HAMP Paperwork-Processing Scams Pick Up Speed As Bogus 'Experts' Come Out Of The Woodwork To Grab Cash From Unwitting Homeowners

The New York Post reports:

• Once again, mortgage servicers are hitting ordinary New York homeowners where it hurts. The latest evidence is widespread scams tied to the Home Affordable Modification Program, or HAMP, which was supposed to help up to 4 million troubled borrowers avoid foreclosure.



• Servicers, which manage loans day to day, have collected a cool $666 million from the government for participating in HAMP. Too bad servicers make the HAMP application process so difficult for the ordinary homeowner, they’ve opened the door to bogus “experts” who claim to help — for a big fee.



• These cons are so out of control, the Office of the Special Inspector General of the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP), the Department of the Treasury, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau have launched a new initiative to prevent HAMP scams at
  www.sigtarp.gov/pdf/Consumer_Fraud_Alert.pdf

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• The typical fraud works like this. A scam artist advertises online, pretending to be affiliated with the government. The scammers charge New Yorkers an average of $4,500 upfront, do no work, then skip out with the cash. Some borrowers are even losing their homes as a result of scammers’ advice to ignore foreclosure notices.

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• Long Island’s Nassau County is a hotbed of HAMP scams. Some scammers are former mortgage brokers and real estate executives, while others have ties to the mob.

For more, see Feds target HAMP scammers bilking owners.