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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

Oregon AG Fielding More Complaints Against Loan Modification, Foreclosure Rescue Operators

Posted on April 09, 2009
In Portland, Oregon, The Oregonian reports:Complaints in Oregon about [mortgage and foreclosure repair] operations are way up, according to Attorney General John Kroger's office. [...] So far this year, Kroger's office has received 209 contacts from consumers -- most of them complaints -- about mortgage repair services, department spokeswoman Jan Margosian said on Monday...

Indiana AG Files Civil Charges Against Five Loan Modification / Foreclosure Rescue Firms

Posted on April 09, 2009
Fom the Office of the Indiana Attorney General:Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller today filed lawsuits in Boone, Clark, Delaware, Grant and Marion counties against five foreclosure consultant companies alleging violations of state laws. [...] Foreclosure consultants target homeowners threatened with default and foreclosure and receive payment for services to allegedly stop or postpone the

Missouri AG Files Lawsuit Against California Firm Allegedly Peddling Bogus Loan Modification Services

Posted on April 08, 2009
The St. Louis Business Journal reports:Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster filed a lawsuit Tuesday against an Anaheim, Calif., company that allegedly defrauded Missourians looking for help avoiding mortgage foreclosure. Koster said the company, U.S...

50+ Unit Owner-Investors Accuse Condo Converter Of Pocketing Rent, Using Apartments As Loan Collateral Without Consent

Posted on April 08, 2009
In League City, Texas, The Galveston County Daily News reports:More than 50 investors, most from Israel, went to court last week in attempt to save condominium units from foreclosure as they sue a group of companies and people they say defrauded them in a real estate venture...

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Slow-To-Foreclose Mortgage Lenders Creating Havoc For Condo, Homeowner Association

Posted on April 08, 2009
In a column in the Naples Daily News, Florida attorney Rob Samouce writes:Under the current real estate economic client in Florida, many banks and other financial institutions holding first mortgages are contributing to the delinquency of condominium and homeowners? associations? assessment funds by stalling to initiate foreclosure actions and then by failing to timely complete their foreclosures

Another Mortgage Servicer Screw-Up Throws Tennessee Woman's Home In Foreclosure, Despite Proof Of Payments

Posted on April 08, 2009
In Wilson County, Tennessee, WSMV-TV Channel 4 reports on another case of a mortgage lender/servicer screw-up that resulted in a homeowner being thrown into foreclosure, despite the fact that she was current on her payments and had her bank statements to prove it...

Some Law Firms Begin Temporarily Farming Out High-Priced, Surplus Junior Attorneys By Placing Them On Loan With Public Interest Practices

Posted on April 08, 2009
The Associated Press reports:[A]cross the country, the junior end of the law firm hierarchy has been taking the brunt of layoffs, pay freezes and furloughs as business shrinks and firms trim their payrolls. Summer associate programs are being scrapped or reduced, and many spring law school graduates who were promised positions for the fall are being asked to delay their start date for as long as

NC Central's Foreclosure Prevention Project Offers Free Legal Counsel To Homeowners Facing Loss Of Home

Posted on April 08, 2009
In Durham, North Carolina, The Herald Sun reports:Homeowners facing foreclosure should know they can get free legal representation that is among the best available for their types of problems, says the leader of the Foreclosure Prevention Project at the N...

Indiana AG To Announce Civil Charges Against Five Loan Modification Firms

Posted on April 08, 2009
In Indianapolis, Indiana, The Associated Press reports:Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller says he will sue five foreclosure consultant companies for collecting fees in exchange for promises to keep state residents out of foreclosure.The attorney general's office said Tuesday that Zoeller will announce details of the legal action at a news conference Thursday at the Statehouse...

Brooklyn Hotline For Victims Of Deed, Mortgage, Other Real Estate-Related Fraud

Posted on April 08, 2009
In Brooklyn, New York, the Kings County District Attorney announced:Kings County District Attorney Charles J. Hynes [...] announced the creation of a telephone hotline victims can use to contact the District Attorney?s new Mortgage Fraud Unit. The 12-person unit will investigate deed fraud, mortgage fraud, predatory lending and other real estate-related fraud...

