The rise in real estate prices in recent years coupled with the rise in foreclosures have brought with it a wave of schemes designed to deprive homeowners of the equity that they have built up in their homes. Individuals who are in financial distress and are having trouble meeting their mortgage payments are particularly vulnerable to these scams. A homeowner is facing foreclosure might be desperate to grab at any hope of saving their home, even if it sounds too good to be true.

Foreclosure rescue scams are numerous types of schemes targeted at homeowners already facing foreclosure and in financial distress. Typically a "rescuer" identifies potential victims through public foreclosure records. Then the homeowner is contacted by phone or mail offering some type of assistance. While the clock is counting down the foreclosure, the rescuer may impose fees draining the home of equity, or induce the owner to sign a documents transferring ownership of the house. In the end, the rescuer often evicts the victim from the home.

Theses scams come in three varieties. The first is the phantom help where the rescuer charges outrageous fees for either phone calls and paperwork that the homeowner could have easily done or makes promises of additional assistance that never occurs.

The second and third varieties are similar. They both involve transfer of ownership of the home in an effort to ultimately save both the ownership and the equity from effects of foreclosure. The second is outright fraud where the homeowner believes they are obtaining refinancing or a new loan and do not realize they are surrendering their interest in the house. The third variety is a bailout that typically involves the homeowners' understanding that they are signing the deed which transfers the ownership of the home, but doing so with the belief that they will be able to regain ownership at alater time.

Once your house is posted for foreclosure you get bombarded with a flood of calls and letters from people offering assistance. You have people stopping by your house and driving by taking pictures. This process can be very unnerving! It's tough to know where to turn because the mortgage company is no help and the clock is ticking.

We have helped hundreds of people just like you navigate this process successfully. We are attorneys who are in the business of stopping the foreclosure process and saving people's houses from foreclosure.