As you know, real estate is a people profession. From the real estate agents in the field, to the loan officers or loan processors working with borrowers, to the title agents sitting down with families closing on their first home, we are people serving people. Those who would commit fraud know this, perhaps even better than we do. In addition, like those of us who are legitimately doing good business in the real estate finance industry, they need people to pull off their scams. What kind of people? Willing people, that’s who.Read more

The following statement was released today by Jeffery Markowitz, vice president of government and industry relations, Freddie Mac in support of the Columbus, Ohio launch of the “Loan Modification Scam Alert” campaign by a coalition of federal agencies, non-profit organizations, and Freddie Mac: “Loan modification fraud is nothing less than a pre-meditated attack on our communities and the housing recovery.Read more

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) has announced that it is releasing a free toolkit of information that will help borrowers, community stakeholders and the banking industry avoid unnecessary foreclosures and stop foreclosure "rescue" scams that promise false hope to consumers at risk of losing their homes. The tool kit includes critical information to help borrowers know who to contact and what documents they need to have available to apply for a loan modification that could save their home from foreclosure.Read more