The Home Equity Theft Reporter: Family Friend Pleads Guilty to "Equity" Scamming Disabled Philadelphia Family

Tuesday, December 05, 2006

Family Friend Pleads Guilty to "Equity" Scamming Disabled Philadelphia Family

According to a report by Channel 6 in Philadelphia (WPVI-TV), and reported here at 6abc.com, a family friend, who had volunteered to help a disabled Northeast Philadelphia family, has pled guilty to illegally obtaining a loan secured by the home of that family without their knowledge.

See related stories from the Philadelphia Daily News (no longer available online):

Hard life, heartless acts and a home, safe (12-1-06),
You showed your love & restored their trust (12-6-06).

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University of Cincinnati Law Review: Banks, Break-Ins, and Bad Actors in Mortgage Foreclosure The New York Lawyers’ Fund: 38 Years of Client Protection (The misappropriation of a law client’s money by an attorney in the practice of law, while an aberration, is properly a debt owed by the legal profession)

Law Client Protection Funds (A Bibliography of Reported Cases and Selected Materials)

CBC News: Lawyers misappropriated millions from clients' funds but few faced criminal charges (Disciplinary actions include suspension, disbarment for professional misconduct)

CBC News: Betrayal of Trust (A CBC investigation reveals how lawyers across Canada have misappropriated and mishandled clients money, to the tune of tens of millions of dollars, or sometimes even charging vulnerable people top dollar for shoddy services)

University of Pennsylvania Law Review: "If You Can't Trust Your Lawyer ....?"

The New York Times: When Lawyers Steal the Escrow

The New York Times: Thieving Lawyers Draining Client Security Funds

The Associated Press: N.Y. fund for cheated clients wants thieving lawyers disbarred

The Missouri Bar: Righting Wrongs (Compensating Clients Financially Harmed By Their Attorneys' Actions) Forbes: Guardianship In The U.S.: Protection Or Exploitation?

The Wall Street Journal: Abuse Plagues System of Legal Guardians for Adults (Allegations of financial exploitation and abuse are rife, despite waves of overhaul efforts) (Non-WSJ subscriber? Try here, then click appropriate link) The New York Times: The Housing Trap (In the wake of the housing crisis, low-income families have turned to seller financing to buy homes but these deals can be a money trap)

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The New York Times: Housing That Ruins Your Finances and Your Health (ie. Rent-To-Own, Contract For Deed, Land Contract Ripoffs)

National Consumer Law Center: Toxic Transactions: How Land Installment Contracts Once Again Threaten Communities of Color

Chicago Reader: The Infamous Practice of Contract Selling Is Back in Chicago (Wall Street-backed firms are duping would-be homebuyers, 50 years after Martin Luther King Jr. and west-side activists fought against housing discrimination)
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ThinkProgress: The hidden toxic threat in America’s backyards

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The New York Times: Seller-Financed Deals Are Putting Poor People in Lead-Tainted Homes

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The Washington Post: How companies make millions off lead-poisoned, poor blacks

Maryland Attorney General: Attorney General Frosh Files Suit Against Access Funding for Exploiting Lead Paint and Other Injured Marylanders

Lawsuit: State of Maryland v. Access Funding, LLC, et al. The Yale Law Journal: In Defense of "Free Houses"

Rolling Stone: Why the Banks Should Be Broken Up - by Matt Taibbi The New York Times: Pivotal Nursing Home Suit Raises a Simple Question: Who Signed the Contract?

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CNN Video: As Foreclosures Mount, Florida Court Turns To 'Rocket Docket'

The Wall Street Journal: A Florida Court's 'Rocket Docket' Blasts Through Foreclosure Cases (2 Questions, 15 Seconds, 45 Days to Get Out; 'What's to Talk About?' Says a Judge) ABC Video: Fighting Against Foreclosure (Some homeowners have found a new tactic to keep the banks at bay)

CNN Video: Produce The Note!

