Treasury To Motivate Banks To Modify By Using Carrot and Shame
November 30, 2009 by admin · Leave a Comment
New York Times / November 29, 2009
NEW YORK – The Obama administration tomorrow plans to announce a campaign to pressure mortgage companies to reduce payments for many more troubled homeowners, as evidence mounts that a $75 billion taxpayer-financed effort aimed at stemming foreclosures is foundering.
“The banks are not doing a good enough job,’’ Michael S. Barr, Treasury’s assistant secretary for financial institutions, said in an interview. “Some of the firms ought to be embarrassed, and they will be.’’
Even as lenders have in recent months accelerated the pace at which they are reducing mortgage payments for borrowers, a vast majority of loans …
Cox Takes Aim at Advanced Fee “Foreclosure Rescue” Scams
Michigan’s Attorney General Mike Cox, who is at the center of a controversy involving a dead stripper and former disgraced Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, became the next wanna-be gubernatorial candidate to jump on the band wagon of going after mod companies for the free publicity. His office sent out the below press release:
LANSING - Attorney General Mike Cox announced the filing of three criminal complaints and a total of 10 charges against illegal advanced fee “foreclosure rescue” operations accused of defrauding Michigan families of thousands of dollars.
Global Financial Consulting Services of Dearborn Heights, Advanced Mediation Services of Midland and James Klein of Midland are accused of illegally charging homeowners facing foreclosure upfront fees for mortgage modification assistance. The defendants claimed they would help homeowners by working with their lenders in an attempt to modify the borrower’s mortgage. After paying the upfront fee, borrowers found that the companies could not secure a modification and were subsequently unable to get their money back.
”These companies took advantage of Michigan families trying to hold onto the American dream,” said Cox.
Global Financial Consulting Services faces four criminal counts including two counts of charging upfront fees before services were rendered, a violation of the Credit Services Protection Act, and two counts of making misleading statements.
Advanced Mediation Services and James Klein each face two counts of charging upfront fees before services were rendered, a violation of the Credit Services Protection Act, and one count of making misleading statements. Each of the charges carries a penalty of up to 90 days in jail and/or a fine of $1,000 in addition to the requirement that the companies make full restitution to each of their victims
Cox urges any consumers who paid fees to Global Financial Consulting Services, Advanced Mediation, James Klein, or any other mortgage modification company for services that were not provided, to contact the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division at (877) 765-8388 or online at www.Michigan.gov/ag.
Cox reminds homeowners they can find foreclosure information on his website at www.Michigan.gov/avoidforeclosure. The website includes contact information for government agencies and debt counselors, and also offers tips for those facing foreclosure, including:
· Homeowners are never required to pay to speak with their lender or servicer.
· Homeowners do not need to pay for outside assistance. Free assistance with foreclosure issues can be found by calling the Michigan State Housing Development Authority at (866) 946-7432.
· If you do hire outside assistance, never pay up front for help with negotiating your loan or working with your servicer.
Attorney General Cox has made prosecuting mortgage fraud a priority for his office. In 2008, Cox created a mortgage fraud unit, teaming with the Michigan State Police and other law enforcement agencies to tackle consumers’ complaints. Cox’s office has charged 24 people or companies with a mortgage fraud-related offense in the last 12 months alone. Cox’s office also conducted several mortgage foreclosure forums to help families stay in their homes during these difficult times.
In addition to today’s charges, Cox announced that he has partnered with the Federal Trade Commission and delivered Notices of Intended Action (NIAs) to 13 out-of-state companies accused of illegally demanding upfront fees from Michigan consumers for loan modification services.
If the targeted companies fail to contact the Attorney General’s Office to create a plan to provide restitution to Michigan consumers, the Attorney General may file a civil suit against them in order to recover damages.
