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Real Estate & Property Law

The Home Equity Theft Reporter

Welcome to The Home Equity Theft Reporter, a blog dedicated to informing the consumer public and the legal profession about Home Equity Theft issues.
By r morris

Post Frequency: 25.7/day

Last Entry: September 06, 2017 at 04:02:00

Media Probe Spurs Texas AG Lawsuit Alleging That Unlawful Servicer Collection Tactics Squeezed Late Fees From Homeowners, Driving Them Into F'closure

Posted on August 31, 2010
In Dallas, Texas, KDFW-TV Channel 4 reports:Just two weeks after a FOX 4 investigation, the Texas Attorney General is cracking down on a local mortgage servicing company. In our investigation, FOX 4 showed how the AG's office told complaining consumers it was too busy and they should hire their own attorneys to fight American Home Mortgage Servicing, Inc...

Nevada AG: Trio Stiffed Strapped Homeowners Seeking Loan Mods After Clipping Them Out Of Thousand$ In Upfront Fees, Filed Liens Based On Bogus Notes

Posted on August 31, 2010
In Las Vegas, Nevada, KLAS-TV Channel 8 reports:The Nevada Attorney General has announced that three people have been indicted for allegedly operating a foreclosure rescue scam in Las Vegas. The AG's office says Doninador Palalay, a.k.a. Dominador Palalay, Marie Tejada Medina and Benjamin Aquino Moraleda III operated a foreclosure rescue business named PDM Financial Group, Inc...

Wisconsin AG Scores $110K+ Default Judgment Against Forensic Loan Audit Outfit That Pocketed Upfront Fees From Consumers

Posted on August 31, 2010
From the Office of the Wisconsin Attorney General:Attorney General J.B. VanHollen announced [] that the Wisconsin Department of Justice has obtained a default judgment of $111,861 against Relief Law Center, Inc., (d/b/a USA Loan Auditors), for violating Wisconsin's consumer protection laws in soliciting purported loan modification services...

Cops: "Owner-Finance" Home Seller Pocketed Buyer's Monthly Payments & Stiffed Bank Holding Existing Mtg After Screwing Earlier Victim In Similar Scam

Posted on August 31, 2010
In West Palm Beach, Florida, The Palm Beach Post reports:Michael Chinloy, detectives allege, bought an Acreage home, sold it to someone, waited for her to move out, sold it to another couple, and then let it foreclose. And, in the process, pocketed at least $86,000...

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Seattle Feds Bag Woman In Alleged Scam That Placed Title To Homes Bought By Novice Homebuyers Into Other Clients' Names & Pocketed Their Loan Payments

Posted on August 31, 2010
From the Office of the U.S. Attorney (Seattle, Washington):LIZA BAUTISTA, 50, of Tukwila, Washington, was arraigned [] in U.S. District Court in Seattle on charges of mail fraud, wire fraud and misuse of a Social Security Number, in connection with a scheme to defraud lenders and line her own pocket...

Florida Court Clobbers Foreclosure Mill With $49K Contempt Citation; Continuous Failure To Appear At Hearings w/out Giving Notice Raises Judge's Ire

Posted on August 31, 2010
In Manatee County, Florida, the Sarasota Herald Tribune reports:A circuit judge singled out a Fort Lauderdale foreclosure firm on Monday, finding its business model violates legal ethics and leveling a $49,000 fine for scheduling hearings and then not showing up in court...

Banks? Self-Dealing Super-Charged Financial Crisis

Posted on August 30, 2010
ProPublica reports:Over the last two years of the housing bubble, Wall Street bankers perpetrated one of the greatest episodes of self-dealing in financial history. Faced with increasing difficulty in selling the mortgage-backed securities that had been among their most lucrative products, the banks hit on a solution that preserved their quarterly earnings and huge bonuses:They created fake

Closing Attorney Ordered To Pay $2.37M Restitution In Escrow Funds Theft; State's "Lawyer Ripoff Reimbursement Fund" May Be Left Holding The Bag

Posted on August 30, 2010
In Ballston Spa, New York, The Glens Falls Post Star reports:A 47-year-old attorney who practiced law in Saratoga Springs admitted [...] to stealing millions of dollars during real estate transactions he handled for more than a dozen clients. Patrick M...

Closing Agent Blames Russian Mob For Stolen Online Wire Transfers Meant For Loan Payoffs; Unwitting Couple Seeking Mtg Refi Now Left Facing F'closure

Posted on August 30, 2010
In Parker, Colorado, KMGH-TV Channel 7 reports:It sounds like it's from a movie, but a Parker family and a title company both say the Russian mafia is stealing money from wire transfers. As a result, a Parker family may lose their home to foreclosure and they did nothing wrong...

