News related to Mortgage and Foreclosure Fraud |
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occurs post loan origination when mortgage servicers use false statements and book-keeping entries, fabricated assignments, forged signatures and utter counterfeit intangible Notes to take a homeowner's property and equity.
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Date |
Article (Recent Additions) | Author |
Comment |
Borrowers Beware |
By Teresa Dixon Murray Reporter, The Plain Dealer, Cleveland, Ohio |
Tom, who has spent several hours every week for the last 16 months trying to fix the problems, says he can no longer stand to think about what the lender has done to his family. "I'm so tired," he says. "Things happen, little things, and I can't take it. Mentally I'm losing it. Why can't somebody do something so this doesn't happen to people?" | |
2004 | MoneyFiles.org | Mortgage fraud will bring the house of cards down. | |
2004 Whitepaper |
Limiting Abuse and Opportunism By Mortgage Servicers.
*Print this article and send/show it to everyone!* |
Kurt Eggert / Chapman University School of Law |
Such abuse includes claiming that borrowers are in default and attempting to foreclose even when payments are current, charging borrowers unwarranted late fees and other kinds of fees, forced placing-insurance even when borrowers already have a policy, and mishandling escrow funds. |
12/17/04 |
Amy Quinton
NH Public Radio |
Fraudulent practices may be easy for some companies to get away with because the laws that regulate mortgage servicers are vague. | |
12/14/04 |
State of Connecticut Div. of Criminal Justice |
Vice president of Wachovia Bank in Newtown has been arrested for allegedly falsely notarizing forged signatures on several real estate deeds and on a mortgage document. | |
12/13/04 | State Probe of Wells Fargo Urged |
Annette Haddad - LA Times |
Wells Fargo has previously come under California regulators? scrutiny and last year had its state mortgage-lending license revoked. |
11/24/04 |
List of Mortgage Companies being supervised by the New York Banking Department. |
State of New York Banking Department |
|
11/20/04 |
Countrywide Fires Manager, Citing Ethics The lender says he encouraged his staff to steer borrowers to more costly sub-prime loans. |
latimes.com | Encouraged loan officers in a memo to downgrade borrowers' credit ratings in order to steer them into more expensive loans. |
11/9/04 |
ConsumerAffairs.com |
It's not okay to harass, threaten or mislead someone because they owe a debt." |
|
11/7/04 |
Insider
Foreclosure and Mortgage Servicing Fraud Part 1, A Study on Ocwen Federal Bank |
Gale Bullock | What is mortgage servicing fraud? It is simple. It is jerking the mortgagee around on loan payments, insurance, escrow, false credit history reporting on the status of his mortgage payment history, and a myriad of other insider gimmicks, threats, and cognitive dissonance to force the property into foreclosure so the Fat Cat bank holding company can foreclose on the property. |
11/4/04 |
SEC Press Release | SEC Settles Action Charging Wachovia Corporation with Proxy Disclosure and Other Reporting Violations. Keep digging SEC. | |
11/4/04 |
by Noelle Barton
Gazette.net Staff Writer |
Lih Young, a nine-time failed candidate for public office who campaigns by accusing the government of fraud, harassment and conspiracy, was evicted from her Rockville home on Friday by CitiMortgage. | |
10/27/04 |
ROBERT
A. HAMILTON Day Staff Writer, Navy/Defense/Electric Boat |
His attorney learned Ocwen wanted to charge Newell $180,000, $50,000 more than the original mortgage, and $40,000 more than the amount owed, including the arrears, to get the house back. | |
10/25/04 |
By ROB JOHNSON Tennessean.com |
Nashville attorney G. Kline Preston IV argues that Household is liable under the civil part of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization statutes. | |
11/29/04
|
Lawyer Says High-Stress Career Led Him to Have Sex With MinorIf the felony charge is considered one of moral turpitude, then Borrevik could be disbarred. |
Law.com |
