Loan Modification Scams Are A CRIME!
(and they are common, and they happen every day)
Some Common Scam Messages:
“Stop Foreclosure Now”
“We Guarantee to Stop Your Foreclosure”
“Keep Your Home. We Know Your Home Is Scheduled To Be Sold. No Problem!”
“We Have Special Relationships With Many Banks That Can Speed Up Case Approvals”
“We Can Save Your Home. Guaranteed. Free Consultation”
“We Stop Foreclosures Every Day! Our Team Of Professionals Can Stop Yours This Week!”
If you suspect a scam,
REPORT THE SCAM
USING ANY OR ALL OF THE FOLLOWING REPORTING OPTIONS
1) File a complaint online at Loan Scam Alert – Click On The Loan Modification Scam ALERT Logo Below
2) Call or Click on This Phone Number 888-995-HOPE to Speak with a HUD Approved Housing Counselor
3) Contact the Texas Office of the Attorney General (OAG) – Department of Consumer Protection at 800-621-0508 or
4) Complete the OAG online complaint form Click Here
The most effective way to STOP these SCAMS is to REPORT THEM
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NEWS:
FTC Issues Final Rule to Protect Struggling Homeowners from Mortgage Relief Scams
Rule Outlaws Advance Fees and False Claims, Requires Clear Disclosures
For Release: 11/19/2010
Homeowners will be protected by a new Federal Trade Commission rule that bans providers of mortgage foreclosure rescue and loan modification services from collecting fees until homeowners have a written offer from their lender or servicer that they decide is acceptable.
“At a time when many Americans are struggling to pay their mortgages, peddlers of so-called mortgage relief services have taken hundreds of millions of dollars from hundreds of thousands of homeowners without ever delivering results,” FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz said. “By banning providers of these services from collecting fees until the customer is satisfied with the results, this rule will protect consumers from being victimized by these scams.”
The FTC is issuing the Mortgage Assistance Relief Services (MARS) Rule to protect distressed homeowners from mortgage relief scams that have sprung up during the mortgage crisis. Bogus operations falsely claim that, for a fee, they will negotiate with the consumer’s mortgage lender or servicer to obtain a loan modification, a short sale, or other relief from foreclosure. Many of these operations pretend to be affiliated with the government and government housing assistance programs. The FTC has brought more than 30 cases against operations like these, and state and federal law enforcement partners have brought hundreds more.
Advance fee ban
The most significant consumer protection under the FTC’s new rule is the advance fee ban. Under this provision, mortgage relief companies may not collect any fees until they have provided consumers with a written offer from their lender or servicer that the consumer decides is acceptable, and a written document from the lender or servicer describing the key changes to the mortgage that would result if the consumer accepts the offer. The companies also must remind consumers of their right to reject the offer without any charge.
Disclosures
The Rule requires mortgage relief companies to disclose key information to consumers to protect them from being misled and to help them make better informed purchasing decisions. In their advertising and in communications directed at individual consumers (such as telemarketing calls), the companies must disclose that:
* they are not associated with the government, and their services have not been approved by the government or the consumer’s lender;
* the lender may not agree to change the consumer’s loan; and
* if companies tell consumers to stop paying their mortgage, they must also tell them that they could lose their home and damage their credit rating.
Companies also must explain in their communications to consumers that they can stop doing business with the company at any time, can accept or reject any offer the company obtains from the lender or servicer, and, if they reject the offer, they don’t have to pay the company’s fee. The companies also must disclose the amount of the fee.
Prohibited claims
The MARS Rule prohibits mortgage relief companies from making any false or misleading claims about their services, including claims about:
* the likelihood of consumers getting the results they seek;
* the company’s affiliation with government or private entities;
* the consumer’s payment and other mortgage obligations;
* the company’s refund and cancellation policies;
* whether the company has performed the services it promised;
* whether the company will provide legal representation to consumers;
* the availability or cost of any alternative to for-profit mortgage assistance relief services;
* the amount of money a consumer will save by using their services; or
* the cost of the services.
