I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw this article below from a local Southern California paper and I don’t think you will either.
Apparently the City of Carson (which is in Los Angeles County, California) has a foreclosure relief program that involves referring Carson city homeowners that are in foreclosure to a private “for profit” mortgage auditing and forensic loan document review company. Oh, and the city gets a referral fee for doing so.
Yes, you heard it right. This newspaper is reporting that the City of Carson gets a kick back from this mortgage audit company in return for referring struggling homeowners that pay thousands of dollars for these “audits.”
This is from the Daily Breeze:
The city of Carson has set up a program that refers homeowners facing foreclosure to a private company that collects up-front fees, a violation of state law.
The company, ABS Business Solutions, also has been targeted by the state Attorney General’s Office for not registering as a foreclosure consultant. Attorney General Jerry Brown recently sent letters to ABS and nearly 400 other companies warning them they are not in compliance.
ABS charges $3,000 or more to perform mortgage “audits,” which are intended to uncover lending fraud. But on a Web site that posts consumer protection alerts, several clients complained that ABS had done nothing to save their homes from foreclosure.
“ABS did not help,” one customer wrote. “I paid all the fee up front and then I never heard from them. They send me a congratulations letter and that is it. I am now being evicted.”
Can you believe this BS?!
So what’s “shady” about this arrangement? Let’s look at this business relationship and the organization .
- The City of Carson should not be referring any residents to any type of for profit venture that is not thoroughly investigated and has a thorough track record of success.
- The City of Carson get paid money for referring struggling homeowners to a for profit company
- ABS Solutions is a for profit company
- ABS charges homeowners thousands of dollars for an audit that takes 3 hours maximum and should cost $700 maximum and more like $400.
- ABS was listed on the California Attorney Generals list of illegally operating California loan modification companies.
- ABS and their associates are not attorneys
- They have several complaints online from actual homeowners who paid the firm and got nothing in return on the internet
This appears to be an operation that is “trying” to fly below the radar as a mortgage auditing firm. But in actuality, they may be just clever rip off artists who somehow made a sweetheart deal with the City of Carson and think they can curtail the law.
The facts appear to be that ABS Solutions is charging thousands of dollars for a mortgage audit that should cost a few hundred, their representatives appear to be making false statements and they may be paying kick backs to the City of Carson.
Does it get anymore shady than that?
Read more from the Daily Breeze
I used to live in Carson It is an outstanding community . I believe the people are vulnerable because they are too trusting .There are alot of families with elderly relatives who are not familiar with all these companies scamming abilities . They come from backgrounds where they were taught to trust and believe in the persons chosen to represent and protect their rights .Obviously this is not what they expect to encounter from the city they chose to raise their families and live out their GOLDEN YEARS How disgusted and sad !!
Lawsuit!
I am using this program with ABS and have referred several friends and family members also working with these professionals. ABS has suffered many challenges since this is obviously not a normal market. In November last year a friend told me about this program and I believe and experience this program to help many families with resolutions. I have personally met and spent time with these professional individuals working hard to keep up with the changing laws and rulings affecting many homeowners and our country. Many so called “mortgage consultant” business’ have closed their doors due to the overage of foreclosures and setbacks due to unexpected expenditures. Do your due diligence call ABS ask for references, happy customers who have completed resolutions…you’ll be pleasantly surprised there are crusaders on your side looking to help you with the utmost of honest integrity!