A young corporate attorney sentenced to four months in a county jail for having sex with a minor said his high-stress legal career was partially to blame for the crime. Prosecutors said Borrevik paid a 16-year-old girl more than $1,000 for sex and tried to persuade her 17-year-old friend to meet for sex by sending explicit photos and offering money. Borrevik was caught after the 17 year-old talked to police; a female detective posed as the teenager online. |
10/19/04 |
By Selena Maranjian
Motley Fool |
"It begins with things like adding an unsubstantiated fee here and there for services you have never heard of, and/or late fees for payments you actually made on time. | |
10/17/04 |
Reuters | EMC Mortgage's parent company received subpoenas and requests for information relating to its municipal underwriting business conducted through its Chicago office, from the U.S. Attorney's office for the Northern District of Illinois; the State of Illinois, Office of Executive Inspector General; and the Illinois Securities Department. | |
10/16/04 | Illinois Provides $25 Million to Ameriquest to Create Jobs | Governor Blagojevich Press release |
Governor Blagojevich is providing almost $25 million in support for the new operation, which will create 1,500 new jobs over the next two years. The company is also pledging to bring another 600 jobs to Illinois through its affiliate in Rolling Meadows, Argent Mortgage Company, within the next three years. |
10/16/04 |
Washington Post Ken Harney |
Welcome to the booming world of mortgage fraud. With larceny in their hearts and sophisticated electronic document-preparation programs in their laptops, unethical mortgage loan officers, brokers, real estate agents and lawyers can create fake credit scores, tax returns and identities, as well as ordering inflated appraisals. | |
10/10/04 |
|
The New York Times | Borrower commits suicide over Bear Stearns foreclosure. |
10/7/04 |
The
Truth About Fannie The real scandal at Fannie Mae. |
By Daniel Gross MONEYBOX |
The
result of the probe, detailed in a 211-page report
issued last week, paints Fannie Mae
as an Enron-in-the-making. At the company that
prides itself on being a cuddly enabler of the American dream, OFHEO
unearthed a "pervasive" misapplication of accounting
standards, poor internal controls, and?the most headline-worthy
charge?a pay structure that rewarded
executives for meeting earnings goals, which encouraged
executives to manipulate earnings to hit the number. |
Sept/Oct 2004 |
The Mortgage News | You can pay to train your employees now, or pay your attorneys much more later. Search for EMC. | |
9/30/04 |
Check
Clearing Law Reduces "Float" Time |
Realty Times
Broderick Perkins |
"Check Clearing for the 21st Century Act" also known as "Check 21" |
9/28/04 |
Overdraft Protection (Check 21) Six tips for dealing with the new check-clearing rules |
CBS.Marketwatch.com |
The new process will save the banking industry $3 billion a year and may cost the consumer an additional $170 million in fees. Be careful. |
9/26/04 |
Kenneth Harney | A federal appellate court has ruled that "marking up" mortgage fees violates federal law. | |
9/20/04 |
FtWayne.com |
What appears to be the American Dream - a house they can call their own - is instead a millstone around Garcia's neck, put there by an agency that was supposed to help him. | |
9/20/04 |
One embarrassing disclosure after another hits the Bank of America, but none of the dirt sticks. If the earnings are good, shareholders can be very forgiving. |
Forbes.com |
Explains why Corporate America's reputation wears a "global black-eye". |
9/18/04 |
Associated Press | Fraud against a mortgage company/bank is big news; fraud against a consumer by a mortgage company/bank is ignored. | |
9/9/04 |
DON'T
GET "LOCKED OUT" OF YOUR HOME |
U.S. Department of Justice | "Bankruptcy foreclosure scams" target people whose home mortgages are in trouble. |
9/5/04 |
By DAVID PIERCE Pocono Record Writer dpierce@poconorecord.com |
"It is a sad day in America when American citizens ... have to write its attorney general pertaining to suspected and possible judge and jury tampering in its U.S. court system," | |
9/1/04 |
Utah mortgage firm to pay settlement to Michigan homeowners. |
Associated Press | "Predatory practices like those engaged in by Fairbanks will not be tolerated in Michigan," (OFIS Commissioner Linda A. Watters) |
