By Moe Bedard – I don’t really like to toot my own horn, but sometimes it is necessary to get the word out there. I am proud to announce my website at www.LoanSafe.org has helped 19 homeowners save their homes from foreclosure since it inception in August of 2007. It is quite an accomplishment from one man with “zero funding” and the support of other homeowners.
I was featured on CBS KCAL News on 2/2/2007 under the title “Blogger Saves Homes” and also an upcoming interview in the Press Enterprise (Local Inland Empire, Ca. Newspaper) this Friday.
You can view the CBS/KCAL L.A. news piece here. I loved how they opened up my news segment, “While congress is trying to figure out to clean up the foreclosure mess, a blogger is offering free advice online to help people save their homes.” That was great!
LoanSafe.org Press Release
With zero funding and nothing but the goodwill of about 1,000 members, a new Web site has managed to save 19 homeowners from almost certain foreclosure.
Corona, CA (PRWEB) February 6, 2008 — As foreclosures nationwide skyrocket, one site has vowed to help homeowners keep their homes. LoanSafe.org (http://www.loansafe.org) is the brainchild of Moe Bedard, a California man who is using his connections in the industry to save homeowners from certain foreclosure and he’s doing it all for free.
Bedard launched the unique site six months ago as a place where people facing foreclosures and skyrocketing adjustable rate mortgages could meet and discuss their options. In in the past six months the site has grown to nearly 1,000 members and has successfully saved 18 homeowners from foreclosure.
All 18 of the homeowners stories have been chronicled on the Web site. Most of the members fought for 3-4 months before receiving a loan modification that could save their homes. However, their perseverance prevailed, as one member of Loan Safe even received a personalized loan modification letter from the office of Angelo Mozilo, President of Countrywide.
“As the foreclosure epidemic continues to grow, I see more and more people looking for help,” said Bedard. “As two and three year adjustable rate mortgages start to reset, people are finding themselves looking for anything that could possibly save their homes. There was a need on the Internet for a safe and free place, where homeowners could meet and get critical information that would help them save their homes. I felt I could provide some useful information to these people, such as how to get a loan modification, so I started LoanSafe.org. I had no idea it was going to grow as fast as it did. I guess even I underestimated the impact these adjustable rate mortgages are having on the country.”
In it’s short six month life, LoanSafe.org has already received more than 500,000 visits. In contrast, the Hope Now Alliance, a fully-funded government program created to help homeowners in much the same way as LoanSafe.org, has only reached about 200,000 people in the past six months. Bedard credits the members of LoanSafe.org for its success.
“The forum is full of homeowners, attorneys, foreclosure prevention & loan modification experts, and regular folks and nobody is asking for anything in return,” said Bedard. “We’ve proven that most people can keep their homes, they just have to learn what needs to be done.”
“Well it’s finally over! We got our loan modified and fixed for the next seven years,” stated a Texas woman who goes by the name of TxAngel. “If it weren’t for this forum, I don’t know if I would have done any of it the right way. I didn’t even know what a loan modification was.”
For more information on LoanSafe.org, please visit http://www.loansafe.org
About LoanSafe.org
LoanSafe.org is a support community that is built around the premise of paying it forward. Their main goal is to help homeowners find ways to successfully stop foreclosure on their homes.Contact Information:
Moe Bedard
moe @ loansafe.org
951-736-6796
http://www.loansafe.org
{ 2 trackbacks }
{ 36 comments… read them below or add one }
Great job Moe!
19 down and only 2.1 million to go
great job
Keep up the great work Moe. You are changing lives for the better and that is always a good thing. I have to get a link up on my site to you. Been meaning to do it for a while now.
Thank you!! I’m on the Hope Committee in Dallas–working hard on getting the word out–what a refreshing idea!! Words cannot express!!
Wow!
