The solution, said Hornik in an interview with Realty Times, is to negotiate a reduction in the principal balance owed to the lender, and pay that off with new replacement financing.

But you might ask: Are banks really willing to do that when borrowers are current on their payments? Hornik says large numbers of them “are more than willing to negotiate to less than the existing balance on a current mortgage. It all depends on the situation the bank is in.”

Many lenders are themselves under stress because of the economic downturn. They need to bolster their own capital bases, and may be willing to write off some of the debt an income property owner owes them in exchange for a single lump sum payoff.

How much might a bank reduce an investment property loan balance that’s current? Hornik says the reductions his firm helps negotiate can range from 20 to 40 percent.

Kennedy Funding’s role, said Hornik, is “to be the catalyst. We call your lender and negotiate the terms” of the writedown, if it’s at all possible. If there’s flexibility on the bank’s end, Kennedy then offers to either buy the existing note at a discount, providing cash to the bank. Or it provides the refinancing takeout cash to retire the debt at a lowered principal amount.

None of this comes cheaply, however. Kennedy Funding is a “hard money” lender, so interest rates on the new, smaller loan amount for the investment property owner can range from 9 percent and up, with at least three points. Loan to value ratios tend to be low, generally 65 percent or less.

At the end of the process, however, said Hornik, property owners generally owe less on the real estate and pay less per month, even with higher rates.

Courts in the United States currently recognize two types of divorces: absolute divorce, known as “divorce a vinculo matrimonii” and limited divorce, known as “divorce a menso et thoro”. To obtain an absolute divorce, courts require some type of evidentiary showing of misconduct or wrongdoing on one spouse’s part. An absolute divorce is a judicial termination of a legal marriage. An absolute divorce results in the changing back of both parties’ statuses to single. Limited divorces are typically referred to as separation decrees. Limited divorces result in termination of the right to cohabitate but the court refrains from officially dissolving the marriage and the parties’ statuses remain unchanged. Some states permit conversion divorce. Conversion divorce transforms a legal separation into a legal divorce after both parties have been separated for a statutorily-prescribed period of time.

Many states have enacted no-fault divorce statutes. No fault divorce statutes do not require showing spousal misconduct and are a response to outdated divorce statutes that require proof of adultery or some other unsavory act in a court of law by the divorcing party. Nevertheless, even today, not all states have enacted no fault divorce statutes. Instead, the court must only find 1) that the relationship is no longer viable, 2) that irreconcilable differences have caused an irremediable breakdown of the marriage, 3) that discord or conflict of personalities have destroyed the legit ends of the marital relationship and prevents any reasonable possibility of reconciliation, or 4) that the marriage is irretrievably broken.

You or your attorney should check with any relevant federal, state and municipal governments to obtain copies of law enforcement reports. Some of these reports are a matter of public record and are available for a small fee. Some reports might not be available, for example, when a criminal prosecution is involved, or the reports are confidential in nature, and can be obtained through discovery, the court process for obtaining information once a law suit has been filed.

Insurance companies that issued policies covering other people who were involved in the accident will also want a copy of the police report. These companies are subject to the same restrictions as you are in obtaining the report. A police report is generally not required in order to file an insurance claim. However, the insurance companies will want that report if they have to pursue or defend a lawsuit.
Contents of a Police Report

A typical police report contains the following information:

* The date, time and place of the accident
* The details of the accident, including a diagram of the accident scene
* The names of all parties and witnesses involved in the accident, including the owners and drivers of vehicles, and the owners of the property involved in the accident
* A description of the driver, including his or her age and license number
* The names and addresses of all injured parties, and a summary of their injuries, including the place where they received medical attention
* A description of the accident, ranging from brief to detailed
* The weather, lighting and road conditions
* The property damage sustained, and
* A description of the vehicles involved in the accident

You should note that the information in the report does not necessarily reflect what actually happened. For instance, a traffic report may contain errors such as wrong speeds, points of impact centered incorrectly or blame placed on the wrong party. However, that information might be presented in court someday, and you and your attorney should know about that information before trial in order to be prepared to challenge its accuracy.