'd missed a trial payment

• Mother, Disabled Daughter Forced Out Of Home Even After BofA Modification

  Dirma Rodriguez and her disabled daughter<a href="https://editorial.huffingtonpost.com/entry/?blog_id=2&entry_id=1423883" target="_hplink"> were forced to flee their home in minutes</a> after Bank of America sold it to a flipper at a foreclosure auction, even though the bank had already modified her loan. But not all hope is lost; Rodriguez may get her home back after the Occupy Fights Foreclosure movement intervened.

Comments

[Siebenstein]

06:31 PM on 03/16/2013

She should write a "Thank You Letter" to the POTUS and Congress for the great they are doing on behalf of homeowners !

[Tracy Caffey]

01:37 PM on 05/27/2012

how can i receive help in colorado? im disabled an so it my man he's lost vision in left eye from a stroke an lost his job 2 yrs ago unemployment ran out an now we are facing a forclosure any time now [e-mail]

[sirfarmer]

11:32 AM on 05/27/2012

Why would you NOT show up to court for your eviction hearing? If she went to the eviction hearing the judge could have extended her stay and suspended/stopped the foreclosure process while the modification was being worked on...especially given her mitigating circumstances with her disabled daughter. Not showing up = immediate default. Plain and simple.

[J Rupel]

07:03 AM on 05/27/2012

Rodriguez owed $457,000 on the house. I'm not sure how much a wheelchair ramp costs, but I can't believe it's close to half a million dollars...

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-holland-20120413,0,2707478.story?track=rss

[sirfarmer]

11:31 AM on 05/27/2012

The article also said that the bank began "returning" her payments. Banks don't return payments unless they bounce (NSF/closed account/bad check etc..) as they want your payment. That part of her story makes zero sense. When you send a payment in it's usually sent to a "lock-box" where lots of payments are processed and credited to accounts. So "returning" payments is illogical. Did she mail to the wrong address? If not, the payments bounced.

And why would you NOT show up to court for your eviction hearing? If she went the judge could have extended the terms and let her stay in the house while the modification was being worked on... Not showing up = immediate default

[stepman123]

01:10 AM on 05/27/2012

Its like me I have two wheelchairs and cant get the one I really need out the house it is to heavy.So I am stuck in my house. I cant afford to remodel the home either so I crawl to fix my pets dinner. By that time I am exhusted.

[sourabhagarwal1]

08:56 PM on 05/03/2012

Try to ask your question related to Bank of America, see if Insidr can solve your problem without any cost, so why not try it once...

http://www.insidr.com/referral/qluB210734

[Law-school-lady]

11:39 AM on 04/23/2012

For throwing disabled person out of her house, a California Claims may be Elder Abuse and Dependant Adult Civil Protection Act and Unruh. Federal claims may be Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Fair Housing Act, and ADA Title III. Disclaimer, this is not legal advice, merely opinion.

[twoto2]

02:00 PM on 04/16/2012

For more then a year, a YEAR, there are stories like this and people still are dumb enough to trust BOA... or is it just wired into the public to like getting 'played'? BoA couldn't care less about how things were or should be, It reminds me of the time I saw George W shrug his sholders, on camera, and state the Contitution 'is just a piece of paper' as if the old ways didn't matter.

[carolgregor]

09:15 PM on 04/15/2012

Banks created this situation by fraudulent and horrific business practices which made this womans' and others homes less valuable. The banks are getting away with the dream and I hope the people who do not understand this are never forced to experience how disturbing this really is. I am really tired of people who are defending the banking industry whose only motive is profit at any expense including human life.

[Herbalicious]

10:08 PM on 04/15/2012

Thank you for understanding and speaking up. We will be heard and understood by many as our voices join in harmony...

[Jill1975]

09:22 PM on 04/16/2012

You apparently think you have a right to have your house go up in value every year so that you can take a loan out on it and go to las Vegas .
If houses have gone down in value in most cities , first time borrowers should be happy to be able to afford them.

[carolgregor]

08:43 AM on 04/17/2012

There are millions of people who have lost homes are are losing more now. Banks have taken trillions from the Feds and have not modified loans as they make more money when they foreclose. Our rights are all the same. Our right is to live in a country where our banks are held to the Rule of Law as we are, nor more, no less.

