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Denbeaux & Denbeaux

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Westwood, NJ
Denbeaux & Denbeaux

The primary objective of the firm is to provide legal representation to individual consumers who hav

Formed in 1989, Denbeaux & Denbeaux is a law firm dedicated to providing top level legal representation to its clients. Joshua Denbeaux, Esq., Abigail Denbeaux-Kahl, Senior Associate and Mark Denbeaux of Counsel, as well associate attorneys, represent individuals and businesses in New Jersey state and federal Courts. The firm originally represented small businesses in litigation and performed real estate closings, as well as the drafting of wills. In 2007 the firm developed an expertise representing homeowners facing foreclosure as we continued our work in family law and estate planning. Today the firm primarily practices civil litigation with a concentration in consumer and family law as well as estate planning. We are successful fighting issues surrounding NJ home foreclosure in both state and federal courts. Our work has been featured in major media sources throughout the country including CNN, MSNBC, NPR, C-SPAN, CBS Evening News, the Associated Press, The Star Ledger, and The Record. We measure success as being able to get our clients to a better place than when they first came to us. The testimonials of a family helped, or justice served speak to this goal.

09/26/2026

After the 2008 financial crisis, there was a major crackdown on predatory lending. New rules were put in place, oversight increased, and lenders knew there could be serious consequences for putting people into mortgages they couldn’t afford.

But we’re almost 20 years removed from 2008, and I’m starting to see some of those same bad practices creep back into the mortgage industry.

Part of the problem is that federal consumer protection enforcement has been significantly reduced. And when lenders believe there’s less chance anyone is going to come after them, some become more willing to cut corners or even break rules they know they’re supposed to follow.

But less enforcement doesn’t mean the law went away.

The Ability-to-Repay Rule still exists, and lenders are still required to follow it. If a lender gave you a mortgage you couldn’t afford without following those rules, you may still have legal rights and the ability to hold them accountable.

If you’re facing foreclosure in New Jersey and believe your mortgage was unaffordable from the beginning, contact us today for a free consultation. We’ll review what happened and help you understand whether your lender may have violated your rights.

09/25/2026

Most homeowners think of mortgage servicing mistakes as little more than an inconvenience. They expect they'll spend some extra time on the phone, resend a few documents, and eventually everything will get sorted out.

Unfortunately, that's not always what happens.

When a payment is applied incorrectly, a loan modification application isn't handled properly, or documents keep getting lost, those problems can have consequences that extend well beyond frustration. They can lead to unnecessary fees, damage your credit, delay your loan modification, or even allow the foreclosure process to move forward while the issue remains unresolved.

That's why I don't look at servicing mistakes as just customer service issues. If those mistakes affect your finances or your ability to save your home, they may cross the line from an honest mistake into a legal violation. Mortgage servicers have legal obligations when it comes to managing your loan, and if they fail to meet those obligations, homeowners may have legal rights they don't even realize they have.

If you're facing foreclosure in New Jersey and believe your mortgage company mishandled your loan or your loan modification, Denbeaux & Denbeaux offers free consultations. We'll review what happened, explain whether your lender's mistakes may have affected your rights, and help you understand what options may be available.

09/23/2026

Were you concerned about being able to afford your mortgage, but your loan officer reassured you by saying something like, “Don’t worry about the payment, we’ll refinance you later”?

If a lender knew a mortgage wasn't affordable based on your finances, they don't get around their legal obligations by promising to refinance you later.

Under the Ability-to-Repay Rule, lenders are required to look at your finances and make sure you can actually afford the mortgage before they give it to you. The question is whether you could afford that loan, with that payment, at that exact time.

So if they knew the numbers didn't work and their answer was essentially, “Sign it now and we'll fix it later,” that could be a violation of the Ability-to-Repay Rule.

And this is exactly why that rule exists. If the promised refinance never happens, you're left with the same unaffordable payment you were concerned about from the beginning, and that can eventually lead to missed payments, foreclosure, and potentially losing your home.