FTC Announces New Lawsuits Against Upfront Fee Loan Modification Firms;

Posted on April 07, 2009
On the heels of yesterday's "declaration of war" by the Federal government against loan modification scams, the Federal Trade Commission announced the filing of three new lawsuits against firms it accuses of making false representations in conncetion with the improper clipping of homeowners for upfront fees, only to do little or nothing with regard to modifying their home loans...

Illinois AG Files Civil Charges Against Two More Loan Modification, Foreclosure Rescue Operators; Lawsuit Tally Now Up To 24

Posted on April 07, 2009
From the Office of the Illinois Attorney General:Attorney General Lisa Madigan has filed two lawsuits in Cook County Circuit Court against Chicago-area mortgage rescue fraud schemes seeking temporary restraining orders to immediately stop the defendants from providing mortgage rescue services...

Massachusetts AG Tags Four With Civil Charges In Alleged Loan Modification Scam

Posted on April 07, 2009
In Boston, Massachusetts, the Boston Business Journal reports:Attorney General Martha Coakley?s Office filed a lawsuit and obtained a temporary restraining order against four defendants for their alleged involvement in a foreclosure scam.The complaint, filed Monday in Suffolk Superior Court, alleges that Loan Modification Group Corp...

Lack Of "Hard Time" On Conviction Lures Some Street Gangs Away From Drug Trade; Into Deed & Refinance Scams

Posted on April 07, 2009
Buried in a recent story in The Journal Gazette (Fort Wayne, Indiana) is this excerpt on deed and refinancing scams where perpetrators use forged deeds, stolen I.D.s, crooked notaries (or an unwitting notary and a stooge) to swipe homes, borrow against them, pocket the proceeds, and walk away undetected:[T]he scam is so lucrative in Chicago that street gangs found it preferable to dealing drugs,

Sleazy Practices By Process Servers Wreak Havoc On Consumers In Debt Collection Lawsuits

Posted on April 07, 2009
A June, 2008 report by MFY Legal Services, Inc. of New York City shines some light on questionable practices engaged in by process servers when serving notices of debt collection lawsuits (many brought by "debt scavengers" on debts purchased for pennies on the dollar that are beyond the statute of limitations) on defendants that, arguably, are leaving them without the properly required

Florida AG Continues Cranking Out Lawsuits Against Upfront Fee Loan Modification Firms

Posted on April 06, 2009
In Fort Lauderdale, Florida, the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports:Attorney General Bill McCollum sued a South Florida loan modification firm and its affiliated companies this week, alleging they violated state law by charging fees for foreclosure rescue services...

Eight Down, Two To Go In Metropolitan Money Store Foreclosure Rescue Scam As Maryland Feds Get Another Guilty Plea

Posted on April 06, 2009
From the Office of the U.S. Attorney (Maryland):Kurt Fordham, age 39, of Ft. Washington, Maryland, pleaded guilty [Friday] to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud in connection with a mortgage fraud scheme that falsely promised to help homeowners facing foreclosure keep their homes and repair their damaged credit, announced United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J...

Deed, Refinancing Scams By Forgery Has County Recorders Seeking Help To Protect Property Owners

Posted on April 06, 2009
In Fort Wayne, Indiana, The Journal Gazette reports:It took The Journal Gazette less than an hour to ?steal? the 300-foot-tall Lincoln Tower. With a little research, a typewriter and an $8.99 form from a local office supply store, the newspaper was able to prepare a deed transferring ownership of the city?s most iconic building from its current owners to the city?s most iconic citizen, John

Now-Defunct Title Company Accused Of Failing To Pay Off Existing Mortgage On Refinance; Owner Now Left Facing Foreclosure With Two Home Loans

Posted on April 06, 2009
In Cincinnati, Ohio, WKRC-TV Channel 12 reports:A local homeowner who refinanced his mortgage two years ago appears to be the victim of fraud and is now facing foreclosure. The man afraid he'll lose his home even though he's been faithfully paying his new mortgage company...

