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Man Suffers Heart Attack After Foreclosure, Chase Sued

By Cornelius Nunev


The heirs of Harry Engel are suing J.P. Morgan Chase after Engel suffered cardiac arrest after foreclosure was started. It is suggested in the lawsuit that Chase was accountable.

Severe heart attack occurs

Harry Engel, a 79-year-old retired minister in Grand Prairie, Texas, suffered a deadly heart attack in July 2010, according to KHOU, a Houston CBS affiliate. His family members believe his heart attack was caused by foreclosure proceedings begun by the JPMorgan Chase after the family had lived in their house for 22 years.

The local Chase branch advised the Engel family that they had to miss a payment before they could qualify for the Department of the Treasury's Making Home Affordable Program, and they did so. They were planning to lower their rate because they were on a fixed income and hear they could save some money that way.

The bank then apparently started the program, but ended their enrollment. Late fees and notices started arriving, followed by a notice that foreclosure was pending. He had his heart attack after foreclosure cautions arrived, along with a Chase attorney advising that eviction was pending.

A lawsuit from the widow

His wife, Wando Jo Engel, is suing Chase, according to the Huffington Post, in a wrongful death suit. The Engel family was among numerous people who had been given comparable instructions. They were told to miss at least one payment to qualify for a troubled mortgage refinance, only to fall into foreclosure after the bank chose to not keep going. Chase hadn't submitted foreclosure proceedings yet, but was in the early phases.

The U.S. Senate Banking committee hearings in 2010 talked about this, called "servicer-led foreclosure," according to the Washington post. It was part of the large lawsuit the government did against the five largest mortgage lenders in the country for "robosigning" and other practices which were not allowed. The mortgage lenders settled for $25 billion earlier this year, according to the Los Angeles Times.

The Huffington Post explained that a servicer-led foreclosure went wrong this year at B of A too. Pamela Flores in Georgia was told the same thing from B of A just to have the modification not work out and foreclosure to follow, according to the Huffington Post. The Engel family is not alone.

Causes emotional stress

In 2008, the first cases of "foreclosures suicides" were noticed, according to USA Today. Homeowners who were having problems with their loans started calling suicide hotlines regularly, and they led to suicides. The mental stress is too much for some people to take. This year, there was a murder-suicide in Ohio and March because of the foreclosure and there have been two suicides recorded this year.




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