The line of eager people was wrapped around the Capitol Hilton in downtown Washington D.C. as my crew and I unloaded our gear out of our taxi. The crowd was thick and deep as a sea of yellow shirts offered smiles and encouragement to the children as they waited patiently with their mothers and fathers. Their curious faces filled with glimmers of hope as they stood in the hot and humid D.C. air.
It was an utterly amazing, but an eerily sad site and I actually have chills as I write this. My words cannot even grasp the true magnitude of what my eyes just have seen and my heart has experienced. All of us were just in awe at the size of the crowd and the magnitude of this historic event. It hit us right away that this was big, very big.
It reminded me of when hurricane Katrina forced thousands of people from their homes and the scenes played on TV as I watched helplessly from my home in Southern California. This time I was going to be involved and help the people in need. The people suffering in their homes that need help and real hope.
Little did I know 4 days ago, I would catch a red eye flight to D.C. and be involved in the largest outreach to consumers and homeowners ever.
Never in our history has there been a gathering of this size in one place for the simple goal of saving the American Dream. A place not far from where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his historic “I Have a Dream Speech” in 1963. This great man changed the course of our nation and the lives of millions America’s with just his words.
The event was set up as an emergency triage room of sorts that was specifically designed to assist wounded homeowners with their toxic and cancerous mortgages.
It was as if there were hundreds of nurses and foreclosure doctors that were working in concert with one another to help as many people as possible. Hundreds of volunteers, laptops and homeowners filled the Capitol Hilton with two goals in mind, to save homes and give hope.
Here’s what makes this event unprecedented: If loan servicers refuse to work out a restructuring, NACA is going to take the rejected homeowners to Capitol Hill and complain to their congressional representatives.
“Our frustration has been that some of these servicers have not done what we need them to do,” Marks said.
The facts are that servicers are not doing everything they can to assist struggling homework, people and Americans who are suffering in their homes because these same servicers have no skin in the game. These comapnies have no incentives to keep people in their homes. Only fee incentives to profit from struggling homeowners.
Bruce Marks knows this and so do I.
This is why we have figured out that the time is NOW to start uniting consumer advocacy groups to form an army of sorts that shines a nationwide spot light on the truth.
The truth that lenders, servicers and our government are NOT doing everything they can to help deserving Americans save their homes and dreams.
More Information on this Historic Event:
· Capital Hilton Hotel, 1001 16th Street N.W. Washington D.C.
· July 19 (Saturday) – 23 (Wednesday) From 9:00 A.M. To 9:00 P.M.
· Historic Event Providing Long-Term Affordable Solutions: One-On-One Sessions From Hundreds of Counselors Mortgage Restructuring Solutions the Same Day Homeowner Encounters with Members of Congress
NACA the Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America is sponsoring the “Save the Dream” Event, July 19th -23rd at the Capital Hilton Hotel. NACA, a non-profit advocacy and HUD certified counseling agency, will continue NACA’s mortgage restructure solution by saving thousands of homeowners from foreclosure by reducing their mortgage rates to 5% and less, cutting the mortgage payments by hundreds to thousands of dollars a month.
Never before will so many homeowners be matched with hundreds of counselors at once to achieve immediate solutions. NACA counselors will assist thousands of at-risk homeowners and provide restructure solutions that permanently reduce their interest rate to make payments affordable and obtain servicer/lender approval within hours of submission, often the same day. NACA has been successful in reducing interest rates to what homeowners can afford – often to 5% or less – setting the standard in the foreclosure prevention industry. NACA will provide permanent solutions and offer help, hope, counseling and long-term mortgage solutions – all free!
Media & Interviews: Moe Bedard (951) 271-6283
My company, Loan Safe Solutions, was invited by Bruce Marks and NACA to assist them with victims of predatory lending with our state of the art software and mortgage experts.
As of yesterday, we interviewed over 100 homeowners and our preliminary findings are that over 85% of them are victims of predatory lending practices and that it is true, minority homeowners pay more for their mortgage and are DEFINITELY preyed on by real estate and mortgage predators.
My goal is to show proof of this with hard facts and data to back it up.
Never in my life have I heard such horror stories of fraud and deceit.
Please stay blogged (tuned) for the follow up post after the march to Capitol Hill.
{ 1 trackback }
{ 14 comments… read them below or add one }
You and NACA will be remembered in American history for this day, Moe. Any small effort to help those in trouble might go unnoticed, but this major effort will be seen and recognized by those who truelly matter. Not the government, not the loan servicers, and definately not the news media; but the regular hardworking, struggling, suffering people who need help that is not forthcoming from those of whom it is expected. Good work, Moe.
GOOD WORK. Make Capitol Hill listen and pay attention. My support to you and NACA. If no one else remembers what is being done today, I certainly will. As always, keep fighting, Moe. Tell NACA to keep fighting. YOU AND NACA HAVE MY ETERNAL SUPPORT!