8/29/04 |
By
CATHY MENTZER PublicOpinionOnline.com |
How an innocent trip to buy a dog threw this man to the rabid dogs of foreclosure. | |
8/29/04 |
By E. SCOTT RECKARD Los Angeles Times |
The cheers of growth and greed have been replaced by the screams of unhappy customers, homeowners and thousands of laid-off workers. |
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8/27/04 |
|
A federal appeals court on Thursday restored a $6 million punitive damage award in a debt collection case brought against a subsidiary of Bear Stearns. | |
8/26/04 |
Associated Press - Sacramento | Article is at mid-page. | |
8/22/04 |
NATION'S HOUSING KENNETH
HARNEY |
||
8/21/04 |
Bank of America, Fleet in $675M fund settlement. The two giant banks agree to the biggest settlement so far in the ongoing mutual fund scandal. |
CNN Money/Reuters | Bank of America, which uses the promise of "higher standards" in its advertising campaign, has been caught up in various investigations. |
8/21/04 |
Homeowners victimized by Litton & Ocwen |
By MICHELE DERUS JSOnline.com |
"Borrowers are making payments on time, but the way servicers apply them, it doesn't look like it," he said. |
8/18/04 |
Freddie
Mac Announces Receipt of 'Wells Notice' From SEC Staff |
PRNewswire-FirstCall | Notice advises the company that the SEC staff is considering a recommendation that the SEC initiate a civil injunctive action against the company for possible violations of the federal securities laws |
8/17/04 |
Beacon Journal business writer |
Oftentimes I will find anywhere between 50 (percent) and 75 percent of those (homes) to be the result of sheriff's sales or transactions between corporate owners. | |
8/17/04 |
Broderick Perkins Realty Times |
A state attorney general is warning consumers to be wary of companies that offer to help save their home from foreclosure. | |
8/16/04 |
Predatory Lenders Have One Goal: To Snag Your Home - Don't Get Caught in Their Scheme |
Phoebe Chongchua Realty Times |
These dishonest lenders literally hunt down their victims (homeowners) with one goal in mind: to take their home. Verifying foreclosures MUST be profitable. |
8/14/04 |
Kenneth Harney The Nation's Housing |
68 percent of repayment plan participants save their homes. | |
8/6/04 |
Homeowner group says it's not enough. Plans for a $1.5 billion ? billion, not million ? private lawsuit against about 20 builders, bankers and appraisers. |
By DAVID PIERCE Pocono Record Writer |
The state's planned response to Monroe County's massive foreclosure rate is woefully inadequate. The state plan fails to make homeowners financially whole for their losses and doesn't seek criminal prosecutions for violators. |
By Amilda Dymi Nation Mortgage News Online |
Program designed to protect both lenders and homebuyers from unexpected default and foreclosure on properties when owners face involuntary unemployment, severe health problems or disability. | ||
7/30/04 |
CALIFORNIA JUSTICE DEPARTMENT Wins Court Order Freezing Assets of Firm Exploiting Homeowners in Foreclosure. (California Attorney General Bill Lockyer) |
AHRC
News Services
By California Department of Justice |
Lawsuit seeks civil penalties of at least $2 million, full restitution for victims and an injunction that permanently bans HAS and Sheckler from operating in California as foreclosure consultants. |
7/30/04 |
|
The legislation comes from the work of the task force that the County Council created in May 2003 to look at the rapid rise in home foreclosures. | |
7/21/04 | Reuters | The suit aims to recover stock losses, worth more than $25 million, caused by Freddie Mac's accounting scandal. | |
7/20/04 |
HUD PUBLISHES NEW RULE TO PROTECT HOMEBUYERS FROM PREDATORY LENDING PRACTICES |
HUD
No. 04-070 Lemar Wooley |
A final rule that makes lenders accountable for appraisals on mortgages insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) |
Michael Whiteley Dallas Business Journal |
Bedford broker who pled to bank fraud was link in Washington Mutual's problem SBA loans | ||
7/14/04 |
Select a.k.a. Fairbanks to close office, lay off 200 |
By JOHN
WILEN The Intelligencer |
