This past Tuesday, SIGTARP announced that two men have pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges for operating a nationwide online foreclosure rescue scheme that defrauded many distressed homeowners. The two men used their business, which operated under multiple names, to convince struggling homeowners to sign over the deeds to their homes in order to avoid foreclosure. However, after falsely telling homeowners they were negotiating certain terms with their lenders, they rented out their homes to tenants unaware of the scheme in order to make a profit. 

Additionally, they submitted fraudulent loan modification applications to mortgage lenders via the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) without the homeowner’s knowledge or consent; this allowed them to temporarily postpone the foreclosure process in order to receive more rental payments. Sadly, many borrowers who did business with this company eventually lost their homes to foreclosure.

While bringing scam artists to justice is always welcome news, there are still many perpetrators out there that continue to exploit financially distressed homeowners. Indeed, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network recently reported that the number of foreclosure rescue scams in 2012 increased to 4,400 from 2,800 in 2011.

HPF encourages all homeowners to learn the warnings signs of a scam in order to protect themselves from becoming a scam victim.

If you or someone you know has been the victim of a scam, please report it to our anti-scam team by calling 888-995-HOPE (4673). The information we receive is then used by law enforcement agencies, such as SIGTARP, during their investigation into fraudulent organizations.

We take great pride that HPF counselor Betsy Carvajal was recently the recipient of the Excellence in Counseling Award from NeighborWorks America as part of its first ever National Foreclosure Mitigation Counseling (NFMC) Counselor Awards. As a housing counselor at Atlanta-based CredAbility, an HPF partner agency that helps run the national HOPE Hotline, Ms. Carvajal was recognized for empathetic listening, which helps homeowners feel more comfortable about sharing their tales of financial hardship. Ms. Carvajal was also cited for her effectiveness in running training programs for other counselors and her innovative solutions to better tracking the ever-changing list of foreclosure prevention programs. For these efforts and more, the entire HPF team would like to thank Ms. Carvajal for her tireless dedication in guiding homeowners to sustainable housing solutions.

And stay tuned for HPF’s own inaugural counselor of the year awards, which will be announced in the coming months.

In the Hoffmans’s case, a letter from the OCC and Treasury’s Independent Foreclosure Review program prompted them to reach out for additional guidance despite already having tried countless solutions beforehand. After being transferred to an HPF housing counselor at 888-995-HOPE, the Hoffman’s discovered the benefits of working with a neutral, third party expert and were able to reach an agreement with their servicer within weeks.

Thanks to the Hoffmans for sharing their story, and to the Beacon’s Mary Delach Leonard for reporting it so passionately; it’s stories like these that inspire other homeowners facing foreclosure to reach out for help and to not give up.