Home Equity Investment Program Goes "Belly Up" Leaving 800 Customers On The Hook

In Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, Lancaster Online reports:

• Creative refinancing contracts devised by a Reading-based mortgage broker have unraveled, leaving 800 customers on the hook for higher payments and possible foreclosure on their homes. Wesley A. Snyder filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection Tuesday for OPFM Inc., which he operated as Personal Financial Management ... and five subsidiaries including Image Masters Inc. OPFM attorney Dexter Case said Wednesday the company worked with Image Masters, its investment subsidiary, to refinance homeowners and invest proceeds.

Arrangements were made where homeowners would refinance their mortgages and give the equity to the mortgage broker promoting the investment program. The money was then to be invested, with the investment income to be applied to the loans to accomplish an early mortgage payoff. Reportedly, the money wasn't invested, according to the attorney for the promoter.

(The investment program sounds a little like the POS Metro Dream Homes / Metropolitan Grapevine investment program based in Laurel, Maryland.)

For more, see Mortgage firm goes bust (Homeowners trying to invest equity get stung) (if link expired, try here).

For story update, see:

• Lawmaker Tries To Help Strapped Homeowners (WGAL-TV Channel 8 - 10-9-07),
• Mortgage holders put on hold (Judge gives OPFM until Nov. 2 to declare assets, identify creditors) (10-9-07),
• Suit seeks to void 800 'Ponzi' mortgages (9-28-07),
• Mortgage-scam victims fighting to keep homes (Overflow crowd of 200 meets in Mountville) (9-27-07),
• Mortgage firm failure could hit hard here (800 homeowners seen facing financial crisis) (9-24-07; if link expired, try here).

Go here and go here for other posts and links to earlier media reports on the Pennsylvania Ponzi scheme involving Wesley Snyder, OPFM, Image Masters.