Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott has charged Coppell, Texas-based American Home Mortgage Servicing Inc. (AHMS) with using illegal debt collection tactics and improperly misleading struggling homeowners. According to state investigators, AHMS collections agents used aggressive and unlawful tactics to collect payments from Texas homeowners who had difficulty meeting their payment obligations. The defendant also failed to credit homeowners who properly submitted their payments on time.Read more

The office of Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley has obtained consent judgments against five defendants that perpetrated an unlawful foreclosure rescue scheme against multiple homeowners facing foreclosure that stripped and retained hundreds of thousands of dollars of the victims' home equity. The judgments, entered against Primary Mortgage Resource, Leo Desire Sr., Robert Marks, Pierre Joseph and Daphne Mompoint, provide for payments of restitution to victims and civil penalties to the Commonwealth and prohibit the defendants from engaging in certain activities that facilitRead more

Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley’s Office has concluded its case against former Brockton, Mass. attorney Alec G.Read more

Fannie Mae has announced the launch of KnowYourOptions.com, a new consumer education Web site that outlines the choices available to homeowners who are struggling with their mortgage payments, and provides guidance on how they can contact and work with their mortgage company to find solutions. The online resource, which offers reliable and easy-to-understand information in both English and Spanish, expands on Fannie Mae's ongoing efforts to help struggling borrowers find alternatives to foreclosure.Read more

Home Assure LLC, a company that deceived consumers with promises it could save their homes from foreclosure, will pay $2.4 million to victims as part of a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The case is part of the FTC's continuing crackdown on scams that prey on financially distressed homeowners. According to the FTC’s complaint, Home Assure LLC conducted a nationwide marketing campaign designed to take advantage of struggling homeowners by offering so-called mortgage foreclosure rescue services.Read more

Communication Intelligence Corporation (CIC), a supplier of electronic signature solutions for business process automation in the financial industry, and LenderLive Network Inc., a provider of business process outsourcing and loss mitigation component services to the financial industry, have announced they have entered into a licensing agreement to incorporate CIC's SignatureOne Ceremony Server into LenderLive's suite of products.Read more

Citi Chief Executive Officer Vikram Pandit has announced a foreclosure suspension program for CitiMortgage-owned mortgages in coastal areas hard-hit by the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The aim of this program is to allow distressed homeowners to remain in their homes during these uncertain times as the Gulf communities respond to the oil spill and its economic repercussions. During the three-month suspension, effective June 17-Sept.Read more

The Distressed Property Institute LLC, hosted nearly 700 real estate professionals at its national convention, CDPE Momentum 2010 in Tempe, Ariz. Leaders from Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Prospect Mortgage, Fidelity National Title and RealtyTrac were on hand to provide industry updates and information to help agents better assist distressed homeowners. “Since 2008, the CDPEs nationwide have helped hundreds of thousands of homeowners avoid foreclosure,” said Alex Charfen, chief executive officer of the Distressed Property Institute LLC.Read more

Ocwen Financial Corporation, a servicer of sub-prime mortgages, has converted the highest percentage of trial loan modifications for distressed homeowners to permanent status, when compared with the other servicers participating in the U.S.Read more

The Advertising Council, in partnership with NeighborWorksAmerica, has announced the launch of new national public service advertisements (PSAs) designed to educate homeowners about where they can turn for help if they are at risk of foreclosure. The campaign encourages distressed homeowners to call the Homeowner’s HOPE Hotline, a free resource that helps homeowners facing foreclosure move closer to finding a resolution.Read more