Please see this website about "mortgage modification companies".
http://www.bankrate.com/finance/mortgages/avoiding-mortgage-modification-scams-1.aspx
In short, when it comes to mortgage modification:
Be skeptical.
Don't pay for help.
Don't transfer the property deed.
Ignore promises of shortcuts.
Be very skeptical of companies that offer "help" in mortgage modification even if they claim they are "not a mortgage modification company". Do NOT pay for "mortgage modification documents". What nonsense! I had a company like this call me today, even though I am on the "Do not call list". They claim it was a "mistake". It was no mistake; it was a robocall. We are refinancing, and I suspect that is why this company got our phone number. Contrary to what this company claimed, they were NOT returning my call. We have no reason to ask for help on mortgage modification. We are fortunate enough to not be refinancing because we can't afford the mortgage but because we want to pay it off sooner at a lower interest rate. "Ashley" at this company was evasive and refused to answer my questions. In CA and FL (where I practice law), it is against the law for a mortgage modification company to ask for fees up front. This company rents space in CA and is appears to be trying to circumvent California law requiring mortgage mod companies to register and pay $100000 bond.
BE VERY VERY skeptical.
It infuriates me that the companies are out there taking YOUR money for services that you can obtain for free, or with the help of an attorney if you are being defended by an attorney in the foreclosure case. I have referred clients to programs that can offer free help in helping with mortgage modification. I just see this picture of a harried borrower thinking they are getting a great deal to pay $1, 000 or $15000 for foreclosure modification documents that are worthless
DO NOt PANIC. Take this step by step = look for government agencies that can help diret you to the right sources.
I see that Quicken Loans was hit with a $3 million judgment, which included punitive damages for misrepresentation (to put it mildly). Sadly, $3 mil is probably a drop in the bucket for these guys. A legitimate lender would not take $500 up front. We just refinanced - to shorten the length of the loan and reduce interest to 3.75% fixed. But we did not pay $500 up front, and would never do so. Companies like this prey on people who can least afford it. There should be stronger regulation of these companies, but that won't happen anytime soon.
This was written by the law school grad who had her defenses stricken in a defamation case brought by Dr. Taylor. She faces sanctions for lying in court, according to the Daily Business Review. According to the Daily Business Review, "After a four-hour evidentiary hearing in November, Rodriguez erased all of Taylor's defenses and allowed her ex-husband to seek punitive damages... Court documents show Lynn Taylor used burner computers to write scathing posts and hired a private detective to access public WiFi networks, anonymously post comments against him on professional review sites, then toss the laptops into the ocean."
I have never met Dr. Taylor, and "truth" would have been a defense, but for this woman's fraud on the court is irrelevant. As a Florida attorney, I find these comments shocking and reflective of someone who is reckless and unbalanced. The Florida Board of Bar Examiners should be investigating her fitness to practice law. Hopefully if she loses this case, that will happen.