If you were told to take a loan you couldn't afford with a promise that you'd be refinanced later, and you're now facing foreclosure in New Jersey, contact us today for a free consultation. We'll review what happened and help you understand whether your lender may have violated federal law.

09/18/2026

If your home is in foreclosure, you may start receiving calls from investors offering to buy your home and let you stay as a renter.

While it may sound like they're helping, that's not always the case.

This type of foreclosure scam is known as equity stripping.

Here's how it often works:

• An investor buys your home while you're in foreclosure.
• They promise you can continue living there by renting it back.
• You lose ownership of your home and the equity you've built over the years.
• The new owner may later sell the property or increase your rent, leaving you without your home and without the equity you worked so hard to build.

If someone is pressuring you to sell your home during foreclosure, don't assume it's your only option.

Depending on your situation, you may have legal options that could help you keep your home without giving up your ownership rights or equity.

If you're facing foreclosure in New Jersey, we're here to help. Contact Denbeaux & Denbeaux for a free consultation before signing anything.

📞 Visit us online or call (201) 970-6534 to schedule your free consultation.

09/16/2026

If you were given a mortgage where the monthly payment takes up most of your take-home pay and leaves you with barely enough money to live on, that's not just a bad loan. It could be a violation of federal law.

When you applied for your mortgage, your lender was required to look at your finances and make sure you could actually afford the monthly payment before giving you the loan.

If they didn't do that (or they gave you the mortgage even though the numbers showed you realistically couldn't afford it) they may have violated something called the Ability-to-Repay Rule.

And this can be especially important if you're now facing foreclosure.

Because this may not simply be a case of you falling behind on your mortgage. There may have been a problem with the loan from the very beginning. And if your lender violated the Ability-to-Repay Rule, you may have legal rights that allow you to fight back.

If you're a New Jersey homeowner facing foreclosure and believe you were put into a mortgage you never realistically could have afforded, contact us today for a free consultation. We'll review what happened and help you understand whether your lender may have violated your rights when they gave you the loan.

09/12/2026

If your mortgage servicer tells you that your loan modification will result in a higher monthly payment, your first reaction is probably, "Why would I agree to that?"

It's a fair question. But in many cases, it's the wrong comparison.

Let's look at an example.

Suppose your current mortgage payment is $2,000 a month, but you've fallen behind and now owe $25,000 in missed payments, late fees, and other charges.

Without a loan modification, your lender may require you to pay that entire $25,000 to bring your loan current. If you can't, the foreclosure process continues.

Now imagine your servicer offers you a loan modification. Because interest rates today are much higher than they were when you originally took out your mortgage, your new monthly payment comes out to $2,100 instead of $2,000.

At first glance, that may seem like a bad deal.

But here's the real comparison.

Would you rather pay an extra $100 a month, or come up with $25,000 immediately to stop the foreclosure?

For many homeowners, the answer is obvious.

A loan modification also stops the amount you owe from continuing to grow. Every month a loan remains in default, additional interest, fees, and sometimes attorney's fees can be added to the balance. A modification gives you a predictable monthly payment and a path toward keeping your home.

That's why I tell homeowners not to focus solely on whether the modified payment is higher than their old payment. The better question is whether the modified payment is affordable and whether it's a better outcome than the alternatives.

If you've been denied a loan modification or aren't sure whether the one you were offered is in your best interest, contact Denbeaux & Denbeaux for a free consultation. We'll review your situation, explain your options, and help you determine the best path forward.

Schedule your free consultation online or by calling us at (201) 970-6534.

09/09/2026

If you're a New Jersey homeowner and your loan modification was recently denied, contact Denbeaux & Denbeaux for a free consultation. We'll review your denial letter, explain your options, and help you determine whether your servicer properly followed the applicable Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac guidelines.

Schedule your free consultation online or by calling us at (201) 970-6534.

09/04/2026

A lot of homeowners assume that if they're behind on their mortgage, the bank can do whatever it wants.