Sure NACA is doing a great thing by trying to assist several thousands of people but did you know that only a few people get assistance through their program. I would say their success ratio is extremely low compared to all of those people that attend their seminars throughout the United States. I hope all of these people really get help in Washington, DC. NACA is basically doing this service for free (so you think) but LoanSafe would normally charge a fee for similar services. All NACA wants is media exposure and more funding from the government. This event will bring more exposure to NACA and LoanSafe, respectively but for all of the wrong reasons. NACA is borderline scam in itself because the their Housing Counselors are not Hud certified counselors just the organization is. To say the least, LoanSafe gives you real results, even if you have to pay a fee for their services but it is well worth it if you can save your home. Infact, NACA counselors have little to no experience. How can you counsel someone and save their precise asset when these counselor hardly know what they are doing when it comes to loan modification? All of the counselors at NACA are overworked and underpaid. Please visit http://www.naca.com. Click on vist website here, then look under tab About NACA, then NACA’s Team and then Job Opportunities. These employees, mortgage consultants (counselors) make 8.00 per hour. NACA (and several other non-profits) received over 15 million in funding from the government (via administrator NeighborWorks) but the employees are treated like ………..Okay, Save The Dream looks good from the outside but it is no worth a penny with a hole in it.
Get A Grip, HeGotU2!!
God Bless Bruce Marks and NACA. Thank God for people like Loan Safe Solutions, Moe Bedard, and everyone who takes a step, even “if they barely know what they are doing when it comes to loan modification” to help hurting homeowners. Lenders who know EXACTLY what they are doing when it comes to loan modification are the ones doing the most damage to homeowners. I’ll go with a Housing Counselor who is willing to work for me, TALK TO ME, anyday.
People are scared. Can you say anything positive, not everyone can be Hud certified, who cares if they have little to no experience? They are going to get experience HELPING HOMEOWNERS NOW.
AMEN captain petrov!!!!!!
BEWARE OF WELLS FARGO HOME MORTGAGE!!!!!
And thank you, thank you, thank you, to each and every person making the slightest effort to help everyone in fear of losing their precious home.
Keep up the good work, it has to be exhausting.
Thank you for being there, Moe.
MOE you are doing a Great thing !
I believe in you and what your company does.
I am going to be a success story because of your help.
Bless you and let me know if you ever need me to help pay it forward.
Ask the NACA counselors how many of them will qualify for NACA mortgage? Sure you the home owners are getting bailed out but some of the hard working counselors at NACA are going to through foreclosure, have late mortgage payments on their homes or can not afford a NACA mortgage all together. The pay at NACA sucks and Bruce Marks will not do anything about it. He is a predatory owner of a non profit mortgage company. Quite frankly, he is the real predatory overworking his staff and paying them low wages $8.00 per hour. Ideally, they are volunteers! Just think for a second, Bruce Marks feels like the mortgage brokers and lenders are cause of this debacle. Why do you think he pays low wages and have his worker work long hours? However, this company is receiving millions in funds and donations but hard working counselors are receiving nomial wages. This guy is a mastermind and no one sees it but in a terrible way! Visit their website at http://www.naca.com and check it out for yourself. kellylhanson, I got a grip maybe you need to get one and realize if a temporary worker barely knows his job functions, how can he be successful in giving a person confident and accurate advise? Your right lenders do know exactly what they are doing put putting you the home owner in another bad loan. In a couple of months, the will happen FORECLOSURE! If you really could not afford your house then, what make you can afford your house now? After all, you signed your name on the dotted line at the closing.
HeGotU2 sounds very bitter and unrealistic. Personally I feel that any and all help is appreciated. I went to the Home Save event. I stood in line for hours just for my opportunity. I talked to people as they exited that had their mortgages reduced from $6,000 to $3,000 another went from $2300 to $1100. You can’t tell me that is not a great thing. As for the “supposed” hiring practices of Marks there were many volunteers at this event that had taken off of work for a week and travelled across the country to be there. I don’t know if you agree but that does not sound like a predatory environment. Furthermore I went online as you said to see what positions there are available. The MOrtgage Consultant position is listed for $45000 to $65000 based off of experience It sounds to me that HeGotU2 needs to get their facts straight.
Oh and if it helps my loan was reduced to a 3% interest rate.
OK, this HeGot2U2 is just a bitter hate mongrel hell bent on discrediting what Bruce Marks has done and what I am doing every day.
I apreciate the kind comments and the truth from those who know the “truth” and are here to help, not condemn what we are doing.
Sounds like HeGotU2 is a former employee who just couldn’t cut it. That event was historic, no one is doing more right now than Moe and NACA out there.
To Moe and all who fight for the cause…thank you for giving people (such as myself) and everyone out there who is struggling with the mortgage disaster HOPE… I wish I could join the outreach storming Captiol Hill, please know that I am there in spirit.
I plan to keep fighting for our home (mine and my daughter’s) and fight for the cause of all homeowner’s, for justice and to keep their home where it belongs.
