The Home Equity Theft Reporter: Real Estate & Property Law

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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

Disbarred Attorney Cops Plea To Looting $3M+ From Escrow Account Used To Close Real Estate Transactions; 15 Deals Left Unfunded

Posted on February 18, 2010
From the Office of the U.S. Attorney (Minneapolis/St.Paul, Minnesota):[Earlier this month] in federal court in Minneapolis, Minnesota, [] 38-year-old [now-disbarred in Minnesota(1)] lawyer [Jason Eric Fischer] from Hudson, Wisconsin, pleaded guilty to mortgage fraud by stealing more than $3 million from the escrow account at the real estate title and settlement company he jointly owned...

Fight To Successfully Recover Home Stolen, Mortgaged Out From Under Leaves Elderly Couple Exhausted, Out Thousand$ In Legal Fees

Posted on February 18, 2010
In Frostproof, Florida, The Ledger reports:An elderly couple whose house in Frostproof was targeted for real estate fraud has reclaimed the home but might never recover money spent in a two-year legal battle. The outcome of a Feb. 5 court hearing means Albert and Nancy Pascell would have to pursue further legal action if they hoped for financial reparations...

Lender Found Liable For Role In Broker's Forgery Scam That Mortgaged 70-Year Old Woman's Home Out From Under Her

Posted on February 18, 2010
From a press release from the law office of Orange County, California attorney Douglas J. Pettibone:70-year-old Arizona resident Mona Dobben stands up and takes down a 20-billion-dollar Mortgage Company by winning a $100,000.00 judgment which includes punitive damages...

2nd Pa. Attorney To Go Down In Alleged Scam That Peddled Bogus Sale Leasebacks That Purported To Save Homeowners From Foreclosure

Posted on February 17, 2010
In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the Bucks County Courier Times reports:Attorney and Doylestown Township Supervisor Jeffrey Bennett will plead guilty to criminal charges of conspiracy, mail fraud and wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering Wednesday in Philadelphia...

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Seattle FHLBB Goes After Wall Street Firms In Attempt To Force Them To Buy Back Soured Mortgage-Backed Securities

Posted on February 17, 2010
In Seattle, Washington, The Wall Street Journal reports:The Federal Home Loan Bank of Seattle has launched a series of lawsuits against Wall Street banks, seeking to force them to buy back souring mortgage-backed securities. In 11 separate lawsuits filed in late December in King County Superior Court in Washington, the Seattle bank alleges that it was misled by underwriters about the quality of

Indy Pair Get 5+ Years In Mortgage Scam Using Unwitting Victims' Stolen I.D.s To Score $23M+ In Home Loans

Posted on February 17, 2010
In Indianapolis, Indiana, The Indianapolis Star reports:[Beverly A. Ross, 51,] was sentenced to more than five years in prison for her role in a multi-million dollar mortgage fraud scheme.(1) [...] Ross's partner in the scheme, Donella Locke, 60, Indianapolis, was sentenced to 71 months in prison last month and must pay $2...

Attorneys Offering Dubious Loan Modification Services To Financially Strapped Homeowners Hits National Media

Posted on February 17, 2010
In Dallas, Texas, CBS News reports:[Dallas-area homeowner Warren Jacobs] unwittingly became one of the many thousands of homeowners authorities allege have been taken in by unscrupulous or incompetent loan modification attorneys who rushed into a burgeoning legal niche: helping financially struggling homeowners re-negotiate their mortgages...

Florida Appeals Court "Deep-Sixes" Rubber-Stamped Foreclosure Judgment; Kicks Case Back To Trial Court For Further Proceedings

Posted on February 16, 2010
Another rubber-stamping trial judge has ostensibly been caught with egg on his face by a state appeals court in a mortgage foreclosure action. This time, a three-judge panel of Florida's 2nd District Court of Appeal "threw the flag" on Sarasota County Circuit Court Robert B...

More On Multiple Hat-Wearing Vice Presidents & Their Role In Residential Mortgage Foreclosure Actions

Posted on February 16, 2010
Recently stumbled upon while floating around in cyberspace is a Motion For Sanction Of Dismissal With Prejudice filed in July, 2009 by legal counsel for a defendant/homeowner in a 2008 mortgage foreclosure action (Indymac Federal Bank FSB v. Israel A...

Ohio Appeals Court Gives Reminder On Importance Of "Real Party In Interest" Rule

Posted on February 16, 2010
In a recent ruling by an Ohio Court of Appeals in which it unanimously reversed a trial court's decision to grant what ostensibly was a rubber-stamped summary judgment in a foreclosure action, the three-judge panel gave this reminder of the importance that a foreclosing entity be a "real party in interest" in order to bring the lawsuit (reference to "Moore," below is a reference to the defendant/

Federal Judge Refuses To Intervene In Alleged Rubber-Stamping, Rocket Docket System Of Handling F'closures Against "No-Show" Homeowners In C. Florida

Posted on February 16, 2010
In Sarasota, Florida, the Sarasota Herald Tribune reports:A federal judge has issued a warning to Florida's homeowners in foreclosure: You'd better fight if you want your rights. U.S. District Judge James Moody threw out a lawsuit that claimed the judicial system in Sarasota and Manatee counties violates the rights of homeowners who do not contest their foreclosure...

