Loan Mod Firm Facing FTC Charges Continues Leaving Customers Hanging, Say Unhappy Homeowners; Outfit Changes Name & Continues Operating: Feds

In Bradenton, Florida, WFTS ABC Action News Channel 28 reports:

• The Vanderford's weren't living beyond their means. They have a modest house in a working class Bradenton neighborhood where they've lived for 16 years. But 18 months ago, Tammy [Vanderford] lost her factory job and her husband's hours were cut at his. They could not longer pay their mortgage and they needed help. So the Vanderford's turned to Miami based loan modification company Truman Foreclosure Assistance, which, as it turned out, resulted in matters going from bad to worse.

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• At first there were weekly calls, regular status reports. [...] But then, the Vanderford's say, the updates stopped. The run around began. Their calls were no longer returned. Finally came word Truman was out of business.

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• [T]he Florida Attorney General's office says it received 68 complaints in the past two years against the company, resulting in action by the Federal Trade Commission.(1) But here's another all too common story. According to the FTC, it turns out the owners of Truman didn't go out of business. They simply changed the company's name to the Franklin Financial Group and moved their office to another part of Miami.(2)

For the story, see INVESTIGATION: Loan modification program leaves family with nothing.

In a related story on Truman Foreclosure Assistance, see WTVJ-TV Channel 6: Miami Mortgage Rescue Firm's Vanishing Act (Truman Foreclosure Assistance accused of taking money and skipping town).

(1) The FTC also named Truman Mitigation Services, LLC, Franklin Financial Group, US LLC, Eli Hertz, Benzion Jack Itzkowitz a/k/a Jack Itzkowitz, and Richard Zafrani a/k/a Rick Zafrani as additional defendants in their lawsuit. The FTC alleged that the individual defendants formulated,directed, controlled, had the authority to control, or participated in the acts and practices of the Truman Foreclosure Assistance/Truman Mitigation common enterprise (FTC lawsuit, paragraph 12).

(2) See FTC lawsuit, paragraph 13.