Beware of Loan Scams

Don’t Be a Victim of Loan Scams
GSUL Housing Counseling Agency wants to help you avoid becoming a victim of loan fraud. Scammers are preying on people trying to save their homes, and more than $25 million has already been lost by homeowners across the country eager to save their homes.

Possible Titles Scam Artists May Use

• Loan Modification Consultant
• Forensic Loan Auditor
• Mortgage Loan Auditor
• Foreclosure Consultant
• Foreclosure Prevention Specialist
• Mortgage Consultant
• Short Sale Negotiator

You should never have to pay for real help. Visit or call our office to meet for free with highly trained HUD-approved counselors, visit www.IAmEmpowered.com/loanscams for red flags and fraud warning signs, or click on the links to the lower right to report fraud or suspicious activity and learn more about these scams. For more information, call (888) 995-HOPE or visit the website www.hud.gov/preventloanscams.

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The National Urban League is Helping to Get the Word Out and Prevent Scams

 

For more information on the campaign, more tips, and outreach materials

 

Help Stop Loan Modification / Foreclosure Rescue Scams! If you think you have been scammed, click here to submit a complaint online or call 916-487-1200.

 

For more information on scams and pro bono attorneys in your area

 

Apply with a HUD-Approved Counselor Today.

Top 6 Warning Signs of a Foreclosure Scam

Scams aren't always easy to spot – but it helps if you know the warning signs. Here are six red flags that you may be dealing with a loan modification scammer:
 

1. A company/person asks for a fee in advance to work with your lender to modify, refinance or reinstate your mortgage. They may pocket your money and do little or nothing to help you save your home from foreclosure.
2. A company/person guarantees they can stop a foreclosure or get your loan modified. Nobody can make this guarantee to stop foreclosure or modify your loan. Legitimate, trustworthy HUD-approved counseling agencies will only promise they will try their very best to help you and they will work hard to get you the best solution for your situation.
3. A company/person advises you to stop paying your mortgage company and pay them instead. Despite what a scammer will tell you, you should never send a mortgage payment to anyone other than your mortgage lender. The minute you have trouble making your monthly payment, contact your mortgage lender.
4. A company pressures you to sign over the deed to your home or sign any paperwork that you haven't had a chance to read, and you don't fully understand. A legitimate housing counselor would never pressure you to sign a document before you had a chance to read and understand it.
5. A company claims to offer "government-approved" or "official government" loan modifications. They may be scam artists posing as legitimate organizations approved by, or affiliated with, the government. Contact your mortgage lender or a HUD-approved housing counselor first. Your lender or counselor can tell you whether you qualify for any government programs to prevent foreclosure. And, remember, you do not have to pay to benefit from government-backed loan modification programs.
6. A company/person you don’t know asks you to release personal financial information online or over the phone. You should only give this type of information to companies that you know and trust, like your mortgage lender or a HUD-approved counseling agency and only once you can verify that they are who they say they are.