Impact 5: Homeowners said to be caught in bureaucratic red tape of banks, lenders

ROYAL PALM BEACH, Fla. - As Florida continues to struggle with its recovery from the housing crisis, homeowners tell NewsChannel 5 they continue to find themselves caught in the bureaucratic red tape of banks and lenders.

Mark Joseph, a Royal Palm Beach resident who has tried to modify his home loan for more than one year, said his lender continued to request the same documents from him.

"Every month, they send and ask me for the same paper over and over and over," he said. "They don't do [anything.]"

A spokesperson for Wells Fargo Home Mortgage told NewsChannel 5 said banks sometimes ask homeowners for more information if they were missing information, needed bank statements or tax returns or required additional proof of income.

Still, some housing counselors said the problem was something else -- the sheer volume of people asking banks and lenders for help; they just can't keep up.

"We [have been] working since 2009 with these kinds of issues. And, we're in 2012," said Carlos Llerena, a housing counselor with DebtHelper.com. "There has to be more consideration when they receive the documents and fix it right away. They cannot wait thirty or sixty days to review the file."

Florida still has one of the nation's highest foreclosure rates -- a worry for Mark Joseph.

Joseph said he remained optimistic that his lender would modify his loan.

"Well, it will make a difference. It will give me peace of mind," he said. "At least I'll get things stable."