Recent Broward Law Blog Features

Friday, February 13, 2009

AG McCollum Sues Over Foreclosure Rescue Scams


For years all we had to worry about were those Williams Brothers putting a fake roof on our home. Now we gotta deal with guys in suits working as con artists to steal your home itself. Maybe Attorney General Bill McCollum will do something about it.


McCollum today announced that his Economic Crimes Division has filed a lawsuit against an Orlando company allegedly providing loan modification services to homeowners facing foreclosure – the first lawsuit filed under the new Foreclosure Rescue Fraud Prevention Act. According to the lawsuit filed today in Orange County, FMA Servicing, Inc. and its owners are in violation of the law which, among other provisions, prohibits a company providing foreclosure-related rescue services from charging consumers any up-front fee.


Florida Statutes 501.1377, which took effect on October 1, 2008, protects homeowners who are in foreclosure or nearing foreclosure from companies offering potentially fraudulent foreclosure “rescue” services. Specifically, the statute governs companies providing foreclosure-related rescue services including loan modification and short sale services.


Consumers affected by these practices may file a complaint by visiting the Attorney General’s website at http://http://www.myfloridalegal.com/ or calling the fraud hotline at 1-866-966-7226.


Be careful. The economy is hurting. If you are not, you know friends who are. Be alert for the scam, the sell, the sultry sounds of seduction promising you the deals of a lifetime.

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