That's not how foreclosure works.

No matter what state you live in, lenders have to follow that state's foreclosure laws before they can take someone's home. Here in New Jersey, we're a judicial foreclosure state, which means the foreclosure has to go through the court system and the lender has to follow specific legal requirements every step of the way.

That includes providing the notices required by law, meeting important deadlines, and following court procedures throughout the case. These aren't just technicalities... they exist to ensure homeowners receive the legal protections and due process they're entitled to before losing their home.

When a lender fails to follow those requirements, it can affect the foreclosure itself. In some cases, those violations may even give you grounds to challenge the foreclosure.

The problem is that most homeowners don't know what the lender is required to do, so they have no way of knowing whether something was done incorrectly.

That's why one of the first things I do when reviewing a foreclosure case is go back through the entire timeline. I'm looking to see whether the lender followed the law from beginning to end, because if they didn't, it could change the course of the case.

If you're facing foreclosure in New Jersey, Denbeaux & Denbeaux offers free consultations. We'll review your case, explain where you are in the foreclosure process, and determine whether your lender followed the legal requirements required to foreclose on your home.

09/02/2026

If your loan modification was denied because the new payment would have been higher than your current payment, and your loan is owned by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, there's something important you should know before you accept that denial.

For years, if a loan modification didn't result in a lower monthly payment, it was generally denied under the standard Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac guidelines. That wasn't much of an issue when interest rates were low because the modified payment almost always came out lower.

Today, with much higher interest rates, that's no longer always possible.

To address that, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac updated their guidelines to allow what's called an exception review. Instead of automatically denying the loan modification because the payment would be higher, the servicer is supposed to submit the loan for an exception review to determine whether the modification should still be approved.

The problem is that not every servicer is applying that process correctly. Too many homeowners are being denied without ever receiving the exception review they should have received. And unless you know the exception exists and ask about it, there's a good chance it never gets considered at all.

If this sounds like your situation, the first step is finding out who owns your loan. If it's Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, ask your servicer in writing whether your loan has been submitted for an exception review based on the modified payment being higher than your current payment.

If you're not sure where to start or you want someone to review your denial, contact us today for a free consultation. We'll look at what happened and help you understand whether your servicer followed the correct guidelines.

Schedule your free consultation online or by calling us at (201) 970-6534.

08/28/2026

Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 both temporarily stop a foreclosure, but they work very differently when it comes to helping you keep your home.

With a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, you'll work through a court approved repayment plan that allows you to catch up on your missed mortgage payments over time while continuing to make your regular mortgage payments. If you're able to complete that plan, Chapter 13 can provide an opportunity to save your home.

A Chapter 7 bankruptcy works differently. While it can temporarily stop the foreclosure through the automatic stay, it doesn't give you a way to catch up on the missed mortgage payments that caused the foreclosure in the first place. Instead, Chapter 7 is designed to eliminate certain unsecured debts, like credit cards and medical bills, which may free up money to put toward your mortgage.

Because of the long term consequences that come with filing for bankruptcy, I generally don't recommend it as the first option for homeowners facing foreclosure. In many cases, a loan modification or another loss mitigation option may also stop the foreclosure while helping you keep your home, without the lasting impact bankruptcy can have on your financial future.

That doesn't mean bankruptcy is never the right choice. There are situations where it's absolutely the best strategy. But before making that decision, it's important to understand whether there are other options that can accomplish the same goal.

If you're facing foreclosure in New Jersey, don't assume bankruptcy is your only option. Denbeaux & Denbeaux offers free consultations to review your situation, explain the options available, and help you choose the strategy that makes the most sense for your circumstances.

Schedule your free consultation online or by calling (201) 970-6534.

Address

372 Kinderkamack Road #5
Westwood, NJ
07675

Opening Hours

Monday	9am - 6pm
Tuesday	9am - 6pm
Wednesday	9am - 6pm
Thursday	9am - 6pm
Friday	9am - 6pm

Website

http://denbeauxlaw.com/

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