The companies receiving NIA warnings from Cox today include 1 Global Financial, Inc., of Fort Lauderdale, FL; 21st Century Legal Services and Fidelity National Legal Service, of Rancho Cucamonga, CA; Best Interest Rate Mortgage, of Westmont, NJ; Echo Loans & Financial Solutions, of Foothill Ranch, CA; Elect Group LLC, of Oakland Park, FL; Federal Home Savers, of Commack, NY; Fresh Start Home Modification, of Woodbury Heights, NJ; Hope N Housing, of Norwalk, VA; IMC Financial, of Clearwater, FL; Lifeguard Financial, of Fort Lauderdale, FL; National Modification Corp., of Hauppauge, NY; North American Relief, LLC, of Costa Mesa, CA; and Peoples First Financial Inc., of San Diego, CA.
A criminal charge is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
PMI INTRODUCES NEW VIDEO TO HELP DISTRESSED HOMEOWNERS
November 24, 2009 by admin · Leave a Comment
Navigating the U.S. Treasury’s Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP)
Walnut Creek, CA, November 19, 2009 /PRNewswire/ — PMI Mortgage Insurance Co., (NYSE: PMI) today introduced a new video to help homeowners experiencing financial hardship understand the benefits of the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) and how they can take advantage of this important program. HAMP is the national loan modification program offered in the Obama Administration’s Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan which mortgage servicers are implementing broadly to bring long-term affordability to homeowners struggling to keep their homes. Navigating the Home Affordable Modification Program, one of the first videos available for homeowners, explains the benefits, eligibility requirements and types of adjustments that can be made to mortgage loans. The video also provides a realistic example of a couple’s experience before-and-after receiving a HAMP modification.
“Foreclosure prevention is critical to the U.S. housing market and the stability of communities,” said John Jelavich, head of PMI’s Homeownership Preservation Initiatives group. “Distressed homeowners who are facing the prospect of losing their home need to know that help is available for those truly interested in saving their homes. This instructional video leverages the growing popularity of internet-based video to give homeowners an overview of how HAMP works and their important role in the process.”
Navigating the Home Affordable Modification Program is divided into two parts. Part I is a basic orientation for viewers who may not have heard of HAMP, the objectives of the program, how to determine if your loan is owned by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, and how to find out if you qualify. Part II discusses the information homeowners need to provide their mortgage servicer, demonstrates how affordability is achieved through a realistic example, and the steps homeowners need to take to ensure success in modifying their loan.
Additional information about alternatives to foreclosure can be found on www.HomeSafePMI.com. Sponsored by PMI Mortgage Insurance Co., the site offers a Mortgage Options Assessment Tool that enables homeowners to organize, calculate, and produce reports on their current financial situations prior to meeting their servicer or counselors to discuss solutions to foreclosure. This free tool is available to anyone.
About PMI Mortgage Insurance Co.
The PMI Group, Inc. (NYSE: PMI), headquartered in Walnut Creek, CA provides credit enhancement solutions that expand homeownership while supporting our customers and the communities they serve. Through its wholly and partially owned subsidiaries, PMI offers residential mortgage insurance and credit enhancement products. For more information: www.pmi-us.com.
NY Bans Upfront Fees For Mods
November 23, 2009 by admin · Leave a Comment
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) ― The state Legislature has passed a bill that will give New York state homeowners and renters more protection during foreclosures.
It will expand the mandatory 90-day pre-foreclosure notice to all types of home loans — not just subprime mortgages — so all homeowners are given information and time to take action.
Gov. David Paterson introduced the bill. It will allow the Banking Department and the Division of Housing and Community Renewal to find and help homeowners facing foreclosure.
It also creates new protections for renters living in foreclosed properties, allowing them to remain for the remainder of their lease or 90 days — whichever is longer.
The bill also protects homeowners by barring brokers who perform distressed property consulting services from accepting upfront fees.
Loan Company Goes Dormant, Hundreds Could Lose Homes
November 20, 2009 by admin · Leave a Comment
A local loan-modification company is going out of business, potentially leaving hundreds of homeowners in jeopardy of losing their homes.
By ANA GARCIA and FRED MAMOUN, NBC News Los Angeles
Updated 8:25 AM PST, Thu, Nov 19, 200
Hundreds of homeowners who turned to an Orange County mortgage-modification company for help may be in jeopardy themselves and don’t know it. The company appears to have shut down.
Company insiders say they have come forward to warn the public because they’re afraid people will lose their homes.
