michigan foreclosures

Loan Mod Problems Finally Hit Homeowners in Michigan

Greta Guest, Detroit Free Press

The federal government’s loan modification program, intended to help people save their homes by lowering payments, remains mired in long waits, denials of permanent modifications and shockingly large bills at the end of failed trial modifications.

One homeowner owed more than $21,000 after his lender denied him a permanent modification, even though his income was the same as when it approved a temporary modification.

“They string me along for nine months. These are nine months I’m getting further behind,” said Patrick Dinunzio, 61, of Romeo.

In Michigan, 30,625 loan modifications were completed in April, down 9% from March. There are roughly 90,727 Michigan homeowners eligible for loan modification, according to Free Press calculations.

“Our focus now is on improving the homeowner experience and holding servicers accountable for their performance,” Phyllis Caldwell, chief of the U.S. Treasury Department’s Homeownership Preservation Office, said last week. By July, the eight largest loan servicers will need to report more information to the government, including homeowner experience.

“The story is always the same,” said Adam Taub, a consumer attorney based in Southfield. “They are stringing people along by telling them not to make payments or having them make reduced payments and then denying the home loan mod. Then people are even closer to foreclosure.”

Lenders, for their part, say they are trying to help distressed borrowers.

Is a deal with the bank the best way to go?

Past a pheasant ranch, assorted McMansions, crop fields and 2 miles of bumpy dirt roads, Dinunzio anxiously awaits the fate of his 1901 farmhouse in Romeo.

Dinunzio, 61, an artist and laid-off machinist, has lived with his wife, Ilene, in the 109-year-old white house on 24 acres for 17 years. Two refinances and a job loss pushed him toward a loan modification.

The temporary modification cut his $1,720 monthly payment to $697, based on his income. It lasted nine months, even though government guidelines call for a three-month trial period.

http://www.freep.com/article/20100523/BUSINESS04/5230457/1318/Long-waits-denials-plague-efforts-to-modify-mortgage

michigan foreclosures

Free programs ease homeowners’ burden

Greta Guest, Detroit Free Press

Thousands of distressed Michigan borrowers are frustrated over the long waits to get a loan modification.

But homeowners don’t have to go it alone. There are dozens of free programs to choose from. And yet too few people who are having trouble making mortgage payments are reaching out for the free help available, housing counselors say.

Jamele Hage, executive director of the Wayne County Foreclosure Prevention Program, said her counselors do what it takes to resolve a borrower’s case. The average loan modification takes six months to two years to resolve.

“We know … what the law says,” she said. “If it gets escalated, I will escalate it all the way to the U.S. Treasury for people.”

The program is among several that are either taxpayer-funded or nonprofit, such as GreenPath Debt Solutions, creditcounselors based in Farmington Hills. A full list can be found at Web sites for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, or for the Michigan State Housing Development Authority.

Counselors work with lenders

John Hoffa, 57, got a permanent loan modification on his Brownstown Township home with the help of a foreclosure prevention program.

So much free help is available to people, but many don’t reach out to get it.

Hoffa, whose great-uncle is the late union leader Jimmy Hoffa, said he’s unemployed but works on a contract basis with a former EDS colleague who started a computer salvage company.

Read more here: http://www.freep.com/article/20100524/BUSINESS04/5240340/1318/Loan-help-is-free-few-seek-it-out

michigan foreclosures

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.