Just Finance Information

Look Out For Foreclosure Assistance Scams

April 8th, 2008 Subscribe To Our Feed

Too often people find themselves facing financial difficulties. In extreme cases this can involve having their homes go into foreclosure. Due to the increasing number of people facing this problem each year, there have been many crooks who have surfaced offering foreclosure assistance to unsuspecting victims. Often these 'scammers' end up with more than just your money. They end up with your house as well.

If you have beed served a foreclosure notice, take a moment to educate yourself on the following ways that these crooks take advantage of people so you are forearmed before requesting any foreclosure assistance. Otherwise you may well end up their next victim!

If it sounds "Too Good To Be True" . . .

. . . it probably is. When you’ve got money troubles, it’s easy to get caught up in whatever type of help anyone offers you. This is especially true if you are in need of foreclosure assistance to keep from losing your home. One of the many types of scams that con artists use in order to take the unwitting victims' money is called Equity Skimming. In this scam, someone will approach you and offer to buy your home to get you out of trouble. The crook insists that you deed the property to him or her in order to avoid foreclosure, and then implies that you will receive a certain percentage of the profit when the property sells.

Too often, however, once you have willingly signed over your rights to the house, the con artist simply rents the home out for a short while to make some quick cash. The bank still forecloses on the loan, and you have absolutely nothing to show for it. If that wasn't bad enough, signing over the deed to your home does not negate what you owe your mortgage company so you could still find yourself liable for the reapayments.

Look Out For "Help Us Help You"

Illegitimate foreclosure assistance counseling agencies often prey upon those in need of financial help. These services promise that, for a small fee, they can work with your lenders to get you aditional help. Too often, however, the assistance they promise to provide is something you could well do yourself free of charge. The majority of these "counseling" services only call to negotiate a temporary payment arrangement with your lender. This is a step you should take yourself before calling in anyone else to help.

Anytime you request foreclosure assistance, be sure that you get all promises in writing. Never sign anything without the advice of an attorney, and contact your District Attorney’s Consumer Fraud Unit to check the legitamcy of the company/person you are thinking of dealing with.