Don't Be Scammed By Mortgage Co. OR "Foreclosure Rescue" Companies Unethical Practices

(Copyrighted Material)
Scammers are born every second. Your knowledge is NOT ENOUGH to know what is out there.

My dear readers, there is no such thing as “Foreclosure Rescuer”. Those are scam. Let’s analyze.

We live in a world that every lender wants to make some money from us (that’s how businesses exist and there is nothing wrong with it). If our credit is D- through B (meaning 500 to 780+ credit score), we are given some jacked up finance rate and high fees/cost (even by those wonderful lenders that I believe or recommend). Now, do you think there are third party hole in the walls who want to help you by putting up their own money??!!.

I do not trust even most reputable and large lenders; do you think I trust, smaller ones (such as Litton, AMC, GMAC, Ameriquest) and a long list of others (especially the whole in the wall)? I do not talk without having facts. I would love for the above list of names to sue me.

When your credit is bad you will pay extra for fees and higher rate, that’s a fact. If someone tells you otherwise, you must stay away from that person, because, he/she must have other intentions/plans. There is no question about it. Don’t be offended by lenders treating you as a disgruntled stepchild, because you put yourself into that credit position. Please don’t blame everybody else because you did not want to accept responsibility when you were younger.

I am not trying to be a coldhearted, stupid or a senseless person who does not consider the fact that sometimes, creditors or collection agencies may/will be at fault. But, I have seen enough credit reports and talked with hundreds of people who were telling me how innocent they were, only to learn the facts after reviewing their documents. Again. Please understand that mistake can take place by all parties in an agreement.

The difference between good credit and bad credit is, that with one, you:

a. will be welcomed to borrow and the other would worry creditors;
b. get good-market finance rate, the other your rate will be much higher;
c. get reduced fees, and no chance with the other;
d. will get respect and with the other get brushed off in most cases.

That is why I repeatedly insist - keeping your credit in good shape.

Now, if the truly accredited lenders that have offices all over the country or at minimum in a few states can’t help you, why do you think a hole in a wall can?

Here are some ways to avoid these scammers.

When someone calls you with an offer,
a. call your state attorney general’s office and get some information about the company. See if there were any investigations, reports, etc. You can get all the necessary information about those Attorney General’s offices (see the link in the Author’s Bio)

b. Through the site above or through the state A.G.’s sites, you can also ask for the Secretary of State office to see if the company is registered and what type of business they do.

c. You can also go to another page of the site (see link in Bio section) and contact other offices to see if they have any complaints or concerns about the company.

d. If someone wants unreasonable amount of money from you in order to help you, you need to think again.

e. Call a few bank managers in your area and share the offer made and ask if it sounds reasonable.

f. Call your State District Attorney’s office and see if any complaint was filed.

g. If someone wants to take a large portion of your home equity, then there is something wrong.

h. When a contract is given to you, BEFORE YOU SIGN, at the very least, have someone with more education than you (if you can NOT afford an attorney) read the fine prints, and see if it is truly good for you. Show it to your law enforcement department.

Let me give you some other ideas. You figure it out. I may be mistaking!! You think?!

Just during the past four months, I learned through friends that even repeatable lenders have been taking advantage of people who are suffering financially now. If those do then, what should I expect from Litton, AMC and others. AMC Mortgage charged a person -two sets of Foreclosure fees and added fees on the top of fees only to tell ME that, “because we have secured interest, we can charge any fees we want.” REALLY??!! When a certified letter was sent to the company president, it was tossed to the same person who made the comments. When the second certified letter was sent to the company president, AMC tossed/sold the loan to Citi-Residential Mortgage. Unfortunately, the company operates out of California (headquartered) and its parent company Ameriquest (California also) is not even responding. When calls were made to the CA- Attorney General’s office, that office did not want to look into the matter. First of all, what a shame that a public office (which its job is to protect its citizens) is not interested to even listen.