Yay what a happy story. Just postponing the inevitable in most cases though. I would be surprised if a single one of these works out for more than 2 years. Just jingle mail it people and rent something
Nice job on his part. Even keeping an extra 19 people in their homes is more than Congress can take credit for, since their policies have been directly or indirectly responsible for the over 2 million expected to face foreclosure. That’s a deep hole to dig oneself out of, but good thing the market is there to help clean up messes left over after government involvement.
Way to go, Moe.
Thanks ya all!
Moe:
I do not know your take on this but I am interested where you stand. For the majority of deliquent “home owners” out there who are way upside down on their homes (which includes most of southern California), do you advise that they continue to work on a loan modification which will guarantee that they continue to live hand to mouth for the foreseeable future or hand the keys back to the bank and make another stab at homeownership 2-4 years down the road when homes are 50% of what they cost at the peak. I just do not see how a foreclosure will have the same impact on a person’s credit given the number of people who have been impacted by this and greed once again takes over the lending market. What do advise?
Moe,
This is awesome. Very sorry for my snide comments on your blog last week, I was very agitated and this whole thing has me very stressed out. Nonetheless, your efforts and insight are invaluable and I wish you and the other members of the forum continued success.
Congratulations Moe. Great piece on KCal 9…..Keep up the good work.
Moe,
You’ve helped more than 19. Just being involved with this forum, I was able to help two homeowners modify their mortgage and save their home. Education. Education.
You are David fighting the Goliath [s] Its nice to see the little guys winning at least a few. doesnt happen in this country very often anymore. We as a nation have been sold off to the god of profits and the modern day lords who have turned us from a nation of citizens into a nation of consumers to be bleed dry and ever increasingly complex financial schemes. I have read the stories of some of the homeowners who are on your site. The pain that these bloodsucking shyster mortgage compaies arre causing the good citizens of this country is truly sickening. I can only hope that thee is a special place reserved in hell for those who have made their millions by causing pain to our fellow citizens. The story of Laserus and the rich man comes to mind
Fight on
Yeah for Moe!!! You’re an inspiration to all of us. Thank you on behalf of all the struggling homeowners out there!
Chris that’s phenonmenal, that you helped some borrowers modify their loans. Whaaaaaaay to go!!!
TOOT-TOOT Moe, you go right ahead!!! There are tons of people who are greatful for your hard work and dedication.
Moe its great that you are providing homeowners with such valuable information.
Facing a foreclosure can be a real night mare.
However these guys really helped me during my hour of crisis.
http://www.loansafe.org
Just thought I’d pass on the info and hope its helps.
how do i get my mortgage company involved? let’s see on average 5 to 10 loans means i will be getting paid $500 to $1,000 per client on your payscale and i have unlimited leads. you guy’s take care of all compliance send out all discolsures. pay for all my computer support and the 1,000 other things that go into originating a loan. i’m in, sounds to good to be true. where is naca getting there money from? why can’t i get the same programs? if we had those programs at our disposal i could probably service the customers at a 20% discount. compared to a non profit. give us the same playing feild and will run over these places like a bunch of savages.
Article says …”The Housing Consultant provides individual counseling from the initial intake to the mortgage closing including counseling regarding: credit, budget, mortgage qualification, property search and inspection, mortgage processing, and closing….”
Read as:
- Credit Counseler
- Budget / Life Style Counseler
- Realtor
- Loan Officer
- Processor
- Underwriter
- Closer / Funder
7 jobs for $45k-65K a year.
Think I’ll stay For-Profit.
Thanks for offering.
NACA does great work but everyone should then be able to get a loan from them…no income limits or zip codes limits …now that would be fair!!! The program should be made available to every american!!!
What’s next ..buy a car direct from Toyota…good bye dealer!
I hope the newer ones do better than NACA. NACA has a very long history of bad news for lenders – and their consumers. Check out some of the legal investigations into their ‘non profit’. They fund themselves by scamming, I mean shaking down, I mean ‘asking’ big lenders for ‘donations’ (instead of lawsuits to tie them up in court). Some of their own ‘loan officers’ have some choice words. Might ask some of their customers how well they perform too.
