Mass.Attorney General Tom Reilly Halts Attempted "Home Improvement" Theft
According to a December, 2005 Media Center Information Release from the Massachusettes Attorney General's Office, a Taunton man was stopped from conducting a mortgage foreclosure sale that would threaten the home of a 71-year-old Taunton woman.
According to the complaint, the man allegedly provided a mortgage loan to the woman with the intention of foreclosing on it and taking possession of her home. The loan was provided to the woman in order to bring her house up to city and state sanitary codes after the property was condemned by the Taunton Board of Health.
The complaint further alleges that the man took advantage of his position as a board member of a local a non-profit development organization that was aware that the woman would need to refurbish her home to comply with city and state law. Knowing her predicament, the man allegedly approached the elderly homeowner and offered her help in finding financing and contractors to rebuild her home. In the process, he steered her away from the services of the non-profit organization whose purpose it was to provide assistance in this type of case and of which he was a board member, according to the complaint.
The complaint further alleges that the man made it appear as if he was assisting the woman by obtaining a loan from an independent lender that, in fact, was his company. The complaint also alleges that the man made the loan to the elderly woman with the clear intention to foreclose on it and obtain her home, which she owned for 39 years.
In addition to obtaining a temporary restraining order, the attorney general is seeking a preliminary inunction to stop the foreclosure on the home as well as a permanent injunction against the Taunton man and any of his associates from doing any further business with the homeowner and either void or reform the mortgage loan. Civil penalties and costs were also being sought.
According to the complaint, the man allegedly provided a mortgage loan to the woman with the intention of foreclosing on it and taking possession of her home. The loan was provided to the woman in order to bring her house up to city and state sanitary codes after the property was condemned by the Taunton Board of Health.
The complaint further alleges that the man took advantage of his position as a board member of a local a non-profit development organization that was aware that the woman would need to refurbish her home to comply with city and state law. Knowing her predicament, the man allegedly approached the elderly homeowner and offered her help in finding financing and contractors to rebuild her home. In the process, he steered her away from the services of the non-profit organization whose purpose it was to provide assistance in this type of case and of which he was a board member, according to the complaint.
The complaint further alleges that the man made it appear as if he was assisting the woman by obtaining a loan from an independent lender that, in fact, was his company. The complaint also alleges that the man made the loan to the elderly woman with the clear intention to foreclose on it and obtain her home, which she owned for 39 years.
In addition to obtaining a temporary restraining order, the attorney general is seeking a preliminary inunction to stop the foreclosure on the home as well as a permanent injunction against the Taunton man and any of his associates from doing any further business with the homeowner and either void or reform the mortgage loan. Civil penalties and costs were also being sought.
posted by Home Equity Theft Reporter at 6:02 AM
<< Home