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Con Artists Play Troubling Game: Grand Theft Home
Wanda Walker, who lost her Fort Washington house last year, at a news conference Thursday. "I'm angry and very disgusted," she said.
(By Lois Raimondo -- The Washington Post)
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"They get the houses for pennies on the dollar," Tripoli said.
Tripoli said homeowners in financial trouble should "do the exact opposite of what these scam artists say to do."
"They tell you, 'do not talk to an attorney or to a lender.' But if you're caught in a foreclosure, you need to talk to your lender -- to ask, 'What can we do about restructuring payments or refinancing?,' " Tripoli said.
Homeowners then need "to clearly understand what the rules are on foreclosure in your state. And you need to know the timetable for where you are in the process."
For example, a homeowner should check to see if a letter from a lender is a deficiency notice, which says the homeowner is behind in payments to the lender and can still "cure" the deficiency by paying it off, Tripoli said. That is opposed to a letter that announces a sale date, which means the homeowner is also subject to a variety of fees beyond the amount in arrears.
In hot markets, there can be time before the sale not only to work out a new repayment schedule with the lender, what is called a loss-mitigation plan, but even to sell on the open market and make a profit after paying off the delinquency and interest due and the lender's fees for advertising and lawyers, said Marla Webb, a senior adviser to foreclosure.com, an online foreclosure listing service.
Consumer groups note that selling the house may be the only option for some, because minorities and the elderly have often been targeted for predatory loans with high fees and terms and for multiple refinances that drained their equity. Although they may not want to move, selling on the open market will save them from their supposed rescuers, say consumer advocates.
Homeowners who have gotten taken by rescue scams can try to find a consumer lawyer to represent them in actions before enforcement agencies, in hearings on subsequent evictions by the rescuer or an investor, or in lawsuits alleging fraud or deception.
But knowledgeable lawyers are few, and homeowners in distress often cannot afford them, say consumer groups. And the cases are so complicated that it takes more time than many lawyers want to spend, say consumer groups.
Tripoli recommends retaining a lawyer through the National Association of Consumer Advocates ( http:/
But Ira Rheingold, executive director of NACA, said, "The fact is that there are not a ton of attorneys who do these cases. I could name the two in the Washington area who do this kind of thing."
AARP's Legal Counsel for the Elderly office in the District works with residents who are over 50, but its staff is also limited.
