Welcome to The Home Equity Theft Reporter, a blog dedicated to informing the consumer public and the legal profession about Home Equity Theft issues. This blog will consist of information describing the various forms of Home Equity Theft and links to news reports & other informational sources from throughout the country about the victims of Home Equity Theft and what government authorities and others are doing about it.
Thursday, August 23, 2012
Maryland Regulator Issues Final Order Directing Fake Lawyer/Loan Mod Scammer To Refund All Upront Fees To Victims & Pay State $236K In Penalties
In Baltimore, Maryland, LegalNewsline reports:
Maryland Attorney General Douglas Gansler announced on Friday that his Consumer Protection Division issued a final order against a man claiming to be a lawyer who allegedly took thousands of dollars from consumers.
Corey W. Hankerson, who operated as Equity Law Group LLC from 2009 to 2011, allegedly told consumers he was a lawyer and offered to provide credit and legal services. The services included foreclosure consulting and loan modification services. The six victims who testified in the case allegedly paid $12,750 in fees to Hankerson for assistance he never provided.
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The final order requires Hankerson to stop representing his qualifications to consumers and stop offering credit services unless he obtains a license and posts the required bond. Hankerson must also return all the money he took from consumers, including the $12,750 he allegedly took from the six consumers who testified.
The order penalized Hankerson $300 for each of the 787 days he allegedly illegally advertised his services for a total penalty of $236,100.
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)
Land Contract/Contract For Deed/Rent-To-Own Rackets
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)
Beware The Fine Print: Consumers Forced To Sign Away Their Rights To Use Court System
The NY Times: Arbitration Everywhere, Stacking the Deck of Justice(Part 1 in series examining how clauses buried in tens of millions of contracts have deprived Americans of one of their most fundamental constitutional rights: their day in court)
Foreclosure Mills' Abysmal Record In Complying With New NYS Foreclosure Requirements
Justice Deceived: How Large Foreclosure Firms Subvert State Regulations Protecting Homeowners
MFY Legal Services Report On Questionable Practices By Process Servers In Debt Collection Cases
Justice Disserved: A Preliminary Analysis of the Exceptionally
Low Appearance Rate by Defendants in Lawsuits Filed in the Civil Court of the City of New York
Mortgage Mess Redux: Robo-Signers Return (A Reuters investigation finds that many banks are still employing the controversial foreclosure practices that sparked a major outcry last year)
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)
"Produce The Note" Strategy When Dealing With Missing Promissory Notes In Foreclosure Actions
ABC Video: Fighting Against Foreclosure (Some homeowners have found a new tactic to keep the banks at bay)
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