Massachusetts AG: BofA Loan Officer Funneled Homeowners Seeking Loan Mods From Lender To His Own Private Company To Screw Them Over With Upfront Fees

In Boston, Massachusetts, The Boston Globe reports:

• A former mortgage loan officer with Bank of America Corp. is being sued by the Massachusetts attorney general's office for allegedly demanding illegal fees from homeowners who sought help to avoid foreclosure.

• Attorney General Martha Coakley said [] her office has sued Christian Hayes of Danvers in Suffolk Superior Court for allegedly "targeting and preying upon Massachusetts residents" who were seeking loan modifications from Bank of America. Instead, the state says, Hayes "deceptively funneled" homeowners' requests to his company, Foreclosure Alternatives, and demanded as much as $1,500 in up-front fees without offering legitimate help. It is illegal in Massachusetts to require up-front fees from homeowners seeking help to stave off foreclosure.

For more, see State alleges ex-loan officer 'preyed' on owners.

See also, The Salem News: Danvers man is sued by AG over alleged mortgage con (Hayes falsely held himself out to be a lawyer, according to the attorney general, and he allegedly told one homeowner that his connection with Bank of America gave him "exclusive access" to the bank's loan modification process for homeowners).