Section 184 Considerations for Pre-Foreclosure

Recently, there has been an effort to address concerns with the lack of mortgage lending in and around Native American tribal lands along with a rise in referrals for loans subject to the regulations of the Section 184 Indian Housing Loan Guarantee (“Section 184”) program. As a brief history, Section 184 is designed to increase opportunity and access for certain Native American families to achieve home ownership. Per HUD’s website:

The Section 184 Indian Home Loan Guarantee Program is a home mortgage product specifically designed for American Indian and Alaska Native families, Alaska villages, tribes, or tribally designated housing entities. Congress established this program in …

Best Practices for Notices of Dismissal Amid the “Two-Dismissal Rule” in Kansas

In Wilmington Sav. Fund Soc'y v. Campbell, 2021 Kan. App. Unpub. LEXIS 330, the Kansas Court of Appeals issued a ruling that provides a bright line rule under K.S.A. §60-241.

60-241. Dismissal of actions. (a) Voluntary dismissal.

(1) By the plaintiff.

(A) Without a court order. Subject to subsection (e) of K.S.A. §60-223, K.S.A. §60-223a and K.S.A. §60-223b, the plaintiff may dismiss an action without a court order by filing:

(i) A notice of dismissal before the opposing party serves either an answer or a motion for summary judgment; or

(ii) a stipulation of dismissal signed by all …

8th Circuit Case Calls into Question Practices Concerning Nonjudicial Foreclosures Involving Government Liens

The practice of nonjudicial foreclosures in the United States, at least in the 8th Circuit, has been altered to the extent the process involves a junior lien held by the United States after the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals issued an order affirming a Missouri federal court decision. In July 2023, the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed in Show Me State Premium Homes v. McDonnell the lower court’s determination that when the United States has a subordinate lien (other than a federal tax lien), the holder of the senior interest must foreclose its lien by judicial …

Kansas Court of Appeals Rules for Lender on Statute of Limitations Challenge

In June 2023, the Kansas Court of Appeals ruled on when the Kansas fiveyear statute of limitations begins to run for purposes of enforcing a mortgage loan in Warner v. Elftman, Kansas Court of Appeals No. 125,342, 2023 WL 4038596 (June 16, 2023)_(unpublished). In Warner, the borrowers argued that the five-year statute (K.S.A. 60-511(1)) began in 2003 when the borrowers stopped making their loan payments and that the lender’s 2021 foreclosure action was time-barred.

On the other hand, the lender contended that the five-year limitations period began to run in 2017, upon the note’s maturity, rendering the 2021 …

Is Artificial Intelligence the Modern-Day Steam Engine?

Artificial Intelligence ("AI") and the steam engine are two technological phenomena that have unleashed transformational power. The steam engine has, and AI could, profoundly impact human civilization. The steam engine stimulated the Industrial Revolution. AI is driving the digital revolution. This article will explore the parallelism between the steam engine and AI, examining their historical significance, and providing a hypothesis as to potential efficiencies that can be implemented, as well as AI’s influence on productivity. We will examine how the mortgage banking industry can capitalize on the increased productivity generated through the use of AI. Finally, we will directly compare the transformational powers …

Beyond the Performative: Authentic Allyship in the Workplace

It seems everywhere we turn these days, people and corporations are practically climbing over each other to show their alliance with and support of marginalized and minority groups of people. Almost every sports team celebrates their own version of a Pride Night in support of the LGBTQ+ community. Good luck scrolling through social media in the month of June without seeing at least half a dozen rainbow pictures and corporate logos or blacked out pictures and the hashtag #Black-LivesMatter. Allyship is everywhere. Or is it?

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Kansas: Creatively Using Redemption Waivers in REO

With the housing shortage continuing, some companies in Kansas are getting creative with how they are replenishing their inventory. It is becoming more and more common for title work ordered in anticipation of a foreclosure to include a recent conveyance from the borrowers to a business entity. The parties intend to convey redemption rights to that entity by virtue of a deed, given that K.S.A. §60-2414(a) provides very clearly that a "defendant owner may redeem real property" following the Sheriff’s Sale.

K.S.A §60-2414(a) also provides that:

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The Overlooked Diversity: Neurodiversity in the Workplace

Most people, myself included, when asked to think about integrating topics of diversity, equity, and inclusion into our workplaces immediately go to a handful of areas: race, gender, physical disability, sexuality, and sexual orientation. In fact, until I was presented with the opportunity to write this article, I can say that I had never given much thought to applying diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts in the workplace to the way people think. That realization came as a surprise, considering that I am a neurodivergent person.

So what does it mean to be neurodivergent? Neurodivergent is an umbrella term first coined in the 1980’s …