Foreclosure Mill Cited In Recent Case By Judge For Fraud Calls State AG Probe Into Allegedly Fabricated Documents Politically Motivated, Overly Broad

Posted on August 30, 2010
In West Palm Beach, Florida, The Palm Beach Post reports:The Shapiro & Fishman law firm is objecting to an attorney general's investigation into alleged foreclosure offenses, calling the probe politically motivated and overly broad.(1) The firm, which has offices in Boca Raton and Tampa, filed a motion to quash a subpoena for information [...

State Bar Confirms Probe Into South Florida Foreclosure Mill

Posted on August 30, 2010
The South Florida Business Journal reports:David J. Stern, an attorney who is the target of a state civil investigation for mortgage fraud complaints, was previously disciplined by the Florida Bar for deceiving the courts and clients about his web of businesses that do legal support work...

Alleged Mastermind In Sale Leaseback F'closure Rescue Scam Arraigned On 25 Counts; Investors Left Holding Bag As Homeowners Got Boot, Say Prosecutors

Posted on August 29, 2010
From the Office of the Massaachusetts Attorney General:An Oxford man was arraigned in Worcester Superior Court for his role in a complex scheme in which fraudulent documents were used to defraud homeowners and mortgage lenders in numerous real estate transactions involving distressed properties in the Worcester County area...

Mass AG Obtains Civil Judgments Against Five Accused In Equity Stripping, Sale Leaseback, F'closure Rescue Racket; Case Against 9 Others Still Pending

Posted on August 29, 2010
From the Office of the Massachusetts Attorney General:Attorney General Martha Coakley?s Office has obtained consent judgments against five defendants that perpetrated an unlawful foreclosure rescue scheme against multiple homeowners facing foreclosure that stripped and retained hundreds of thousands of dollars of the victims' home equity...

California AG Scores $1.1M Judgment Against Attorney For Running Foreclosure Rescue Racket That Screwed 2,000 Desperate Homeowners Out Of Thousand$

Posted on August 29, 2010
From the Office of the California Attorney General:Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. [] announced a $1.1 million judgment against longtime Los Angeles attorney Mitchell Roth after he conned 2,000 desperate homeowners into paying him thousands of dollars to file "frivolous and phony" lawsuits that didn't reduce a penny of mortgage debt for a single client...

Homeowners Say Chase Pocketed Insurance Payment w/out Promptly Crediting Account; Sue Servicer For Credit Rating Damage, Inflated Fee Clip

Posted on August 29, 2010
In Galveston, Texas, The Southeast Texas Record reports:A Galveston County couple accuses Chase Home Finance LLC of mishandling a house payment made after Hurricane Ike and providing false information to credit bureaus, recent court documents say. According to a lawsuit filed July 20 in Galveston County Court No...

Loan Mod Scammer "Buys Out" Of Jail Time; Gets Suspended Sentence, Probation After Agreeing To Cough Up Half Of Required Restitution Before Sentencing

Posted on August 29, 2010
From the Office of the Nevada Attorney General:Michael Sinclair was sentenced in Las Vegas [] connection with his involvement with a mortgage foreclosure rescue company, Federal Housing Aid, whose operation included a call center in the Philippines.District Court Judge Michael Villani imposed a sentence of 30 to 90 months in the Nevada State Prison, but suspended the sentence and placed Sinclair

Los Angeles Man Arrested For Rescuing Panting, Overheated Puppy Confined In Allegedly Foreclosed, Abandoned Home; Authorities Leave 2nd Dog Behind

Posted on August 28, 2010
In Los Angeles, California, The Examiner reports:Let's chalk this one up to another example of "no good deed goes unpunished." Or is it perhaps an illustration of overwhelming fear of lawsuits? An animal rescuer was arrested Thursday after attempting to save two dogs left behind in an allegedly foreclosed and abandoned Los Angeles house...

Phoenix Jury Finds Man Peddling "Mortgage Elimination" Racket Guilty On Ten Fraud Counts; Scammer Pocketed $250K+, Say Prosecutors

Posted on August 28, 2010
In Phoenix, Arizona, KSWT-TV Channel 13 reports:A Phoenix mortgage broker has been convicted on 10 charges of fraud for scamming some homeowners into filing bogus foreclosure paperwork. Maricopa County prosecutors say 52-year-old Edward L. Carpenter was found guilty by a jury Wednesday after a 6-day trial...

Cops Probe Squatters' Alleged Attempt To Snatch Three Vacant Seattle-Area Mansions; "Mortgage Note Elimination Program" Peddler Suspected

Posted on August 28, 2010
In Kirkland, Washington, KOMO-TV Channel 4 reports:Detectives believe squatters are attempting to take possession of three separate mansions on the Eastside, each worth more than a million dollars. And detectives say they're investigating ties between these latest squatting cases and a man connected to the squatters, who set up shop in a $3...

