Law Firms Cash In On Foreclosures
Their work can be so repetitive that some are known, disparagingly or not, as “foreclosure mills.” But the niche field of foreclosure law is profiting enormously from the boom in Florida home foreclosures and is on a hiring spree.
One Tampa law firm, Florida Default Law Group, filed more than 400 foreclosure lawsuits in Hillsborough County in February alone, according to a Tampa Tribune review of Hillsborough County Clerk of Court records.
Because many law firms file foreclosures across Florida, the biggest firms’ monthly foreclosure caseload can grow to a thousand or more, with each case carrying a potential attorney fee of up to $1,200 – although it’s not clear what the firms’ profit margin is.
To keep up with the workload, foreclosure specialists have ramped up their hiring. One foreclosure lawyer, Jim Albertelli of Tampa-based Albertelli Law, estimated that the biggest firms in Florida have grown to as many as 200 clerks, paralegals, lawyers and other staff, based on their case volume.