Among those losing jobs are specialists in bankruptcy, foreclosure specialists and problem resolution. So much for customer service. |
7/1/04 |
PR Newswire |
Fairbanks who? Courts allow you to change your name if you get a bad reputation from scamming your customers and/ or investors. |
|
LATENT
PROBLEMS IN LOAN SERVICING
What Possibly Could Go Wrong? |
Macc-trac.com | Loan auditing website. | |
6/24/04 |
Pennsylvania Attorney General Accuses Bank Of Predatory Lending | NBC10.com | Attorney Generals in Wisconsin, New York, Texas, Minnesota, New Hampshire and West Virginia have also filed suit against Cross Country Bank. |
6/24/04 |
Fairbanks Capital and NCRC Join to Show Non-Prime Servicing Serves Borrowers and Bondholders | PR Newswire | Fairbanks now realizes that customer service benefits everyone. |
6/17/04 |
Former financial services exec receives four years in prison. | Associated press | A fraud scheme that authorities say cost investors $2.1 billion. Was it worth it? |
6/16/04 |
Court OKs settlement in mortgage lawsuit vs. Civil Service Co-operative. |
Canoe Money | Our issues cross the border into the Great White North of Canada. |
6/15/04 |
Bankrate.com | "What amazes me is that people don't use their common sense. Somehow people think that this person who is giving them 5% is telling the truth." | |
6/10/04 |
Homeowners vs. Washington Mutual Washington Mutual representative admits the company changed the documents. |
Michael Geeser, Consumer Editor klastv.com |
Homeowners win their case, but when will Washington Mutual pay up? |
6/04 |
By Jim Day Chicago Lawyer Magazine |
?We have foreclosures in crisis proportions,? said Tom James, an Illinois assistant attorney general who handles housing matters. | |
6/2004 | BOND INSURERS | Public Bonds - Presented by Good Jobs First | ?AN ALMOST PERFECT MONEY MACHINE? |
5/04 |
Front-End Data Collection and Analysis: | Mortgage Technology | Few lenders have measures in place to ensure that loan data is valid when they receive it. |
5/27/04 |
Fed announces $70 million penalty against Citigroup and a subsidiary. | Associated Press | Citigroup and its CitiFinancial Credit Co., agreed to the penalty, but would not admit any wrongdoing. |
5/24/04 |
Mortgage Servicers Offered New Tools for Best Practices and Problem Resolution. | eMediaWire | Certus LD unveiled a process improvement program for mortgage loan servicing that includes not only a set of best practices, but training and on-going performance monitoring features. |
5/21/04 |
Fed's Gramlich says subprime lending a societal plus | Reuters | Increased subprime lending has been associated with higher levels of delinquency, foreclosure, and, in some cases, abusive lending practices. |
5/17/04 |
Case Expands Type of Lies Prosecutors Will Pursue |
New York Times ALEX BERENSON |
Until last month, lying to your own company's lawyers was not a crime. Now it is. |
5/16/04 |
New York Times LANDON
THOMAS Jr. |
Despite the intense public scrutiny of recent celebrity insider-trading cases, insiders still violate securities laws by misusing nonpublic information. | |
5/18/04 |
ConsumerAffairs.com | ?These practices caused many borrowers to default on their loans and caused some of them to lose their homes,? Thompson said. ?The alleged conduct is particularly reprehensible.? | |
5/14/04 |
Capital
City Mortgage Corp. Defendant Settles with FTC
Former General Counsel Barred from Debt Collection |
Federal Trade Commission | Eric J. Sanne permanently barred from participating in any debt-collection business. |
5/14/04 |
Fairbanks CEO Eager to Reenter Servicing Market | American Banker | Fairbanks CEO discusses the company's bright future after government investigations and miniscule fines failed to bring proper redress to the victims. |
5/13/04 |
NCO Group Settles with FTC for Violations of the FCRA | creditcollectionsworld.com | NCO will pay $1.5 million to settle the FTC's claims, the largest civil penalty ever obtained in a FCRA case. |
5/5/04 | Back office figure emerges in Bear Stearns Investigation. | TheStreet.com | |
4/21/04 |
Ocwen reaches customer service deal | Jeff Ostrowski, Palm Beach Post Staff Writer | Ocwen is grateful that the OTS and consumer interest organizations told them they were stealing. Huh? "Uh... You're welcome?" |
