HUD Invokes Fair Housing Act To Bring Administrative Complaint Against Three Outfits Peddling Forensic Loan Audits & Other Mortgage Rescue Assistance For Allegedly Targeting Hispanic Homeowners w/ Worthless (Or Near Worthless) Services That Failed to Help Them Save Their Homes From Foreclosure

From the Department of Housing & Urban Development (Washington, D.C.):

• The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced [] that it is charging three Modesto, California, home loan modification companies and nine of their agents with violating the Fair Housing Act by targeting Hispanic homeowners for illegal or unfair loan audit and loan modification assistance because of their national origin. Read HUD’s charge.
  
  The Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing transactions, including those related to home mortgage loans, because of national origin.
  
  ***
  HUD’s charge of discrimination alleges that The Home Loan Auditors, LLC; Century Law Center, LLC; SOE Assistance Center, Inc., and their agents lured struggling Hispanic homeowners into paying thousands of dollars for home loan audits that the homeowners never received and modification services that had little, if any, value.
  
  The companies allegedly exploited the homeowners’ limited-English proficiency and used deceptive marketing in Spanish, at times making false representations, in order to mislead them. Ultimately, the homeowners lost their properties due to foreclosure.
  
  HUD’s charge will be heard by a United States Administrative Law Judge unless any party to the charge elects to have the case heard in federal district court. If an administrative law judge finds after a hearing that discrimination has occurred, he or she may award damages to the complainants for their loss as a result of the discrimination. The judge may also order injunctive relief and other equitable relief, to deter further discrimination, as well as payment of attorney fees. In addition, the judge may impose civil penalties in order to vindicate the public interest. If the case is heard in federal court, the judge may also award punitive damages to the complainants.

Source: HUD Files Charge Alleging California Foreclosure Rescue Companies Scammed Hispanic Homeowners.