After four months of workshops, counseling, telephone interviews and faxed copies of paperwork out the kazoo, NACA decided in their wisdom that my husband earns too much money and they cannot represent us to the bank administering our home loans..at ll.7 and 10.75.
If we had the extra money they claim we have we would hardly have nearly been foreclosed by our mortgage company.
How about those of us with predatory loans who are not “poor” but not rich either and
need help? Guess not frustrated and disappointed in NACA
Lol at all of you “fighting” for the homes you bought and couldnt afford. Please, go rent an apartment and quit begging OK?
To be blunt, NACA SUCKS. They are a bunch of lying, false promise making FLAKES. I started with them in May, went into their office, gave them all the docs they wanted, and they said they would get right on things. They sent in the documents alright, but then when Citibank tried to contact them to get additional information, they could never reach anyone. You see, Gloria at NACA made it quite clear she doesn’t answer her phone, and that she works by email only. Apparently, she didn’t answer her emails either, and neither did her main office. Citibank got no repsonse, and CLOSED THE CASE. Meanwhile, being told to deal with only NACA, I was forced to deal with their main office as the local one was COMPLETELY impossible to reach by any means. Each time I reached someone at the main office, I was told everything was fine, that Citibank was “reviewing” the case (an outright LIE). Months later, in sheer frustration I called Citibank, only to find out that it was all a lie. That NACA sent one email, and that was it. And never responsed too the requests they made, so the case was closed.
I then called the modification people at Citibank, and set up trial payments on my own, with a preliminary modification plan, all in about a half an hour. That was almost two months ago, and it is nearly finalized.
NACA is a useless bunch of liars. They have no special power, and let’s face it, nobody cares more about getting your mod done that YOU do, and you can do it yourself just as well, and probably better than they ever could. A bank is either going to offer a modification or not, NACA is a complete non-factor, and worthless. Pick up you phone, and start the process on your own.
The saddest part of all, is that now, my modification may well not be finalized before I AM FORCED to file bankruptcy, at which point all will be lost. At which point my wife and I and our three kids will lose all, and be forced to live in a ghetto apartment that doesn’t require good credit.
All I can do now, is warn others, when you hear the name NACA, RUN as far and as fast as you can. God bless, and good luck to you.
I agree with you about NACA. I have dealt with them for over a year and last month I have had to file bankruptcy and even though I was approved for a loan modification the bank never sent the new forms and then the FDIC took them over. I keep sending e-mails to NACA but no response.
NACA! hmm been almost a year and I have yet to see any results from NACA since then I have Hired a law firm to modify my loan which did not work out very well either! they were shut down by the CA state Attorney. since that time I have been working with my Mortgage Company (Aurora) and found out a few interesting facts along the way!. all this “TARP” and “HAMP” money that has been issued to banks is great as long as your mortgage is “BANK” owned. if you are like most people with a bad sub prime or option “ARM” good luck getting anything other than a forbearance agreement. some investors are going with the program but each mortgage is different. I just found out after a year of dealing with NACA and the lawyer and Aurora on my own, that investor owned properties do not have to be modified under these OBAMA bail out funds. Something either no one has thought to address or no one looked into it? I have a friend who had a bank owned home mortgage higher than mine with a option ARM his loan mod has been done now for 3 months they reduced his Interest extended the terms of his loan and took some of the loan amount off what he owed so he could keep there home. In my situation I have a investor owned option Arm. and the best I can get is maybe a fixed rate if all goes well 6 months of reduced payments to get back on my feet but after that right back to where I started from.
so NACA can not do anything for a lot of people neither can these loan modification companies! so just save the money and call your lender your self and ask who owns my loan investors or banks!.
NEXT THIS GOES OUT TO THE POSTER “SICKOFIT” WHO POSTED BACK IN AUGUST I BELIEVE. How dare you come on here and criticize and laugh at people who have fallen on hard times! yes I am sure there are a lot of people who were hoping to make money with the housing market just like a lot of people were successful> I am sure the amount of people that were out there to make a buck have moved on! the people now that are trying to save there homes like my self who when I refinanced my home was very able to afford it! I did not ask to have my wages cut 18 months latter! nor did I ask to be diagnosed with Cancer a year after that but it happened! nor like most people did I ever imagine I would be baited and switched and lied to about the loan I was getting! but it happened so instead of laughing at peoples suffering why not come off your high horse and thank god that you were a fortunate one who had everything go your way in life. and maybe never had a life threatening illness,or had to make a choice between loosing your job or taking a pay cut just so you can feed your family! You have had a good life and you should be thankful and not adding insult to peoples already injured ego’s and suffering. Or maybe you are one of those high society snobs that was born rich and thank of everyone else as lower class kind of like the people on the titanic you had the elegant state rooms while the lower class people had to wait and not be seen in your presence and when it came time for women and children first you were the type paying your way on to a life boat because after all you are better than everyone else! either way hopefully you will stop and thank before you post on a site where people are trying to get help and answers for there troubles!
To every one else good luck and God Bless!