4/04 |
North Carolina Sues Cambridge CreditCounseling | creditcollectionsworld.com | Pushing people in debt -- further in debt. |
4/04 |
creditcollectionsworld.com | Substantiating the Credit Reporting Agencies are another element we have to deal with. | |
4/15/04 |
Class Action Lawsuit Against Novastar Financial Inc. on Behalf of Investors | Cauley Geller Bowman & Rudman, LLP | NYSE: NFI Failure to disclose, misrepresentation and operating without a license. |
4/2/04 |
Judge Upholds Racketeering Complaints Against H&R Block, Household |
ConsumerAffairs.com | The companies face potential treble damages that could run to billions of dollars if arguments by the plaintiffs' lawyers prevail in the case. |
4/2/04 |
Class Action Against the American Express on Behalf of American Express Financial Advisors, Inc. Clients Who Purchased American Express Mutual Funds |
Cauley Geller Bowman & Rudman, LLP |
Legal action claiming AEFC has been violating the Securities Exchange Act etc.since 1999. |
4/1/04 |
Bear Stearns faces probes over links to late trading | Bloomberg News | EMC Mortgage's parent company faces federal criminal and civil probes. |
4/1/04 |
Ronald Fink,
CFO Magazine |
Why Alan Greenspan's Fed lets banks off easy on corporate fraud. | |
4/1/04 |
Regulators may get power to liquidate Freddie, Fannie. |
Samantha Peterson Inman News |
Federal regulators may get the power to shut down Fannie Mac or Freddie Mac if either of them was in danger of insolvency. |
3/25/04 |
Debtor beware: Credit counselor abuse on the rise. |
Houston Chronicle /
MARCY
GORDON |
AmeriDebt and others learning the difference between helping and scamming. |
3/17/04 |
Citigroup trio took home $100m pay package last year | Guardian Unlimited | Fines for corporate fraud really is "pocket change" |
3/17/04 |
Don't Expect Fed To Limit Banks' Bad Behavior Bank of America's 'Higher Standards' teach the banking industry that fraud is good... even when you get caught. |
Steven Pearlstein Washington Post |
How many financial scandals does a banking company have to be involved in before the Federal Reserve will finally conclude it isn't up to the task of taking control of yet another big bank? |
3/16/04 |
Banks in Merger Settle Fund Case Nothing new. Just another instance of regulators chasing Bank of America again for the same violations. Has the SEC ever considered a 3-strikes Rule? |
NY Times | Bank of America and FleetBoston Financial reached a $675 million settlement with regulators yesterday over improper trading in their mutual funds. |
3/10/04 |
Bank of America Penalized Record by SEC Bank of America showing their true colors and the PR work to hide it and play dumb. |
Reuters |
Banc of America Securities, repeatedly failed to promptly provide requested documents, gave "misinformation" about the documents' availability, and engaged in "dilatory tactics." |
|
BCS Alliance.com | Parallels of mortgage and credit card scams. | |
2/29/04 |
In Fraud Cases, Guilt Can Be Skin Deep. |
Alex
Berenson
New York Times |
Two page article about the complexities of prosecuting white-collar corruption and greed. |
2/24/04 |
Federal and State Agencies Face Challenges in Combating Predatory Lending' | U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO) | Government study into predatory lending. |
2/24/04 |
BANK OF AMERICA Loses Class Action Suit. |
ConsumerAffairs.com |
Bank of America scammed over one million customers. Damages could exceed 1 billion dollars. |
2/23/04 |
Can I fire my mortgage servicer? Opt-out clause would make it easier for borrowers to defend against deceptive lenders. |
Inman News |
Explains poor service and why your servicer needs to get you into the Subprime category. |
2/17/04 |
Court ruling may expand consumer's credit protection. |
Associated Press | The court's decision demands more in-depth investigations when consumers ask for them. |
2/16/04 |
The Dark Side Of Refinancing. | FortWayne.com | Indiana homeowners losing homes to predators. |
2/9/04 | OFIS Revokes Metrowide Mortgage License and Assesses $6,000 Fine. | Department of Labor & Economic Growth | From Michigan.gov |
Mortgage Servicing: Making sure your payments count. | Federal Trade Commission | Includes a Qualified Written Request sample. | |
