Cooper

FACTS

In 2005, Barbara,1 and her husband, William Cooper, both in their eighties, held a $237,000 mortgage on their home in Los Angeles which they sought to refinance. They submitted an application to Jimmy Pereda, who informed them that they did not qualify for a loan due to their low credit score. Pereda then convinced the Coopers to transfer title of the home to his name. A grant deed was recorded transferring title to Pereda on June 23, 2005. He obtained a loan secured by the Coopers‟ home totaling $460,000 in 2007, thus withdrawing over $200,000 in equity from the home after paying off the Coopers‟ original mortgage. That loan was assigned to HSBC on February 3, 2009. In 2007, the Coopers sued Pereda and his company for fraud. Pereda‟s company had declared bankruptcy and did not participate in the litigation. Pereda entered into a global settlement with the Coopers. The settlement terms were entered into the record by the trial court. It entitled the Coopers to a sum of $75,000, with $25,000 to be paid by December 29, 2008, and twice-monthly payments of $1,388 beginning on January 15, 2009, until paid in full. If Pereda defaulted on the settlement, the Coopers were free to…