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Real Estate & Property Law

The Home Equity Theft Reporter

Welcome to The Home Equity Theft Reporter, a blog dedicated to informing the consumer public and the legal profession about Home Equity Theft issues.
By r morris

Post Frequency: 25.7/day

Last Entry: September 06, 2017 at 04:02:00

Jailed Connecticut Man Awaiting Trial On Related Larceny Charges In Upfront Fee Ripoff Ordered To Pay $230K In State AG Civil Suit

Posted on March 23, 2010
From the Office of the Connecticut Attorney General:Attorney General Richard Blumenthal has won a judgment compelling a Hartford loan company owner to pay $230,150 in restitution and penalties for allegedly taking money and failing to provide promised loans and services...

Coalition Of Advocates, Gov't Agencies, Law Enforcement Launch Website Targeting Scams Involving Loan Mods, Sale Leasebacks, Phony Refi Rackets, Etc.

Posted on March 23, 2010
The Sarasota Herald Tribune reports:This month, a coalition of government agencies, law enforcement offices and advocates known as the Loan Modification Scam Prevention Network(1) is attempting to push back against the fraudsters by launching a Web site called preventloanscams...

Florida Regulator Moves To Shut Down Unlicensed Loan Mod Outfits Throughout State; Hammers Seven Firms & Their Principals With C&D Orders

Posted on March 23, 2010
In Tampa, Florida, The Tampa Tribune reports:State regulators cracked down on loan modification businesses [], serving one Tampa company with a cease and desist order. The company, Clear Image Financial Group, Inc., is located [...] in Tampa. Its principals, Jeff S...

South Florida Feds Squeeze Plea Deals From Pair In Vacant Land Sale Scam That Reeled In 1000+ Victims, Netted $10.6M

Posted on March 23, 2010
From the Office of the U.S. Attorney (Miami, Florida):Jeffrey H. Sloman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, [and others] announce[] that defendants Daniel Stephen and Patricia De Pons pled guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud in connection with a vacant land sale scheme that defrauded more than 1,000 victims out of $10...

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Use Of Low-Ball Property Appraisals, "Double Escrow" Flipping Arrangements Lead To Massive Ripoffs Of Underwater Lenders In Short Sale, REO Deals

Posted on March 22, 2010
In Stanislaus County, California, The Modesto Bee reports:The hottest form of mortgage fraud in the Northern San Joaquin Valley involves bogus property valuations. [Interthinx vice president of industry relations Anne] Fulmer said a lot of the fraud involves the resale of foreclosed bank-owned homes and "short sales," in which homes facing foreclosure are sold for less than their outstanding

Oregon AG Scores 1st Conviction Under New Law Targeting Loan Modification Scams, Mortgage Fraud; Defendant Gets 61 Months, Ordered To Pay $469K

Posted on March 22, 2010
From the Oregon Department of Justice:Oregon Attorney General John Kroger [] announced the conviction and sentencing of a Salem mortgage broker on mortgage fraud, theft, identity theft and tax evasion charges.(1) [...] Julian James Ruiz III (DOB: 4/28/1971) was sentenced to 61 months in prison after pleading guilty to 2 counts of Aggravated Theft in the First Degree; 1 count of Aggravated

Indiana Court Denies Bank BFP Status; Leaves It Holding The Bag As Unrecorded Rights Of Occupant In Possession Trumps Lender's Recorded Mortgage

Posted on March 22, 2010
The following facts have been extracted from a recent ruling by the Indiana Court of Appeals:Benjamin purchased his home in Gary, Indiana in 1965 and has lived there ever since.In July of 1987, as part of his retirement planning, Benjamin conveyed his home to son David Thomas by quit claim deed with the understanding that it remained Benjamin's home and that he could recover title at any time

Loan Officer Gets Five Months In Sale Leaseback, Foreclosure Rescue Scam; Equity Stripping Victim Hopes To Recover Title To Home

Posted on March 22, 2010
In Honolulu, Hawaii, KITV-TV Channel 4 reports:It?s been nearly five years since the Fagaragan family of Ewa Beach realized that the people who promised to save their home from foreclosure had actually stolen it. Thursday, one of the people involved in that mortgage fraud case was sentenced to prison while the Fagaragans still hope to regain full ownership...

More On FHLB Of San Francisco Suit To Void Purchases Of Billion$ In Residential Mortgage Backed Securities

Posted on March 21, 2010
In Northern California, The New York Times reports:LAST week, the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco sued a throng of Wall Street companies that sold the agency $5.4 billion in residential mortgage-backed securities during the height of the mortgage melee...