[t jane20]

12:49 PM on 05/08/2012

kind of like how the big banks think they have the right to take taxpayer bailout money after poorly managing their businesses and take vacations/get huge bonuses/enjoy expensive conferences around the world...

we see right through you jill

[Snake1994]

05:13 PM on 04/15/2012

She like so many others took out 2nd mortgages on their homes because they were delusional in thinking that the price of their homes would never come down. Did they really think that $200,000 home they bought was worth a million dollars. Where I come from if you stop paying the bank has the right to foreclose. A contract is a contract!

[Herbalicious]

10:09 PM on 04/15/2012

If a contract is a contract, then BofA committed fraud in the foreclosure and that fraud voids the contract...Maybe the bank should stop committing fraud if they want contracts to be honored.

[Snake1994]

12:23 PM on 04/16/2012

She was not making the payments!

[Jill1975]

09:25 PM on 04/16/2012

What specific actions constitute fraud here ? Even if fraud occurred it doesn't mean that she didn't owe 487,000 .If the house is underwater and has no equity , what is the difference if she lost it ?

[Willie Qwit]

02:06 PM on 04/15/2012

I truly don't understand why anybody does business with Bank of America. I've used a credit union for thirty years. Never had a problem. Dump the big banks!

[Jill1975]

09:25 PM on 04/16/2012

The big banks buy loans

[Herbalicious]

10:15 AM on 04/15/2012

Thank you for covering this story. Please let us know if you would like to cover more of this story that was not featured in the LA Times piece. We have some juicy info about some of the companies involved such as Maxim Properties which has hired 3 different "security guards" to sleep in the upstairs unit on this property. They have never paid for the utilities they have used and the 2nd guard cause water damage while "playing" in the bathtub with his numerous "lady friends".

[Jill1975]

09:26 PM on 04/16/2012

How is that relevant to the issues of the case ?

[angelavictoria5]

02:03 AM on 04/15/2012

Since the taxpayers have bailed them out, they need to pay it forward and make concessions, especially in cases like these or find alternate housing. People that work in their corporate office hate BOA. Some of the most depressed people walking....

[ruffdeezy]

11:39 PM on 04/14/2012

I bet in large part they couldn't afford that house and since they aren't entitled to it, the bank did its job.

[Herbalicious]

10:17 AM on 04/15/2012

And you would lose that bet. Bank of America fraudulently foreclosed on this family and we have the proof. They are coming back to the table with this family because we have a federal lawsuit pending that proves the fraud. And the guy we are working with has already won back 7 homes. I am surprise a HuffPost reader would be so quick to use the talking points of the bank of the government and blame the innocent homeowner who has been defrauded and victimized by one of the largest banks in America.

[stargazer13]

12:30 PM on 04/15/2012

tax paying citizens bailout banks to the tune of trillions

you would think ??
for that much money we the people would own something

go figure ?

[Domingaux1969]

07:41 PM on 04/14/2012

Newsflash: Neither side GOP or Dems are pulling your best interest. What they are not telling you is that the problem is larger and more complexed than advertised. You have millions of folks who were laid off a couple of years ago; who since that time are fully employed and able to pay the full mortgage. Yet banks like Wells Fargo, BAO, etc a like have been allowed to delay, postpone, and block these folks from making payment of their mortgages. They have been put into home modification programs, eventhough many could pay the mortages; even resume paying more interest/principal to catch up. Meanwhile these folks are labeled " foreclosure squatters" when in reality the banks are not allowing them to make payments. Moreover delaying homeowners month after month with modification BS with knowing all along their are no intentions of reestablishing their credit lines. The system is designed to fail. The Banks are hoping to turn this foreclosure crisis into a rental business worth billions. Yes , banks going into the apartment business. Renting forclosed homes. Furthermore the Congress will allow the banking industry to drag down the Country and its Citizens to the abyss, all in turns of making a profit. The American Way: Not.

[Herbalicious]

10:21 AM on 04/15/2012

Thank you for helping to inform the public of what's really going on. We have to start changing the narrative from what the banks want us all to be saying to saying what's really going on.