Roy Cooper: Only 32 percent of NC residents have filed SunTrust claims

Only 32 percent of North Carolina residents eligible to participate in a settlement with SunTrust Banks have filed claims, even though the deadline is about a month away, Attorney General Roy Cooper’s office said Friday.

Roughly 2,200 North Carolina residents who lost homes to foreclosure are eligible for the direct cash payments from the mortgage and foreclosure settlement announced in June with various states and federal agencies.

Eligible borrowers should have received a claims form in the mail from settlement administrator Rust Consulting, but more than 275 notices have been unable to reach borrowers who have addresses that are undeliverable, Cooper’s office said Friday.

The deadline to submit claims forms is June 4. Forms were expected to be sent out starting in March.

Cooper’s office has previously said the $2 million in total cash payments to North Carolina borrowers will likely equal about $850 per person, depending upon how many eligible people submit claims.

The roughly $1 billion settlement, involving various state attorneys general and the federal government, resolved claims against Atlanta-based SunTrust over abusive practices in foreclosing and mortgage origination and servicing.

In reaching the deal, SunTrust admitted it originated and underwrote federally insured mortgages that did not meet federal requirements.

For more information on the settlement, go to nationalmortgagesettlement.com, call the settlement administrator at 1 (866) 590-8532 Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. or send an email to settlementadminstrator@nationalsuntrustsettlement.com.

This story was originally published May 1, 2015 at 4:32 PM with the headline "Roy Cooper: Only 32 percent of NC residents have filed SunTrust claims."