NY Appeals Court Says "No Way!" To "Overage-Chasing Surplus Snatcher" In Attempt To Grab Excess Sale Proceeds From Jailed Homeowner Facing Foreclosure

Posted on March 21, 2010
From a recent ruling by a New York intermediate appeals court:While incarcerated, Hernandez was visited by a retired New York City detective representing GALF [Gotham Asset Locators Fund, Inc.], who induced him to sign an agreement providing that GALF would receive 50% of any surplus obtained by Hernandez after the foreclosure sale of Hernandez's apartment located in plaintiff's condominium, even

Homeowner Gets Clipped For $1500 On Failed Loan Modification; Loses Home To Foreclosure, Then Gets Run-Around From Operator On Promised Refund

Posted on March 21, 2010
In Bakersfield, California, KBAK-TV Channel 29 reports:During the foreclosure crisis many homeowners turned to companies to get their home loans modified. One of those homeowners is Zuleyka Ruiz of Bakersfield. Her home was in foreclosure and had a sale date of December 12, 2009...

NC Federal Bankruptcy Judge Rips Lawyer For Alleged Pattern Of Ripping Off Vulnerable Consumers Seeking Chapter 13 Protection & Other Rules Violations

Posted on March 21, 2010
In a recent ruling from a Federal bankruptcy court in North Carolina, bankruptcy attorney William T. Batchelor was called to the carpet by Judge J. Rich Leonard for allegedly engaging in a pattern of ripping off financially strapped consumers, primarily by charging more for his services in Chapter 13 proceedings than is allowable under local bankruptcy court rules...

Georgia Supremes Rip State Bar For Proposed Handslap For Wayward Lawyer Who Used Stolen ID, Phony Documents To Rip Off Employer Of Nearly $500K

Posted on March 21, 2010
In Atlanta, Georgia, Business Insider reports:The Georgia Supreme Court called out the State Bar on Monday for its meek punishment of a fraudulent lawyer, calling the proposed sanction "troubling" in its unanimous rejection of his petition for voluntary suspension...

Apartment Bldg Maintenance Man Accused Of Pocketing $100K+ In Tenants' Rent, Leaving Them Facing The Boot & Screwed-Over Landlord Facing Foreclosure

Posted on March 21, 2010
In Trenton, Michigan, WDIV-TV Channel 4 reports:Police are looking for a man accused of scamming dozens of downriver apartment tenants out of their rent money. Police said Paulo DiMaggio,(1) the former maintenance man at the Morningside Apartments on Marie Street in Trenton stole more than $100,000 from more than 60 tenants...

24-Story Pile Of F'closure Papers Threatens To Topple Miami Courthouse??? "We Have 125,000 Open Files!!!" Says Clerk Of Court As He Sends Out SOS

Posted on March 21, 2010
Over on West Flagler Street in beautiful downtown Miami, Florida, Miami New Times reports:There was a time ? say, last summer ? when no clerk wanted to enter a certain room on the 15th floor of 140 W. Flagler St., a drab Miami-Dade County municipal building downtown...

Judge: No "Clanging Of The Prison Gates" For POA-Abusing Lawyer Who Swindled Ailing Mom, Stiffed Nursing Home; Upcoming Afghan Gig Earns Him Free Pass

Posted on March 21, 2010
In Guildford, Surrey (United Kingdom), the Telegraph reports:Paul Mowbray, 38, who works as a solicitor, admitted draining more than �10,300 from his mother's bank account after she was admitted to a care home and gave him control of her finances. Judge Peter Moss told Guildford Crown Court such cases normally demanded a prison sentence but said he would not even force Mowbray to do community

Louisville Man Charged In Alleged Attempt To Fleece 81-Year Old Dementia Victim Of Home, Other Assets By Duping Him Into Signing Legal Documents

Posted on March 21, 2010
In Louisville, Kentucky, WHAS-TV Channel 11 reports:Police say an elderly Louisville man with dementia was the victim of a $150,000 theft scheme. Richard Pearson, 70, of Louisville is charged with exploitation and theft by deception.Police say Pearson convinced the 81-year-old victim to place him as his power of attorney and had him sign a last will - giving Pearson all of his personal

Daughter Gets 16-20 Months For Ripping Off Elderly Mom; Pocketed Proceeds From Sale Of Home, Drained Bank Accounts, Cashed In Annuities

Posted on March 21, 2010
From the Office of the Nebraska Attorney General:Attorney General Jon Bruning [] announced that Annigje (Ann) Perkins was sentenced to 16 to 20 months in prison by the Douglas County District Court for stealing $43,214.40 from her elderly mother. Perkins, of Sacramento, Calif...

Ex-Ontario Attorney Gets 22 Months For Manufacturing Forged Mortgage Used To Swindle 85-Year Old Man Out Of $150K

Posted on March 20, 2010
In Barrie, Ontario, the Toronto Sun reports:A Barrie-area lawyer was sentenced to 14 months in jail yesterday after being convicted fraud and forgery. Justice Amy Mullins imposed a 22-month sentence on Myles McLellan, 56, a real estate lawyer, but gave him credit for time already served in prison, leaving him facing a 14-month jail term...