Greenleaf Legal Services in Mission Viejo may bill itself as “loan-modification experts,” but during a recent visit, the place was a ghost town.
Some offices were empty, others had stacks of client files apparently waiting to be worked on, and telephone message…
Philly Gives Homeowners Hope
November 19, 2009 by admin · Leave a Comment
By PETER S. GOODMAN, New York Times
PHILADELPHIA — Christopher Hall stepped tentatively through the entranceway of City Hall Courtroom 676 and took his place among dozens of others confronting foreclosure purgatory. His hopes all but extinguished, he fully expected the morning to end with a final indignity: He would sign over the deed to his house — his grandfather’s two-story row house; the only house in which he had ever lived; the house where he had raised three children.
“This is devastating,” he said last month as he sat in the gallery awaiting his hearing. “This is my…
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/18/business/18philly.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all
Cal Bar Crackdown Nabs 5 More Shady Mod Lawyers
November 15, 2009 by admin · Leave a Comment
San Francisco, November 10, 2009 — The State Bar of California announced today that action has been taken against five more lawyers under investigation for loan modification misconduct, bringing to 14 the number of attorneys who have resigned or been placed on involuntary inactive enrollment since creation of the bar’s Loan Modification Task Force in April.
“I am very pleased with the results being obtained by members of our Loan Modification Task Force,” said Interim Chief Trial Counsel Russell Weiner. “They have exceeded my expectations. Our office has been aggressively investigating and prosecuting attorneys alleged to have committed loan modification misconduct. Any attorney thinking that he or she can commit loan modification misconduct and get away with it for a significant period of time should think again.”
On Nov. 2, Timothy Thurman [#216048], 37, resigned with charges pending following his arrest by FBI agents in October at his Altadena home. He was charged with creating and using a court order containing what he knew to be a forged signature of a federal judge. Thurman allegedly gave the document to his clients, who had sought Thurman’s help to avoid eviction, telling them to give it to the sheriff, who became suspicious and contacted the judge. Thurman’s practice, Trinity Law Group in Los Angeles, which he started earlier this year, was doing lender litigation and loan modification. State Bar investigators worked with the FBI in the investigation.
On Nov. 4, the Loan Modification Task Force obtained the resignations with charges pending of Gary Davidson [#32110], 75, of Costa Mesa, and Eric Douglas Johnson [#224065], 55, of Culver City.
On Nov. 4, Paul Lucas [#163076], 48, of the Lucas Law Center in Aliso Viejo, was ordered involuntarily inactive for posing “a substantial threat of harm to (his) clients or the public” under Business and Professions Code 6007. State Bar Court Judge Lucy Armendariz said Lucas had inaccurately described his firm’s refund policy and its business relationship with Future Financial Services. She also said that Lucas had formed a partnership with a nonlawyer in violation of State Bar rules and aided in the unauthorized practice of law.
Armendariz noted that the Lucas Law Center, Future Financial and others had generated 45 State Bar complaints and 89 Better Business Bureau complaints. The Federal Trade Commission also issued a preliminary injunction against Lucas Law Center and Future Financial Services. Armendariz said Lucas, through his staff, agents and advertisements, misrepresented the scope of his service to clients, collected advance fees under false pretenses, recklessly advised clients to stop making mortgage payments, failed to perform services, failed to promptly refund earned fees and repeatedly failed to respond to client inquiries.
On Nov. 6, Sean Rutledge [#255938], 34, of Irvine, who started United Law Group in August 2008, was enrolled as an inactive member of the State Bar pending further order under Business & Professions Code 6007. Rutledge “promised to help troubled homeowners – many of whom were in arrears or on the brink of foreclosure – modify their home loans and maintain financial stability,” State Bar Court Judge Richard Honn wrote in his order of inactive enrollment. “Instead, he took their money and time and offered little or nothing in return. In fact, due to their loss of money and time, many of respondent’s clients ended up in a worse position than they were in when they originally turned to respondent for help… respondent has engaged in a pattern of client neglect involving failing to perform, failing to communicate, and/or failing to refund unearned fees in 14 separate client matters.”
