Catalan v. GMAC Mortgage Corp.

Dist. Ct. erred in granting defendant-mortgage servicer's motion for summary judgment in action alleging violations under Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) where plaintiffs asserted that defendant failed to notify them that it had been assigned right to receive mortgage payments on plaintiffs' home and had given wrong information about status of plaintiffs' mortgage to credit bureau. While Dist. Ct. found that defendant was entitled to safe harbor provision under RESPA, defendant was not entitled to said provision since, although plaintiffs did not pay more than what was owed on their mortgage, defendant had failed to notify plaintiffs of errors relating to their account. On remand, Dist. Ct. must determine whether defendant satisfied its obligation to investigate and respond to plaintiffs' inquiries under RESPA. Dist. Ct. also erred in dismissing plaintiffs' breach of contract claim stemming from defendant's refusal to accept their payments on mortgage during temporary dispute concerning what plaintiffs' owed on mortgage since question of fact remained as to whether defendant's delay in applying plaintiffs' payments on mortgage was reasonable.