Vegas Trio Charged With Ripping Off Homeowners Facing Foreclosure While Running Alleged Loan Modification Racket

In Las Vegas, Nevada, KLAS-TV Channel 8 reports:

• Rena Starks was a homeowner advocate who said she wanted to stand up for Nevadans hit hard by our housing crisis. A TV commercial for her company, Homekeepers, said the business "modified all types of home loans." "Do you owe more on your mortgage than your home is currently worth," an announcer asked. "Are you on the verge or in foreclosure? Homekeepers can help." "If you're in trouble, call me," Starks said in the ad.

• Now, Starks is in trouble with the law. A criminal complaint alleges Rena Starks, her husband Terry, her daughter Tracey, and employee Lourdes Damian stole money from their clients. "There's at least $25,000 to $40,000 involved in this case," said Chief Deputy Attorney General Conrad Hafen. "There may be more."

• Hafen says the defendants would rip off homeowners who feared foreclosure by taking their money and not contacting the homeowners' lenders as promised. "This is clearly a case of individuals who are preying on the bad luck of other people," Hafen said.

For more, see Las Vegas Mortgage Broker Charged with Theft.