The Loan Modification Task Force has received more than 1,250 complaints and is investigating almost 250 lawyers. Each task force investigator oversees about 135 cases, and almost 20,000 attorney files have been removed from the offices of attorneys whose loan modification practices have been shut down or abandoned. State Bar investigations are up 69 percent over 2008.
The State Bar has been working with local law enforcement as well as the state Attorney General’s Office and the FBI to address the problem of businesses and law firms preying on people about to lose their homes through foreclosure. Orange County Deputy District Attorney George McFetridge Jr. said coordination between the State Bar and his office in combating “these criminal enterprises that prey on desperate homeowners” has been invaluable. “I’m also thrilled that the State Bar has taken such an aggressive stance against attorneys who employ cappers, split fees with non-attorneys, engage in false advertising and commit fraud on the public,” he wrote in a letter to State Bar President Howard Miller.
Business Insider: Bank of America-Worst Bank EVER!
November 12, 2009 by admin · Leave a Comment
Joe Weisenthal, Business Insider Nov. 10, 2009, 1:42 PM
The Treasury is out with its always-interesting look at the state of mortgage modifications.
In order to make it look like the program is accomplishing a lot more than it is, it always runs the latest version of this chart, which makes it look as though the program is steadily growing each month. Well, technically it is, but the chart shows cumulative mortgage mods, so the latest bar is always going to be higher than the last. It really tells you nothing about the program’s real growth…
FL AG Files Suit Against 2 Mod Companies
November 10, 2009 by admin · Leave a Comment
TALLAHASSEE, FL – Attorney General Bill McCollum today announced that his office has filed a lawsuit against two Central Florida companies and their owner over allegations they charged up-front fees for foreclosure rescue-related services. National Payment Modification Company and The Bostonian Group, LLC, which conducts business under the name People’s First, allegedly charge up to $2,500 in up-front fees to homeowners trying to rescue their homes from foreclosure.
Also named in the lawsuit is William Rodriguez, the owner of both companies, who was a founding owner of Wineberg, Lopez, & Rodriguez Company. The Attorney General’s Office sued Wineberg, Lopez, & Rodriguez Company in March and obtained an emergency injunction barring the company from charging homeowners any fee in advance for providing foreclosure-related rescue services. That case is still pending in Orange County Circuit Court.
An investigation conducted by members of the Attorney General’s Economic Crimes Division, working as part of the Attorney General’s Mortgage Fraud Task Force, determined that both companies charge the up-front fee and divide it into five equal payments secured by post dated checks. Each check, according to the lawsuit, is associated with a separate “sub-contract” or step in the loan modification process. Consumers complained that both companies cash the post-dated checks even though the companies have not begun negotiations or even contacted the consumers’ lenders.
The Attorney General’s Office is seeking permanent injunctions prohibiting the companies from charging up-front fees, restitution on behalf of injured consumers, civil penalties of $15,000 for each violation, and reimbursement for attorney’s fees and costs related to the investigation. The Attorney General’s Office has filed numerous civil lawsuits to enforce the state law prohibiting companies from charging up-front fees for foreclosure-related rescue services and is currently investigating over 75 additional companies. More information about the lawsuits and information for homeowners is available online at: http://www.myfloridalegal.com/mortgagefraud.
No HAMP For You! 4 New Yorkers Sue Lehman Brothers
November 10, 2009 by admin · Leave a Comment
By: JON PRIOR, Housing Wire
November 9, 2009 6:04 PM CST
Four homeowners from Queens and Brooklyn filed a federal class action lawsuit against Aurora Loan Services – a subsidiary of Lehman Brothers – for allegedly not considering their loans for modification under the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP).
Under HAMP, the US Treasury allocates capped incentives to participating servicers for the modification of loans on the verge of foreclosure. Aurora receives a potential cap of $447m under HAMP.
The Legal Aid Society in New York City represents Doreen Edwards, Olubukola Keshinro, Garry Brewster and Maria and Thomas Vellucci in the lawsuit filed Friday.
http://www.housingwire.com/2009/11/09/no-hamp-for-you-nyc-homeowners-sue-over-mods/
