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, April 11, 2013
Stripped Of R/E License For Collecting Upfront Fees For Foreclosure Rescue Services, Suspected Con Artist Continues In Business; Says 'We No Longer Do Loan Mods, We Peddle An 'Educational Packaging Service' For $1,995!' Victim: Refund Guarantee Paid With Rubber Checks
In Petaluma, California, KABC-TV Channel 7 reports:
Police in Petaluma are getting complaints about a local company that has been stripped of its real estate license. They're accused of taking money from homeowners for services they never performed.
The Department of Real Estate revoked Mortgage Modifiers of its real estate license in October, but the doors of the company remain open and some of its clients are wondering how that's possible. 7 On Your Side decided to take a look at what's going on.
Lisa Marvier's home sits on 1.6 acres in Novato. It's also known as Farm Girl Nursery. It is a you-pick farm and summer camp for kids. Both the home and the property are currently underwater.
"This is my dream. This is the home we built from scratch and I certainly don't want to lose it," said Marvier.
Deanna Reade's home in Windsor is also underwater. Like Marvier, Reade is struggling to save her home. She heard about a company known as Mortgage Modifiers in Petaluma from a friend. She said the company promised to get her mortgage lowered by $1,000 a month.
"The original loan was supposed to be modified down to basically what our home was valued at now," said Reade.
Marvier says she received similar promises when she met with Miguel Lopez. Lopez is described in court papers as the president of Mortgage Modifiers.
"When I met with him and he showed me the numbers. He showed me that everything could be reduced. The interest rate could be reduced, the principal could be reduced," said Marvier.
Marvier and Reade are just two of the people who have filed complaints with Petaluma police.
"No service was ever completed. They ask for a refund which supposedly was guaranteed to them and they never got a refund," said Petaluma Police Lt. Tim Lyons.
The department says it has received 11 complaints about Mortgage Modifiers and they are aware of other complaints as far north as Cloverdale and Ukiah. Mortgage Modifiers sublets space in an office park in Petaluma, but the company has no signage on the office.
In October, the Department of Real Estate upheld a judge's decision stripping the real estate licenses of both Miguel Lopez and Mortgage Modifiers. Both were found to have illegally collected advance fees for performing services for borrowers in connection to loans.
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Lopez was not available [...], but by email he told us he didn't need a real estate license. He said, "This company does not conduct loans and or real estate, such a license is not needed. This company provides a packaging service."
"This is the whole entire packet that you received from Miguel. It's his educational package that he claims is for the $1,995," said Reade.
She said the package included a request for a modification, her financial and loan information, a property value report and other documents.
Reade showed us emails from Lopez promising he would make sure the file became a priority in the lender's eyes. In the emails Lopez urged her to let him do all the calling and faxing to the lender. However, Lopez denies the $1,995 he charged is an advanced fee.
"We offer a packaging service. Clients pay for the package and nothing more," said Lopez.
Marvier, however, isn't buying any of that. "To know from the start here to the end that it was all a lie, I don't trust anyone anymore," said Marvier.
The Petaluma Police Department has forwarded all of the complaints to the state attorney general.
The contract both Marvier and Reade signed guaranteed a refund if the educational financial package submitted to the lender does not render a positive outcome. Reade received two refund checks that both bounced. Marvier's refund request was denied.
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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