In response to CAJones: I am a NACA Housing Consultant. Yes, we are a “bulldog” not for profit. We do not “scam”. We advocate for our members. People that have been taken advantage of, lied to, and flat out scammed by traditional mortgage brokers, have found salvation at NACA. Yes, we have members that complain about the NACA way. Mostly people that do not have the patience to get a loan base on affordability. That is what NACA does. Comprehensive budget counseling, credit counseling, and neighborhood stabilization are the NACA bullet points. I have plenty of members that will give you positive feedback as well as our housing counselors. Yes, we have growing pains, and yes it might take longer than a traditional broker, but we have the lowest default rate in the industry since we absolutely will not put a member in a home that they can not afford and are not ready for. I look forward to any response and or constructive criticism.
Jason: “I look forward to any response and or constructive criticism.”
Hey Jason, how about some support?
“We absolutely will not put a member in a home that they can not afford and are not ready for.” ~ Jason
Amen! An organization with some integrity!
Let me get this straight, a \’e2\’80\’9cmortgage consultant\’e2\’80\’9d gets paid 55K\’e2\’80\’a6\’e2\’80\’a6for working with say 75 borrowers a year. And this is non-profit? Let\’e2\’80\’99s do some quick math here 75 borrowers x 200k per loan (average?) is 15 million dollars in volume\’e2\’80\’a6now I\’e2\’80\’99m a wholesale AE for an FHA lender and I get, lets say 10 basis points on volume, so for that same 15 million I would only get paid 15k\’e2\’80\’a6not 55k. Does that make my company a non profit company? I suppose the big cheese at NACA are Franciscan monks who has taken a vow of poverty? Don\’e2\’80\’99t make me laugh.
This is really a great idea though. I could open a broker shop called\’e2\’80\’a6
\’e2\’80\’9cnon-profit loans R US\’e2\’80\’9d and do just one product (FHA Loans) I will offer the same below market rate to every borrower (exactly .125% less than Chase Bank) I will charge no points, I will charge no fees and according to the rates today I will make exactly $3,746 on every two-hundred thousand dollar deal whilst paying my \’e2\’80\’9cmortgage consultant\’e2\’80\’9d 500 bucks for every one they close. I will not commit loan fraud; I will not put a borrower into a loan they cannot afford (That\’e2\’80\’99s FHA\’e2\’80\’99s rule not mine actually) and I will require my borrowers to attend a home affordability/ budgeting class\’e2\’80\’a6. Oh yea and I will become filthy rich selling really great loans to all the well intentioned idiots out there that cant seem to understand that if I fund in my company\’e2\’80\’99s name and with my company\’e2\’80\’99s money (borrowed money) then I don\’e2\’80\’99t have to disclose the YSP and it looks as if I\’e2\’80\’99m doing the loan for free\’e2\’80\’a6..what a deal!!!
Holy crap some people really are stupid, its no wonder there are so many crooks in the mortgage industry.
CTAN
CTAN
Welcome back, good to hear from you. I agree with you !!!
This is confusing me a bit. Overall it sounds good, but….
1) These guys are still payed by commission instead of a salary, so it is in their best interest to process as many loans as possible. There is an incentive to take shortcuts on the consulting (too time consuming) and to encourage the borrowers to sign even if it’s not in their best interest. I have no reason to believe at this time the corporate culture encourages this, but the potential is there. Admittedly it is better than the private sector pay structure, but I’d still prefer to see a straight salary.
2) How do they stay in business? Even non-profits have to generate revenue to cover salaries (or commissions), infrastructure costs, IT (NACA Lynx sounds expensive), etc. Are they getting government funding? If not, the borrower is paying somehow. I don’t have a problem with a borrower paying for the service they’re receiving but it makes me nervous that it is being so well hidden.
