Florida preparing for Ocwen payouts

About 26,000 Floridians will soon be receiving claim forms for their portion of a recent $2.1 billion settlement

Someone at Ocwen Financial had better limber up his check-writing hand. About 26,000 Floridians will soon be receiving claim forms for their portion of a recent $2.1 billion settlement.

The settlement specifies payments to about 180,000 Ocwen customers who lost their homes to foreclosure between 2009 and 2012. Florida has the second-highest share of the settlement’s relief portion of $125 million, according to the Palm Beach Post.

Ocwen agreed to the settlement after numerous allegations of mortgage servicing misconduct, including a CFPB probe that found that the company “took advantage of borrowers at every stage of the process.” State and federal authorities alleged that Ocwen made use of false or deceptive documentation and engaged in misconduct that violated homeowners’ rights and caused premature and unauthorized foreclosures, according to the Post.

The settlement didn’t end the servicer’s legal troubles. Still plagued with allegations that it mishandled customers’ loans, Ocwen is currently the subject of a class-action lawsuit and is being investigated by the state of New York for alleged servicing violations. The company also recently paid $3.7 million to the state of Massachusetts to resolve servicing abuse claims.