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Video - Text: Fight Foreclosure: Produce The Note "How-To"

Text: Fight Foreclosure: Produce The Note "How-To" In Non-Judicial States

Video: Mortgage Servicers' Secret Video: Real People, Real Stories: Avoid Foreclosure Rescue Scams
Spanish version Video: Freddie Mac Dramatizes An Equity Stripping Scam (English)
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Video: Basics of Mortgage Foreclosure Scams (Illinois Legal Aid) Video News Reports On Foreclosure Rescue

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HUD Settlement Agreements With Alleged Violators

Statute

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Press Release (with State by State Fact Sheets) Video
Program Transcript Misbehavior and Mistake in Bankruptcy Mortgage Claims
by Katherine M. Porter
University of Iowa - College of Law The American Dream Shattered: The Dream of Homeownership and the Reality of Predatory Lending A PERFECT STORM: Easy Money and the Mortgage Meltdown (The Subprime Mortgage Crisis in New York State) Income Is No Shield Against Racial Differences in Lending Report Summary
Full Report (228 Pages) Report: Vacant and Abandoned Properties: Survey and Best Practices (42 Pages - 0.5 MB)

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Class Action Litigation Guidelines

U.S. Attorneys (All States)
State AGs (All States & U.S. Possessions)

LSC-Funded Non-Profit Law Firms
LawHelp.org

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AARP on Reverse Mortgages Bankruptcy Basics @ uscourts.gov
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Directory Of Lawyers' Funds For Client Protection (All States)
USA Client Protection Funds Map
Canada Client Protection Funds Map
Real Estate Investment Guru Review

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Rest In Peace
Erskin Radford
(1954-2008)

The Home Equity Theft Reporter

Tuesday, December 05, 2006

Family Friend Pleads Guilty to "Equity" Scamming Disabled Philadelphia Family

Foreclosure Abuse Thru Premature Trash-Outs

Lawyers & Theft Of Escrow/Trust Account Money

Abuse Of The Guardianship System To Fleece The Elderly. Infirm & Disabled Of Their Money, Property

Land Contract/Contract For Deed/Rent-To-Own Rackets

The Costs of Being Poor

Fair Housing: Assistance Animals

Lead Contamination In Homes & Rental Apartments

Commentaries on Banksters & Their Handiwork

Use of Arbitration Clauses In Nursing Home Contracts To Strip Families Of Their Rights

Section 8 Housing Voucher Trap

Property Snatching Scams By Prosecutors & Police

Home-Snatching Scams In New York City

Zombie Debt Buyer Abuse Of Consumers/Court System

Beware The Fine Print: Consumers Forced To Sign Away Their Rights To Use Court System

Corruption/Bullying On The Bench

Debt Collection Suits Squeezing Black Neighborhoods

More On Crappy Foreclosure Titles After Masschusetts High Court Rulings

Unmasking The Loan Modification Rackets

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Stemming Sewer Service In New York City

Robosigners Return

Void vs. Voidable

Commentary On The Crappy Title Mess Created By Fraudulent Foreclosures

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Criminal Prosecutions Of Foreclosure Rescue Scams

FTC Report On Dealing With Bill Collectors & Zombie Debt Buyers

Promissory Note Primer

Video: Foreclosure Fraud Crisis Explained

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National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty

Video "Tutorial" Demonstrates Use Of Dubious Affidavits, Assignments, Notary Acknowledgements By Lender, Law Firm In Foreclosure Actions

Walking Away From An Underwater Mortgage?

10-Year Report Addressing Myriad Of Access-To-Justice Challenges Facing Low-Income New Yorkers

National Consumer Law Center Reports

Foreclosure "Rocket Dockets" - The "Rubber Stamp" Method Of Foreclosure Adjudication

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Freddie Mac On Foreclosure Rescue

Educational Videos On Recognizing Mortgage Foreclosure Scams

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Foreclosure Scams Employing Abuse Of Federal Bankruptcy Court System

Reports From The Center For Responsible Lending

Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act

Study: 98% Of Loan Mods Reviewed Resulted In No Reduction In Principal Balance; No Monthly Payment Reduction In Nearly 50%

Defaulting on the Dream: States Respond to America’s Foreclosure Crisis - The Pew Charitable Trusts Report

ABC NEWS Nightline On Mortgage Servicing Company Ripoffs

Download Article Examining Mortgage Servicing Companies' Frequent Non-Compliance With Law In Consumer Bankruptcy Cases

Massachusetts Attorney General Report on Predatory Lending

NYS Commission Of Investigation On Subprime Mortgage Lending

National Community Reinvestment Coalition Study On Mortgage Lending & Race

Reverse Mortgages: Niche Product or Mainstream Solution? Report on the 2006 AARP National Survey of Reverse Mortgages Mortgage Shoppers

U.S. Conference Of Mayors: Vacant & Abandoned Properties And The Foreclosure Crisis

$60 Million and Counting: The Cost of Vacant and Abandoned Properties to Eight Ohio Cities

PBS' Bill Moyers Journal On Destruction Of Cleveland, Ohio's Slavic Village Due To Unregulated Proliferation Of Subprime Loans

Informational Resources To Promote, Support Vacant Property Revitalization Efforts

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