Hawaii Feds Win Conviction Of Man Who Used Straw Buyers In Sale Leaseback Foreclosure Rescue Ripoffs; Pocketed $430K+ In Two Equity Stripping Scams

Posted on February 15, 2010
In Honolulu, Hawaii, the Star Bulletin reports:A Nevada businessman was convicted Wednesday of 22 felony counts, for swindling banks and two struggling homeowners on Oahu out of their homes and loan proceeds. A federal jury convicted John Gilbert Mendoza, 58, on one count of conspiracy, 10 counts of mail and wire fraud, two counts of loan fraud, six counts of money laundering and three counts of

Role Played By Unlicensed "Broker" In Foreclosure Rescue Ripoff Violated State R/E License Law, Enough To Sink Sale Leaseback, Says C. Fla. Civil Jury

Posted on February 15, 2010
In Sarasota, Florida, the St. Petersburg Times reports:In 2005, Thomas Cook told 68-year-old Yolanda Rodriguez that the St. Petersburg company he worked for could help save her home from foreclosure. Instead, Garco Inc. got the deed to the house, and Rodriguez, who was evicted, lost as much as $200,000 in equity...

Peddling Bogus Sale Leasebacks To Homeowners In Danger Of Foreclosure Among Criminal Allegations Facing Missouri Pair, Say St. Louis Feds

Posted on February 15, 2010
In St. Louis, Missouri, the St. Louis Business Journal reports:A St. Charles developer and mortgage broker and a Lake St. Louis woman have been indicted on multiple mortgage fraud charges. Jeremy Beadle, 37, of St. Charles, was president of Network Ventures, a business engaged in mortgage processing and real estate brokerage, and also the rehabilitation of real estate properties in need of

Fla. High Court Enacts Procedural Rules To Apply In Residential F'closre Mediations; Seeks To Tamp Down Use Of "Lost Note" Affidavits, "Sewer Service"

Posted on February 15, 2010
In Tallahassee, Florida, The Associated Press reports:Lenders will be required to pick up the tab for investigating and verifying ownership and then try mediation before foreclosing Florida home mortgages under new rules approved Thursday by the Florida Supreme Court...

Ohio Appeals Court Rejects "Rubber Stamp Method" In Adjudicating Foreclosure; "Servicer Switch" Caused Payment Posting Screw-Up, Says Homeowner

Posted on February 14, 2010
The following facts have been extracted from a recent ruling of an Ohio appeals court involving a residential foreclosure action:Flagstar Bank files a complaint commencing a foreclosure action against homeowners Moore and Braxton, alleging a default in the loan payments...

Connecticut Real Estate Agent Cops Plea In Short Sale Scam

Posted on February 14, 2010
In Bridgeport, Connecticut, The Bridgeport News.com reports:A Bridgeport man has pleaded guilty to one count of bank fraud stemming from his involvement in a ?short sale?(1) mortgage fraud scheme. Sergio Natera, 35, a licensed real estate agent who lives in Bridgeport, admitted his involvement in the crime in Bridgeport federal court on Feb...

New Hampshire Man Faces Charges Of Illegally Pocketing Upfornt Fees, Failing To Make Good On Promises In Separate Loan Modification, Refinance Scams

Posted on February 14, 2010
From the New Hampshire Department of Justice:[Eric W.] Eliason [aka Ricky Masci], 30, of Tamworth New Hampshire, is charged with crimes that occurred in connection with his business, Deaf and Hard of Hearing Mortgage Consultants.(1) The first set of complaints allege that the defendant took up-front money to assist hard of hearing victims in completing a loan modification of their home mortgage.

Signing Over Deed & Handing Over Keys To Distressed NYC Rental Complex Not As Easy As It Sounds; Proposed Transfer Estimated To Cost $90M In Fees

Posted on February 14, 2010
In New York City, Bloomberg reports:Tishman Speyer Properties LP and BlackRock Inc. haven?t handed Manhattan?s biggest apartment complex to creditors as they pledged two weeks ago, in part because of questions over payment of about $90 million in taxes...

Lender's 40 Cent Posting Error When Deducting Automatic Payment From Bank Account Leaves Homeowner In Fear Of Foreclosure

Posted on February 13, 2010
In Lee County, Florida, WINK News reports:In the middle of the multi-billion dollar foreclosure crisis, there's a southwest Florida family that could lose their house over a 40 cent mistake. According to the homeowner, that mistake was his lender's fault...