2/9/04 |
The Christian Science Monitor |
Values-based fund managers delve deeply into the moral character of companies. |
|
2/7/04 |
Michael Edward WorldVisionPortal.org |
Is your bank/mortgage company listed? | |
2/6/04 |
Record home sales at foreclosure auctions spurns moratorium drive. | Associated Press | Even those who cannot make payments are getting attention. |
2/5/04 |
The next big trend: FORECLOSURE | CNN Money | The number of foreclosures has jumped in some places. For buyers it's both an opportunity and a risk. |
2/3/04 |
Fannie
to Set New Policy On Arbitration Clauses
Mortgages Must Allow Borrowers to Sue |
Caroline E. Mayer Washington Post Staff Writer |
|
2/1/04 |
FORECLOSURE
AND A MAN SHOT HIMSELF
The State of Arizona should hang their head in SHAME!!!! |
By
Pat
Haruff |
Today a gentlemen homeowner shot himself because he couldn't handle the pressure and the loss of his PAID FOR home in Velda Rose Estates in Mesa. He couldn't handle the SHAME he felt for having his home foreclosed on. |
February 2004 |
Fraud on the Court as a Basis for Dismissal with Prejudice or Default: An Old Remedy Has New TeethThat cheaters should not be allowed to prosper has long been central to the moral fabric of our society and one of the underpinnings of our legal system. |
Florida Bar | Sanctions, in a wide variety of shapes, attempting to encompass the virtually limitless ways litigants manage to misbehave1 have always been part and parcel of our legal system. Dismissal with prejudice has long been available as the ultimate civil sanction against litigation misconduct, but is often bypassed in the belief that such efforts rarely succeed at the trial court level and are frequently reversed on appeal when they do. In the past this sentiment was understandable. Older appellate decisions upholding dismissals with prejudice for ?fraud on the court? were decisively outnumbered by decisions reversing such dismissals as being too severe. |
1//04 |
FirstPlus Settles Investor Class Action Suits | Brokeruniverse.com | FirstPlus Financial Group Inc. has settled the class-action lawsuits filed by investors against the company in the wake of its downfall. |
1/30/04 |
Washington Mutual to lay off 188 workers | Jacksonville Bus. Journal | WaMu passing Homeside loans to Fidelity. |
1/28/04 |
Class Action Lawsuit Against American Business Financial Services Inc. | Business Wire |
Another reason it is in the company's best interest to foreclose. |
1/22/04 |
Mortgage Fraud News Coverage | Mortgage Daily |
Several Mortgage fraud headlines. Subscription Required. |
1/20/04 |
Mortgage firm to close Austin location; 204 jobs to be lost. | Austin Business Journal | Several articles on this page. |
1/18/04 |
Mortgage
servicer
Ocwen's
practices raise ire.
|
Jeff Ostrowski, Palm Beach Post | Evidence that Ocwen studied the fraud manual written by Bank of America. |
1/14/04 |
Kenneth Harney | Explains your escrow account. | |
2004 |
Lehman Brothers Role in Predatory Lending | NotWithOurMoney.org | A listing of Lehman Brothers' involvement. |
2004 |
NotWithOurMoney.org | Why would a major Wall Street investment bank finance a bunch of sleazy, scandal-ridden corporations that profit by exploiting low-income people and people of color? | |
1/19/04 | Lenders Urged to Examine Practices in Light of 'Predatory' Accusations |
Ted Cornwell
National Mortgage News |
Lenders that apply late penalties, which can pile up over several months and then accelerate the debt or proceed with foreclosure action will likely find themselves in trouble. Uh... likely? |
1/18/04 | Mortgage servicer Ocwen's practices raise ire | Jeff Ostrowski, Palm Beach Post Staff Writer | "(Ocwen) posted our payments late all the time," Trott said in a recent interview. "It's not fair. It was a very unpleasant experience. I wouldn't recommend anybody going with that company." |
1/8/04 |
|
Fairbanks settlement having little if any effect. |
|
6/4/08 | Ed McMahon's home faces foreclosure | CNN | There were nearly 650,000 foreclosure filings -- which include notices of default, auction sales and bank repossessions -- issued during the first quarter of 2008. |
copyright MSFraud.org |