In addition, the rule bars mortgage relief companies from telling consumers to stop communicating with their lenders or servicers. Companies also must have reliable evidence to back up any claims they make about the benefits, performance, or effectiveness of the services they provide.
For Release: 11/19/2010
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View the PBS Special Program On-line:
Facing the Mortgage Crisis: Stopping Scams
Additional Resources From PBS Texas – Facing the Mortgage Crisis
December 23, 2010
Loan Modification Scam Alert TV Special To Air Across Texas
Texas PBS Stations Bring Critical Information To Consumers
Texas – With foreclosures at an all-time high, more people than ever are at risk of losing their homes. Making matters worse, loan modification scams are also on the rise.
Scam artists across the country are preying on homeowners who are facing foreclosure. They make contact by phone, by mail, online or even in person. They often seem legitimate and make big promises to modify loans and guarantee that they will save your home from foreclosure. They charge fees up front and then disappear. Many victims lose money and their homes.
Texas PBS in cooperation with the Texas Foreclosure Prevention Task Force and NeighborWorks® America will air a 30-minute special in December and January on the problem of loan modification and foreclosure scams. “It is important for people to get this information from a trusted source like PBS.” said JoAnn DePenning, Co-Chair of the Texas Foreclosure Prevention Task Force. “With so much information on the web, on radio and television it is easy for consumers to be misled or to not understand the authenticity of the information they see or hear. PBS is viewed as the Nation’s most trusted institution for six years in a row according to a National Roper Survey.”
The moderator of the special is Purva Patel, a consumer reporter with The Houston Chronicle. She has written extensively about mortgage issues. Patel leads a conversation of four panelists:
Deanya Kueckelhan, Regional Director of the Federal Trade Commission. Deanya is an attorney involved in prosecuting loan modification and foreclosure rescue scams.
Joyce McDonald, Executive Director of Austin-based Frameworks Community Development Corporation. Frameworks is a HUD-approved housing counseling agency. They offer homebuyer education, financial literacy and foreclosure mitigation services at no cost to their clients.
Yolanda McGill, Lawyer’s Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. McGill works as the senior counsel for the groups Fair Housing and Fair Lending Project. A large portion of her work involves preventing loan modification scams and serving as a clearinghouse for information from around the country.
The special covers warning signs of a scam, explains how people are approached and interviews a family who was victimized by a scam. The show will air in the following markets:
- Amarillo (KACV)
- Austin (KLRU)
- College Station (KAMU)
- Corpus Christi (KEDT)
- Dallas/Fort Worth (KERA)
- El Paso (KCOS)
- Harlingen (KMBH)
- Houston (KUHT)
- Lubbock (KTXT)
- Killeen/Waco (KNCT)
- Midland/Odessa (KPBT)
- San Antonio (KLRN)
The special was made possible by a grant from NeighborWorks® America to the Texas Foreclosure Prevention Task Force and Texas State Affordable Housing Corporation. NeighborWorks® America has partnered with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Federal Trade Commission, the U.S. Department of the Treasury and other government and non-profit partners to provide homeowners with trusted and reliable foreclosure prevention assistance and to enforce laws regarding loan modification scams.
Community groups that want to protect their neighborhoods against this threat can join the effort easily by visiting www.LoanScamAlert.org. Homeowners are also urged to fight loan modification scams by reporting this illegal activity to authorities. You can easily report scams at any time by calling 1-888-995-HOPE or by visiting www.LoanScamAlert.org. These sources can also connect you to HUD-approved housing counseling agencies that are available to assist homeowners with FREE foreclosure prevention services.
About Texas PBS:
The Texas Public Broadcasting Association was formed to increase public awareness of public media, develop cooperative programming and to promote the general well-being of public broadcasting for the benefit of all Texans. Public television, through its community-based programming and services, continues to be a unifying force in Texas culture, a lens through which we can view and understand our diverse nation and world. For more information about Texas PBS Stations: www.texaspbs.org
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