Name Of Famous Fictional TV Character Invoked In NYC Federal Fair Housing Lawsuit To Describe Alleged Race-Discriminatory Practices At Bronx Co-Op

Posted on February 13, 2010
In New York City, Courthouse News Service reports:A real estate broker barred black people from two large "racially segregated enclaves" in the Bronx, telling them that residents of Silver Beach Gardens and Edgewater Park are "kind of prejudiced" and the co-ops are "Archie Bunker territory," the Fair Housing Justice Center claims in Federal Court...

Unwitting Couple Purchase Property Once Used As Meth Lab; Now Face F'closure After Making 3+ Years Of House Payments On Toxic Home Used For One Week

Posted on February 13, 2010
In Prattville, Alabama, the Montgomery Advertiser reports:The only room in this one-story house safe enough for human inhabitation is a small, non-ventilated room with a toilet, and even that is toxic. Brenda Maitland bought the house, hidden just off Alabama 59, about four years ago...

Alleged $2,500 Loan Modification Ripoff Leaves Denver Senior Facing Foreclosure; Ownership Of Home Of 25 Years In Jeopardy

Posted on February 13, 2010
In Denver, Colorado, KDVR-TV Channel 31 reports:70-year-old Connie Somerhalder thought she was going to stay in the home she has owned for 25 years. Instead, she just found out she got scammed out of $2500.00 and her home is in foreclosure. "I've been here almost 25 years, then somebody comes along and takes it all away, it hurts," Connie said...

Law Firm Uses "Reverse Foreclosure" To Stick Foot-Dragging Lender With Title To Unwanted Condo Unit; Has 82 More Cases In Pipeline

Posted on February 13, 2010
In Miami, Florida, Historic City Times reports:In a process known as a ?reverse foreclosure,? a Miami-Dade Circuit Court judge has forced a bank to take title to a property from a homeowners association. ?It?s new, and it addresses what we think is a huge problem in Florida,? according to published reports from attorney Ben Solomon who represented the South Miami-Dade homeowners association in

Ten Southwest Ohio Homeowners Demand Actual, Punitive Damages From BofA For Stiffing Them On Loan Modification Promises, Says Suit

Posted on February 12, 2010
In Cincinnati, Ohio, Business Courier of Cincinnati reports:Lawyers at the Legal Aid Society of Southwest Ohio have filed a lawsuit against Bank of America, alleging it failed to follow through on promises it made to modify mortgage loans. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of 10 Ohio homeowners who participated in a federal ?borrower outreach? program in Cincinnati last October...

Loan Mod Outfit Settles Suit w/ State AG Alleging Unlicensed Activity; Agrees To Refund Customer Cash, Pay $5K Penalty, Promises Never To Do It Again

Posted on February 12, 2010
From the Office of the Nevada Attorney General:Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto announced [] that an agreement has been reached with Focus 2000 Financial Corporation regarding its unlicensed loan modification program. The State of Nevada has alleged that Focus 2000 Financial Corporation operated a loan modification service without the proper licensing by the Nevada Mortgage Lending

Failure To Allege Charging Of Excessive Interest In Sale Leaseback, Foreclosure Rescue Suit Fatal To Usury Claim

Posted on February 12, 2010
In a recent ruling awarding a six-figure judgment to a New Jersey homeowner/couple who were swindled in an equity stripping, foreclosure rescue ripoff, a Federal bankruptcy judge recharacterized a sale leaseback as an equitable mortgage, and granted relief on most of the Plaintiff/homeowners' claims...

Rent Scammers Among Those Targeted By Brooklyn DA In Recent Real Estate Scam Sweep

Posted on February 12, 2010
In Brooklyn, New York, the New York Daily News recent report on indictments obtained by the Brooklyn District Attorney against 12 people in unrelated real estate scams described the following alleged rent scams ensnared by his probe:Earl Davis placed an ad on Craigslist and collected a full year's rent in advance after giving the victim a forged lease,Correction Officer Margareth Blanc collected

Pennsylvania Attorney First To Cop Plea In Alleged Sale Leaseback, Equity Stripping Ripoff Targeting Homeowners Seeking Foreclosure Rescue

Posted on February 11, 2010
In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the Philadelphia Daily News reports:A Doylestown lawyer admitted his guilt [] in federal court in connection with a $14.6 million mortgage-fraud scheme that victimized 35 homeowners from fall 2004 to June 2007. Stephen G...

St. Louis County Offers Free Service To Battle Real Estate Swindles Involving Use Of Forged Docs & Land Instruments In Home Equity & Title Ripoffs

Posted on February 11, 2010
In St. Louis, Missouri, the St. Louis Globe Democrat includes the following excerpt in a story reporting that mortgage fraud is the top priority of the white collar crime squad of the St. Louis-area FBI:St. Louis County is doing their part in preventing mortgage crime by now offering a free property fraud alert service for residents...

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