Florida wracked by mortgage and foreclosure schemes
by Snets ~ March 3rd, 2009. Filed under: Blog.Complaints from Floridians about fraudulent mortgage schemes and questionable foreclosure-rescue services were the most common concerns reported to state regulators in 2008, according to a report released Monday by Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum.
Consumers filed 7,305 complaints related to mortgage and foreclosure schemes, followed by 5,103 complaints about debt-collection services, collection agencies and credit-reporting companies.
The Attorney General’s Mortgage Fraud Task Force now has more than 35 active investigations and has filed several lawsuits that originated from the complaints.
State officials said the complaints indicate the troubled financial times are boom times for con artists who take advantage of Florida residents.
The mortgage loan business in Florida is already in a shambles and yet the parasites continue to feed. We cannot express to you how important it is that you research any lender or loan modification company you might seek to do business with. While regulations are set to tighten in the near future, opportunists are wasting no time when it comes to taking advantage of the desperate. If you are looking to modify your Florida mortgage loan, or refinance it, you need to make sure that you are dealing with a reputable company that has been in business for a while and who has no complaints filed against them. You can utilize various resources such as www.flofr.com (state site which gives you licensing and complaint information for Florida mortgage brokers, lenders, etc.) and www.sunbiz.org which you can use to see how long a company has been in business.
We’ve said it before and we will continue to say it, the Florida mortgage market is an absolute gold mine for crooks. We’re no longer just battling against companies that are publishing bogus rates that they can’t deliver, it’s far worse than that. These companies are offering loan modifications, refinances and other services that they cannot deliver, dishing out hope only to compound misery. Please, please, please, get informed and when you finally do decide on a company to work with, be vigilant and stay on them to deliver what they promised.