Feds To Announce Joint Effort To Attack Loan Modification Scams

Posted on April 06, 2009
The Washington Post reports:The Obama administration will announce [today] a multi-agency effort to combat loan modification scams. As the country's foreclosure rate rises, companies have popped up offering to help borrowers save their homes. But banks and consumer advocates complain that the fees, which can reach thousands of dollars, do not translate into results and many of the programs are

Florida AG Joins Illinois, Minnesota Counterparts In Tagging Jacksonville Upfront Fee Loan Modification Firm With Suit; Alleges Deceptive Practices

Posted on April 05, 2009
In Jacksonville, Florida, WJXT-TV Channel 4 reports:Florida's attorney general has sued a Jacksonville company, claiming it's defrauding homeowners who are facing foreclosure. According to the lawsuit, National Foreclosure Counseling Services targeted homeowners and charged them up-front fees to modify their loans, in violation of Florida law...

Tampa Foreclosure Defense Seminar Attracts Lawyers, Judges From All Over State

Posted on April 05, 2009
In Tampa, Florida, the St. Petersburg Times reports:At the start of class, April Charney makes one thing clear. "This is very dense, complicated work,'' she warns. "If you don't get it, raise your hand and ask questions because the chances are others don't get it either...

Indiana Chief Justice Speaks On Statewide Training Effort For Lawyers, Judges Handling Foreclosure Cases

Posted on April 05, 2009
In Indianapolis, Indiana, WISH-TV Channel 8 reports:More attorneys, judges and mediators are being trained on how to handle mortgage foreclosure cases. It's a statewide effort to help families who are on the brink of losing their homes. The Indiana Supreme Court has already co-sponsored two previous training sessions...

San Diego DA Seeks Realtor Help In Fight Against Loan Modification Scams

Posted on April 05, 2009
In San Diego, California, the San Diego Union Tribune reports:San Diego County District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis [last week] urged members of the San Diego Association of Realtors to help track down and prosecute cases of real estate fraud. Foreclosure consulting and loan modification scams are rising as distressed borrowers struggle to keep their homes, Dumanis said during the Realtor group's

Northern California DA's Office "Blown Away" After Meeting With Realtor Group On Mortgage Scams; Will Seek Approval For Real Estate Fraud Unit

Posted on April 05, 2009
In Shasta County, California, the Redding Record Searchlight reports:[L]ast month, state Attorney General Jerry Brown reported mortgage fraudsters are using the forged letterhead of major lenders to con vulnerable individuals into paying thousands of dollars for bogus loan modification services...

Contractor Charged With Home Improvement Fraud As Katrina Victims Say They're Out Thousands

Posted on April 04, 2009
In Lafourche Parish, Louisiana, WWL-TV reports:Close to a dozen homeowners struggling to rebuild after Hurricane Katrina said they are out hundreds of thousands of dollars because of the work ? and lack of work ? by one contractor who is now sitting in jail...

Washington Real Estate Agents Gain Limited Exemption From State Foreclosure Rescue Statute

Posted on April 04, 2009
In Seattle, Washington, the Seattle Post Intelligencer reports:Local Realtors are lauding new changes to Washington's year-old distressed-property law. Last year's law aimed to protect people in danger of losing their homes to foreclosure from getting ripped off by people offering to help...

Screw-Ups, Alleged Fraud Leave Two Homeowners Facing Loss Of Homes

Posted on April 04, 2009
In two separate stories, carelessness on the part of a loan servicer and alleged fraud leave two homeowners under the threat of losing their homes.Yuma, California: It's a story that echos all across the country. Homeowners are fighting foreclosure. One local woman says she's been making her house payments, but her mortgage company is threatening to put her out on the street...

Bay Area DA, Assessor Target Loan Modification Scams Pocketing Large Fees For Worthless Services

Posted on April 04, 2009
In San Francisco, California, the San Francisco Chronicle reports:Hucksters and con men seeking to cheat beleaguered homeowners with fake mortgage refinance schemes face increased likelihood of prosecution, according to a new campaign announced Wednesday in San Francisco...

Ohio Loan Modification Scam Purports To Be Part Of State's "Save The Dream" Program To Clip Homeowners Seeking Mortgage Help

Posted on April 04, 2009
In Cleveland, Ohio, The Plain Dealer reports:ESOP, a Cleveland nonprofit that helps homeowners avoid foreclosure, says it has received word of a new foreclosure rescue scam. In this one, the scammer claims to be a staffer in Gov. Ted Strickland's Save The Dream program...

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