I looked around the net for answers to my number 2 question and couldn’t find it. If anyone knows, please post. I’m not against NACA as they seem a better option than conventional lending for the most part, but when something seems to good to be true….
Comment: Guys I would really recommend these fellows: http://www.loansafe.org they really helped me when I was facing a SCARY foreclosure scenario. With their loan modification/loan restructuring plan they saved my house from being foreclosed. They provide loan refinancing facilities as well.
Al,
No it’s not better than the private sector for the L.O. There is also a draw component attached to the salary if you don’t perform up to specs. If you don’t perform you get switched to an $8hr. per diem. And on that draw, you owe that money when your commission final shows up.
Read CTAN explanation again. It’s right there. They are making alot of money. Expenses are being covered. The L.O. is taking the short because in essence they are only data entry clerks.
Hi Chris,
Hope all is well ! I see you are a broker in NJ and have worked at WAMU. Did you know J . Regan …wholesale rep?
Paul
Different Chris. I use to work at Aegis Retail years ago. I’m a broker in Louisiana. What in the hell happened to the Pats?
A big can of Giant whoopass !!!
Everyone knew there was a problem coming with the way sub-prime $ was being handed out left and right. The non-profits are not just that. They are paid with kickbacks in the the form of grants from the banks through Fannie. Very few LO’s make much more than the esteemed “counselors”. Brokers maybe, but they are the ones that have to manage the LO’s.
Consumer Credit Counseling was established in the 1950’s I think by Sears and Wards to help people manage their credit purchases, and be a collection arm (in a different dress.) Fast forward to more recent times, this foreclosure (loss mitigation) trend has been coming in a big way since late 2006, not just last week, and a slew of the CCC imitators have been lining up for the last 3 years just for this occasion. Talk to the owner of USLM. He has been in the loss mitigation arena for over 20 years. The Non-profits profit well in both sides of the mortgage/foreclosure arena.
Would the big banks like to blame the LO? Sure. Better to have those guys working inside the bank getting $8 per hour. Would the same bank like to restrict brokers out there? Yup. Part of this has occurred because the sharing of information has become very easy with the internet. Many “broker” type entities have gone by the wayside.
Any rational fiduciary agent will provide good service, within the regulation of the law. Probably cuz if they do a good job …the client might give a referral. Does it mean the non-profit will provide better service…i sincerely doubt it. That counselor won’t be able to have a life until he pushes some loans…. gee…he might not even get to see how much his boss is making….
Never in my poison have i kissed a hostile advantage but her walnut tasted heavily as sweet.
salery plus annual compensation? sounds like commission to me.
non-profit simply they are required to spend the money they make or get as donations/grants and as some have said above – tend to request “donations”. I have worked with many non-profits and they have there place and have a nice ring to the public. make no mistake a bad apple non-profit can be just as bad for the industry as a bad apple traditional broker.
Almost all the credit debt negotiation agencies are non-profit….i once performed a loan for an owner of one of these not for profits…his income (i mean compensation) sure supprised me.
non-profits are typically required to take any excess (profit) money and funnel it back into the organization for programs, expenses, and oh yea compensation. it is a good concept but we need to understand it is simply the up front concept packaged well. part of the job of brokers is to consult with the client and discuss affordability and suggest programs for the benefit of the client..just because the bad apples were not doing this and the regulators were not regulating does not mean deceptive practices were the standard amongst any and all brokers.
i am for any entity that will consult, work for the financial benefit of the client and disclose their fee for their service they provide…no matter the rate or terms. does this entity disclose what the lender pays them for the deal?
the concept is interesting and has a place in the mortgage lending universe however it should not be a tool meant to replace the value and service traditional brokers also provide.
995-hope? more like 995-joke. Just more bullshit from Bush and as usual it never works.
Jason -
most lenders are now raising min. scores for FHA whereas before scores never mattered – do you think that NACA will begin to look at scores ever? thanks …
javi
I need to talk to consulant about my mortgage,looking for answers to guide me in the right direction Thanks