“Rescue scams are springing up across the U.S., says California Deputy Attorney General Angela Rosenau, exacerbating a housing crisis in its third year. The predators are persuading troubled borrowers they can intervene with their lenders and negotiate lower payments on their mortgages, law enforcement officials say. Instead, the players, often out-of-work real estate professionals who peddled subprime mortgages during the boom, pocket hundreds of thousands of dollars in advance fees and disappear or bleed their victims by charging monthly payments.”
Subprime Swindlers Reconnect to Homeowners in Foreclosure Scams [Bloomberg]

10 thoughts on “JustQuotes: Let’s Be Careful Out There People”
  1. Hey, look at these scams as a “jobs creation program”. All the unemployed subprime mortgage brokers, appraisers and realtors need new work 😉

  2. I’ve gotten a few ‘offers’ that are almost certainly scams. Besides the help with lowering mortgage payment scams noted above I’ve also gotten one that offered to assist me in getting the assesor to lower my property taxes. That one was designed to appear to be from some form of country assessor’s agency but the mailing address was from down in SoCal.

  3. Hey, look at these scams as a “jobs creation program”. All the unemployed subprime mortgage brokers, appraisers and realtors need new work
    You need new material. The axe you’re grinding because of the sticker shock you encountered when you moved here, and the subsequent disappointment you’re still feeling after missing out on an opportunity, is down to the wood handle.

  4. It sounds like “anonn” (flug??) is the one with the ax to grind.
    I grew up here so I didn’t have any sticker shock like LMRiM.
    Sure I could have made a couple hundred grand more if I sold my Burlingame home in 2005 vs. 2003, but I can buy a similar home in Burlingame today for close to 2003 prices (the Realtors told me that if I moved to the city and rented I would be “priced out forever”)…
    I am not “disapointed” (and from reading his posts I don’t think that LMRiM is either)…
    P.S. Why is pointing out the fact that many out of work mortgage brokers are involved with rescue scams grinding an ax?

  5. How do you know “so many” of them did for work previously, first of all? Let’s start with that question. And re: LMRiM, there’s a body of work. This site is archived. Check it out.

  6. From the article that is the subject of this thread:
    “Instead, the players [in the scams], often out-of-work real estate professionals who peddled subprime mortgages during the boom, pocket hundreds of thousands of dollars in advance fees and disappear or bleed their victims by charging monthly payments.” (Emphasis added.)
    In case anyone missed that, the editor quoted the language in the intro.
    And now we have a realtor on here bashing and questioning me and FAB where we get the info from. You just can’t make this stuff up.

  7. Weren’t mortgage brokers always involved in scams ? At least the two I’ve worked with over the years arranged less than honest deals.
    Business-as-usual from years past included underestimating closing costs, referring shady appraisers, and pushing overpriced loans. Its a short leap of conscience to near mail fraud.
    (yeah yeah, I know that there are honorable mortgage brokers out there and one of them is a good friend. Just had to take the opportunity to take a jab at those who ripped me off back in my more naive days)

  8. If you do a Google news search for mortgage rescue scams you will see that almost every AP wire story mentions that out of work real estate professionals are almost always involved [Removed by Editor]…

  9. I’ve always been enamored by that term “real estate professionals”.
    I always considered it a bit of a reach.
    Loving todays “give and take”.

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