San Jose Short Sale Agent: Silicon Valley Foreclosure Prevention Specialists

Now jail time and fines await those who intend to defraud home owners in distress.   Preying on the weak and vulnerable has now increased in cost of doing business for these con artists.  Maybe we will read less about people being defrauded.

The prosecution and conviction of people engaged in fraudulent loan modification assistance programs continues.  This time, two San Diego men were charged with” duping homeowners who were falling behind on their mortgages into paying $2,500 to $3,000 for loan modification services.”

Interestingly, these guys used a PO Box address near the White House and used a seal that looked like it could have come from the US Capitol and made falsely made claims to have attorneys and forensic accounts on staff.

Never, ever pay up-front money to anyone, who claims to be able to get your loan modified.

California Attorney General Brown shuts down company which took money under false pretenses and forces them to make restitution.  If you were taken by this company, you can file a claim for re-payment.  At least one big predator has been struck down and the victims have a chance at getting something back.

http://ag.ca.gov/newsalerts/print_release.php?id=1879

If you have been following me, you know that one of my pet peeves is the fraud that is perpetrated against desperate homeowners who are in dire straits by crooks out there to make a quick buck.    But the scams seem to be continuing.  Even with all the media stories about these fraudsters taking advantage of desperate homeowners, they seem to continue to find victims.

Here is a report which should shed some light onto and hopefully steer some homeowners away from some of the scams that are being used out there today.

I have written on numerous occasions about the most despicable people on the planet, in my opinion, those scammer who prey on the desperation of homeowners who are about to lose their homes to foreclosure.  These “loan modification” or “foreclosure rescue” specialists or consultants took upfront money and made grandiose promises of keeping the homes from foreclosing, yet in most cases, did nothing to stop the process.

Many claimed to be attorneys or affiliated with attorneys, as if such affiliations meant they were more legitimate than those who had no such affiliation.  These scams had become so rampant that the California Department of Real Estate maintains a list of practitioners who are suspected of engaging in fraudulent manners and who have received desist and refrain orders.

On the national level, Congress has allocated funds to help fight these types of fraud. And California enacted similar laws to fight these heinous crimes against the vulnerable homeowners whose backs are against the wall.

But the crafty scammers manage to continually dupe homeowners into giving them money, without providing any services in return.

Well finally, someone refused to take it from these scammers and took the matter into their own hands.  Feeling nothing was being done on their behalf and being denied a refund, the couple kidnapped the scammers and tortured them.

Now I am not advocating violence against anyone, but you can certainly empathize with the frustration and the betrayal these people must have felt before resorting to such extreme measures.

What can we learn from this tragic situation?  Never ever give anyone money upfront to help you save your house. Any legitimate organization or person cannot take money first, but can only be paid if successful  service was provided first (at least here in California) .

http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/7_on_your_side&id=7061094

Our Governator today vetoed AB 764 which provided that people or companies would only collect a fee if they were successful in providing an actual loan modification. You read that correctly: only collect if they provide successfully provide loan modification. He vetoed that bill.

In his veto message of AB 764, Governor Schwarzenegger wrote, “I do not agree with the provision of this bill that will only allow fees to be collected if a modification is successful. This could adversely affect legitimate businesses that provide loan modification services.”

Perhaps our Governor is unaware that most service providers are expected to successfully complete the service for which they were hired before they are paid. A good example of that would be a Realtor like me. Although I would love the idea, no one would pay me my commission if I almost got a short sale approved from the bank or almost saved someone from going into foreclosure. Can you imagine me going to a seller who is being evicted from his home because I was unsuccessful in stopping that eviction and still demanding he pay me? If I am unsuccessful in my service, I get what I deserve: nothing.

Perhaps to a millionaire former action star, this is a foreign concept, but for most of us regular people, it is quite reasonable and normal concept. In these dire circumstances when hard working people are losing their homes and destroying families due to unemployment and other tragic circumstances sometimes beyond their controls, you don’t get paid simply for showing up. These are not normal times……..

Do we really need to wonder why he and our legislators do not get along?

Article
Finally, congress is waking up and doing something about the criminals who are taking advantage of consumers.   The fraud isn’t simply being perpetrated by greedy loan brokers run amok,  it also involves crooked lawyer aiding and abetting these criminals in their effort to extract money from trouble home owners.   The problem is that the organizations like the California Department of Real Estate and California Bar Association simply do not have sufficient man power to hire more investigators, attorneys and accounts  to look into allegations of fraud. With additional funding of $200 Million, more of these cases can be investigated at the local level and more of these crooked players can be taken off the streets.

Finally, Congress is doing something right on a bi-partisan level.

News Release

As I have been saying previously,  loan modification fraud is pervasive in these difficult times.   Everyone is trying to take advantage of distressed homeowners because they are desperate and are desperately seeking hope.  Hope sometimes in  the form of “attorney based ” operations who basically buy the names of hungry lawyers willing to gamble their licenses for a few bucks.  Well, some of those attorneys have finally been caught and are facing appropriate consequences.

This is fantastic news,  the California Bar Association is investigation its members, and the California Department of Real Estate is investigating its own members as well. It’s about time these licensing organizations finally did something  about reining in their corrupt members who were out there literally robbing these defenseless homeowners looking for hope.

Again, if we can simply warn the general public against giving up-front fees to people (whether they be lawyers, Realtors, loan brokers, etc….) who promise to do wonderful things on their behalf.  No service providing professional should receive a fee before they deliver their service. Even if these “specialists” are telling you they will give you a money back guaranty, do not fall for it.  Once they have your money, getting it back or having them refund it to  you will be an impossible task: much tougher than modifying your loan.

Click here for the story.

Two San Jose men with an office operating out of Campbell has been accused of bilking over $2 Million dollars from 500 homeowners throughout California promising them principal reductions on their loans.

Please do not pay up front fees to anyone claiming to be able to do loan modifications on your behalf.

One thing I hate more than anything is a con artist trying to prey on people who are vulnerable.  And one of the biggest con games out there is the “loan modification specialist” scam.  It is especially bad here in California.   Warning homeowners of these scams has been sort of a personal  crusade for me and I have been writing about it  for a little while.

http://activerain.com/blogsview/873859/beware-of-loan-modification-scams-

http://www.trulia.com/blog/stevemun/2009/06/beware_of_foreclosure_pr

http://activerain.com/blogsview/1162491/loan-modification-scammers-arrested-and-brought-back-to-san-jose-

http://activerain.com/blogsview/1166125/law-enforcement-finds-loan-modification-boiler-room-

I wanted readers of this blog to also be also aware of these scams and who may be perpetrating them.

Here is the list of people whom the California Department of Real Estate has served Desist and Refrain orders/and or accusations resulting from a loan modification and/or foreclosure rescue transaction.   Please read the preamble on the web page for an explanation.

I am just re-posting this list (which is public record)  and make no comments or judgments about these individuals or  their activities.

Please, if someone says they can get your loan modified to stop the foreclosure process BUT WANTS MONEY UP FRONT, PLEASE DO NOT PAY!  The upfront money request is a sure sign this is a scam. The California Department of Real Estate has mandated that “loan modification specialists” registered with them and who may engage in the business CANNOT TAKE MONEY UP FRONT, BEFORE PROVIDING THE SERVICE.