"Sovereign Citizen" Bail Set At $100K In Alleged Deed Ripoff Racket; Judge Refuses To Recognize Suspects' Claims Of "Diplomatic Immunity" From Arrest

Posted on August 28, 2010
In Conyers, Georgia, the Rockdale Citizen reports:Rockdale County Superior Court Judge David Irwin ordered a $100,000 bond for charges relating to foreclosure fraud for an Atlanta man who claimed to be a sovereign citizen and apparently ?no team player in the World Cup,? the judge said...

Judge Gives Foreclosure Action The Go-Ahead; Refuses To Give Weight To Crackpot-Created Promissory Notes & Deeds In Home Rescue Racket

Posted on August 28, 2010
In Cobb County, Georgia, WSB Radio reports:A Cobb County man says he can save your house from foreclosure. All you have to do is sign it over to him! Joseph Jones III has been busy explaining this procedure to a judge. Somewhat incredibly, 13 homes in four metro counties have been signed into his name...

More On "Sovereign Citizens" Racket Using Phony Deeds, Fraudulent Liens To Stake Claims To Real Estate, Harass Enemies Of The Movement

Posted on August 28, 2010
In DeKalb County, Georgia, The Atlanta Journal Constitution reports:When a new family moved into the mansion on South Goddard Road in south DeKalb County, residents just assumed they were ?city folks? too busy to meet neighbors. Georgia Power and the water company came out, but 87-year-old Helen Goddard never saw the residents...

Judge Kiboshes "Secession" Defense; Rejects Native American Property Owner's Attempt To Form His Own Indian Reservation To Dodge City "Fix-Up" Order

Posted on August 28, 2010
Attorney/columnist John G. Browning writes in The Southeast Texas Record:Sometimes, I get the feeling that judges are placed in the position of being like a game show host dealing with a particularly dense contestant giving an incorrect answer - "No, so sorry, but thanks for playing and we have some lovely parting gifts for you...

16 Tenants In Dilapidated Apartment House Get The Boot w/ No Prior Notice; Dangerous Conditions Force City To Shut Down Premises On Eve Of F'closure

Posted on August 28, 2010
In Salisbury, Massachusetts, The Daily News of Newburyport reports:The Salisbury Beach apartment building at 14 Ocean St. deemed uninhabitable by town inspectors will be up for sale in a foreclosure auction Sept. 15, as its owners Jack and Marina Kitzis walked away from it, leaving five families homeless...

BofA's Failure To Promptly Post $53K Payment Leaves Homeowner Facing Imminent Foreclosure Hanging In The Wind; Needs Media Help To Cancel Sale

Posted on August 27, 2010
In Campbell, California, KGO-TV Channel 7 reports:A homeowner days away from foreclosure thought he had finally dug himself out of trouble, but that's not what happened, at least until he called 7 On Your Side. Nicholas Hatt is enjoying a rare moment of quiet after months of not knowing if he would lose his home...

Bank Attempts F'closure After Jacking Up Fees On Loan That Was Fully Paid w/ Satisfaction Recorded 5 Years Earlier; Backs Down After Media Intervenes

Posted on August 27, 2010
In Lawrence County, Pennsylvania, WPXI-TV Channel 11 reports:A Lawrence County man said his bank began foreclosing on his home, even though he paid his mortgage off. Richard Leaghty said in 2004 he sold his business and then paid his mortgage off in full at National City Bank...

Attorney Gets 8 Months For Pocketing Rent From Dead Client's Condo After Knowingly Failing To Locate Deceased's Heirs

Posted on August 27, 2010
From the Office of the U.S. Attorney (Louisville, Kentucky):David J. Hale, United States Attorney for the Western District of Kentucky, announces that Ronald Snyder, age 71, of Fisherville, Kentucky was sentenced to 8 months imprisonment followed by 3 years of Supervised Release...

Contractor, Attorney Consent To $104K+ Restitution, $550K Civil Penalties In Alleged Mechanics Lien Racket That Threatened Seniors With Foreclosure

Posted on August 27, 2010
From the Office of the Florida Attorney General:Attorney General Bill McCollum [] announced his office has obtained a judgment against a South Florida plumbing company, resolving allegations that Tri-County Plumbing Services sent salesmen posing as plumbers to mislead consumers into paying exorbitant prices for plumbing work...

State Prosecutors Offer Plea Deal, Seek $25K+ From Pair Accused Of Peddling Illegal Loan Modification Services

Posted on August 27, 2010
In Livingston County, Michigan, the Livingston Daily reports:There is a potential plea deal for two women accused of illegally charging customers money upfront for loan-modification services. An assistant prosecutor with the Michigan attorney general's office made the announcement Monday in Livingston County District Court, but he declined afterward to provide details...

California Homeowner Finally Gets Loan Modification After Year & A Half Struggle As Media Exposure Apparently Lights Fire Under Mortgage Servicer

Posted on August 26, 2010
ProPublica reports:Wells Fargo finally gave a loan modification to a long frustrated homeowner?after we profiled her last week. After ProPublica first contacted Wells Fargo about her, [Californian Suzanna] Wertheim received a call denying her a modification because of insufficient income...

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