Real Estate Agent Suspected In $300K Ripoff Of 69-Year Old Victim In Purported Property Transaction

Posted on March 20, 2010
In Santa Barbara, California, edhat.com reports:More care must be taken to protect elderly residents from unscrupulous people who are hired to help them. As recently as March 4, a 59-year-old Santa Maria man was arrested for bilking an elderly woman out of hundreds of thousands of dollars in a fraudulent real estate deal, the Santa Barbara County sheriff office reported...

1st Time Offender Could Dodge Convictions; Charged w/ Forgery, Unlawful Use Of POA To Pocket Reverse Mortgage Proceeds On 90-Year Old Mom's Home

Posted on March 20, 2010
In Greenville, South Carolina, the Anderson Independent Mail reports:Former Clemson City Council member Elouise James, facing multiple felony charges, will be entering a pretrial intervention program. [...] Pretrial intervention provides first time offenders with the opportunity to avoid prosecution and a criminal history...

Son Gets Six Months In Life Savings Swindle Of Dementia-Stricken Mom; Need To Meet Nursing Home Expenses Makes Sale Of Family Farm Likely

Posted on March 20, 2010
In Hennepin County, Minnesota, the Star Tribune reports:Anna Sitte lost her life's savings to swindle, her ability to recognize family members to dementia and, at 78, is about to lose what's left of the farm her family settled a century ago. "What she has is a measure of dignity," her son Jimmy said...

Nephew Dodges Hard Time After Copping Plea To Abusing POA In $98K Ripoff Of Care Facility-Bound Aunt, Leaving Nursing Home Costs Unpaid

Posted on March 20, 2010
In Canton, Ohio, the Canton Repository reports:A man convicted of improperly using funds from his aunt?s estate must repay more than $98,000, a judge said Wednesday. Stark County Common Pleas Judge Lee Sinclair also placed Lawrence V. Kline Jr., 57, [...

Niece Overcomes Authorities' Initial Reluctance To Prosecute Cousin For Stealing Aunt's Life Savings As Man Cops Plea To $53K+ Embezzlement

Posted on March 20, 2010
In Sylva, North Carolina, the Asheville Citizen Times reports:Ann Buchanan isn't one to give up. And that trait served her and her family well as she pushed to have a cousin charged and ultimately convicted of stealing her 89-year-old aunt's life-savings...

Daughter Charged w/ Putting Herself On Title To Now-Deceased Stroke Victim's Home, Then Mortgaging Property To Drain $134K+ In Equity

Posted on March 20, 2010
In St. Paul, Minnesota, the Star Tribune reports:Anacleto Adamez raised 10 children in his small 1 1/2-story home on St. Paul's West Side. After suffering a stroke in August 2000, he gave his son Jesus power of attorney over his affairs. Unknown to the rest of the family, his daughter Alma Adamez-Randle filed a quit-claim deed on Aug...

Two Busted In Alleged Door-To-Door Handyman Racket Targeting Elderly Homeowners For Easy Ripoffs; Cops Seeking 3rd Suspect

Posted on March 20, 2010
In Waterville, Maine, the Kennebec Journal reports:Police arrested two men Tuesday and are looking for a third man in connection with what they said are scams against older people. The men reportedly were knocking on doors and asking to rake, trim trees and seal driveways and then perform inadequate work, according to police Chief Joseph Massey...

Home Handyman Ripped Off Elderly Woman Physically Unable To Care For Herself, Say Louisville Cops

Posted on March 20, 2010
In Louisville, Kentucky, WDRB/WMYO-TV Channel 41 reports:A man who acted as an elderly woman's handyman has been arrested and charged with exploitation and forging checks. A police report and a warrant obtained by Fox 41 News indicate that for five months beginning in Sept...

Caregiver/Handyman Cops Plea To $600K+ Ripoff Of 93-Year Old Pennsylvania Woman

Posted on March 20, 2010
In Cambria County, Pennsylvania, The Tribune Democrat reports:A Windber man admitted in Cambria County Court Thursday that he had ripped off an elderly West Hills woman for more than $600,000 while working for her as a handyman and caregiver. Frank A...

FHLB Of San Francisco Sues To Void $19.1B+ Purchase Of Crappy Mortgage-Backed Securities; Says Dealers BS'd About Quality Of Underlying Home Loans

Posted on March 19, 2010
The Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco announced:[T]he Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco(1) (Bank) filed complaints in the Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco, against nine securities dealers in relation to certain of the Bank?s investments in private-label residential mortgage-backed securities (PLRMBS)...

NY Feds Bag Two In Alleged Upfront Fee Foreclosure Rescue Scam Using Bogus Bankruptcy Filings On Behalf Of Strapped Homeowners To Delay Loss of Homes

Posted on March 19, 2010
In White Plains, New York, Courthouse News Service reports:Two New Jersey residents took nearly $400,000 in a foreclosure protection scam, federal prosecutors said. Andrew Bartok of Clifton and Kathleen Addario aka Kathy Adams [aka Kathleen Kelly, aka Kate Adams] of Saddle River raked in $44,000 a month for 9 months last year through their business, Revelations Consulting, prosecutors said.

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