THE REFEREE’S REPORT WAS BASED ON BUSINESS RECORDS WHICH WERE NOT PRODUCED RENDERING THE AFFIDAVIT HEARSAY; THE REPORT SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN CONFIRMED (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined the referee’s report in this foreclosure action should not have been confirmed because the relevant business records were produced to support the affidavit:

Here, the referee based her findings upon her review of the note and mortgage, the summons and complaint, and an affidavit of merit and amount due of the plaintiff’s employee, which listed the amounts due by month and the interest rate, as well as the taxes and insurance paid on the defendant’s account. However, as the defendant correctly contends, the affidavit “constituted inadmissible hearsay and lacked probative value because the affiant did not produce any of the business records [s]he purportedly relied upon in making [her] calculations” … . Moreover, while the referee’s report found that the mortgaged premises should be sold in one parcel, the referee failed to identify the documents or other sources upon which she based that finding … . Under the circumstances, the referee’s findings with respect to the total amount due and whether the subject property could be sold in one parcel were not substantially supported by the record … . Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. v Laronga, 2023 NY Slip Op 04793, Second Dept 9-27-23

Practice Point: If the referee’s report in a foreclosure action is based on business records, those records must be produced.