Foreclosure Rescue Scams

Beware of foreclosure rescue scams. While not all companies that approach you to help you save your home are trying to take advantage of you, you need to be cautious if someone offers help that sounds too good to be true.

Foreclosure scam artists take advantage of people who are facing foreclosure. After learning that a consumer may be facing foreclosure, scam artists may contact the homeowner in person, by mail, over the telephone or by e-mail. They may advertise their services on web sites or publications. They often refer to themselves with titles that sound official, such as “foreclosure consultant” or “mortgage consultant,” and market themselves as a “foreclosure service,” a “foreclosure rescue agency or “loss mitigation company.”

A company that takes a fee to help consumer’s who are in debt, must be licensed by the Maine Bureau of Consumer Credit Protection.  Give our office a call before you send money to a foreclosure rescue company, or before you let them take money out of your bank account.  Our toll-free consumer number is 1-800-332-8529 (1-800-DEBT-LAW); and our foreclosure prevention hotline is 1-888-664-2569 (1-888-NO-4-CLŌZ).

A reputable counselor will not:

• Promise to save your credit or stop the foreclosure process.
• Request a fee in exchange for housing counseling services or modification of a delinquent loan.
• Tell you they can “save” your home if you sign or transfer over the deed to your house.
• Tell you to make your mortgage payments to someone other than your lender.