Illinois AG Sues Foreclosure Seminar Operator

According to an Illinois Attorney General Press Release issued today:

• "Attorney General Lisa Madigan today filed a lawsuit against a McHenry County real estate broker for allegedly deceiving consumers into paying $3,500 each to participate in a three-day seminar designed to teach methods for profiting in the pre-foreclosure real estate market."

The named defendants in the lawsuit are Insider Real Estate and its founder, real estate broker Christopher Scanlan.

For more, see Madigan Sues McHenry County Real Estate Broker (Attorney General Asks Court to Shut Down Business and Order Company to Reimburse Victims).

See Daily Herald story, State says Crystal Lake broker committed fraud.

Editor's Note

It looks like Illinois is serious about eliminating the abuses that are not uncommon in the foreclosure investing industry. The Illinois' Mortgage Rescue Fraud Act, a statute that targets abuses in the foreclosure investing industry went into effect on January 1, 2007. Now it appears that Illinois will be targeting those who promote the "weekend foreclosure seminars", typically conducted in ballrooms at area hotels, by invoking the state's Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act and the Business Opportunity Sales Law. In this case, the Illinois AG alleges that the seminar operator violated these laws by "making false promises to consumers regarding their chances of success and the potential profitability involved in locating and selling property in the pre-foreclosure real estate market."

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