Let me give you the list of fees they charged so that you can analyze it for yourself, see what’s justified and what’s not. They are as follows:

On Sept. 14, 2007 Citi Residential Lending sent a letter to a borrower stating the following figures:

Principal Balance $83,779.59
Expenses paid by Servicer $16,443.33 ????
Unpaid Late Charges $ 0.00 after AMC charging so much
Other unpaid charges $ 0.00
Suspense Balance $ 1,257.67 borrowers money put aside by lender when the monthly mortgage of $735.00 was not paid.
Escrow $ 620.00 money to pay for taxes and insurance (OK)
Total amount of Debt: $98,344.55 plus interest on the principal amount accrued
in arrears at the rate of 7.5% when the “market
mortgage rate” was around 5.75-6.25%)

On February 7, 2007, AMC Mortgage send and forced this family to sign a inflated “Mortgage Modification Agreement” which consists of Exhibit A showing the following items: PLEASE PAY ATTENTION (THERE IS NO TYPO/MISTAKES HERE )

REINSTATEMENT AMOUNT GOOD THROUGH FEBRUARY 1, 2007:

2 payments @ $888.89 =$ 1.777.78
(September 2005 through October 2005)

4 payments @ $888.87 =$ 3,555.48
(November 2005 through February 2006)

2 payments @ $925.16 =$ 1,850.32
(March 2006 through April 2006)

6 payments @ $948.54 = $ 5,691.24
(May through October 2006)

3 payments @ $987.64 =$ 2,962.92
(November 2006 through January 2007)

1 payment @ $987.64 =$ 987.64

Late fees: =$ 435.92
Appraisal: =$ 325.00
Foreclosure Fees: =$ 540.00
Foreclosure Cost: =$ 607.76
BPO Fees: (broker price opinion) =$ 105.00
Non-sufficient Funds Fees: =$ 43.14
Escrow Shortage: =$ 173.63
Property Inspection: =$ 107.00

And the totals:…

Now let’s understand something. The monthly payments based upon letters sent by AMC was around $735.00 and somehow it became inflated due to A NEW interest rate of 11.5%. Moreover, when I spoke with Ms. Olivera (executive representative) on August 30, 2007, she stated:

“Foreclosure Fees” is $1,080.00
“Foreclosure Cost” is $ 617.76
“Appraisal” was $ 650.00 (very high for GA, SC, AL)
“BPO” was $ 105.00 It is very difficult for me to understand that a
company gets two appraisal “A.K.A. Certified Opinion” in less than a year and still gets “Broker Opinion”

All because, the individual got hurt at his job and could not work (back injury) with no medical settlement. Imagine that.

Another example is: Litton Loan Servicing charges some borrowers one set of fees for Escrow, yet pays amount a lot less to the Tax Commission’s offices or the insurance companies - and gets away with it (or at least it think it is going to). Not to forget the method it applies payments or excessive lat fess it charges.

The moral of the story is:
This is a lot better than other “stuff” I have seen or called upon. If you are getting over charged, you MUST at minimum let someone with more knowledge than YOU (in the area of financing) to look at the document before you sign and commit yourself to homeless shelters or mental hospitals. If you can NOT afford a lawyer, a real-estate closing attorney (which will cost somewhere between $100.00 to $250.00) can review and give you advice.

As far as Foreclosure process.
Some states have “Judicial foreclosure” process and some don’t.
If you are not sure, do NOT ASSume. You can call your state “Consumer Protection” or “Citizen Services” division of the State Attorney General’s office (see link in Bio section) and ask if the state is a “Judicial Foreclosure State”. If the person does not know the term, then ask a simple question: “Does the Foreclosure process have to go through a Court? Or it is that the lender can simply sell my house by first sending me a certified letter?”

The reason for knowing the process, is that one allows at least an educated person-a Judge (hopefully a fair and unbiased) here the case, and the other is that you are at the mercy of any bull the lender and its foreclosure attorney feeds you.

If you live in a none-judicial foreclosure state, the next question to the A.G.’s office should be: what process should a lender take. How many certified letters, how many month before the proceedings begin, and some other questions that fits your category of what caused you to fall behind. Ask questions, write the answers, get educated.

So whatever you do, please don’t hand your property to someone you don’t know. A lot of people will become your friend to see what you have and what they can get (especially if you are retried, close to it or from old school).

The New Schools of Scams teaches a lot better techniques than what you may heard. This is the age of electronics and Internet. Scammers are born every second with the help of Internet and electronic gadgets. Your knowledge is NOT ENOUGH to know what’s out there.

As I said in my previous articles, Stay stupid and pay the price.

They say: it takes a minute to find a CRAZY person,

An hour to appreciate them,

A day to love them,

But then an entire life to forget them.

Thank you again.
With love and best wishes.
Mike Samadi