Forclosure Fraud ?

[tlbrttmthy]

In 2006 my wife and I were facing a forclosure. Her father sugested that we quit claim the $43,000 mortgage to him until we got back on our feet. He had his loan as an intrest only loan. We paid him rent which he paid his payment plus insurance and taxes with. In 2007 my wife left me so i filed for divorce. Her father said as soon as the divorce was final (1-3-08) he would still sell the house back to me because I have custody of our two children. two weeks after the divorce he came over and said he would still sell it back to me but he wanted full appraised value for it ($70,000) or we would have to move out. I have nothing in writing. We have no rental agreement. He has not given me a written eviction notice. I can't afford to pay very much for a lawyer but he can. I feel like I was played for a fool. Could this be considered forclosure fraud ? What can I do ? Any and all advice would really be appriciated. Thank You, Tim

[Moe Bedard]

I am sorry to hear about your situation. I am not exactly sure if this would be foreclosure fraud but if it is, you would want to look into the foreclosure consultant act. I found this info on the Indiana Attorney Generals site.

Victims of foreclosure scams should file a complaint with the attorney general at http://www.attorneygeneral.in.gov or 1-800-382-5516. The attorney general’s office stands ready to pursue action against scammers who take advantage of vulnerable Hoosiers.

Homeowners get more Protections Under New Law
By
Attorney General Steve Carter



Unfortunately, Indiana has one of the highest home foreclosure rates in the country. Many families have fallen on hard times and the loss of the home due to an unexpected event such as a family illness or unemployment can be devastating. To make matters worse, there are people out their who prey on families that are simply doing all they can to save their homes from foreclosure.

If you are in danger of losing your home, you may have been tempted to respond to advertisements claiming “We Buy Homes”. Although these offers may seem like a tempting way to avoid foreclosure, they may end badly for the homeowners.
The offers are led by “Foreclosure consultants” who target homeowners who have been threatened with foreclosure. Homeowners pay foreclosure consultants with hopes that the foreclosure consultant can stop or delay foreclosure. In reality, the mortgages are not paid by the company and the original homeowner ends up losing the home in spite of the fees paid to the company.

In order to better regulate “foreclosure consultants’ the Indiana Attorney General’s Office, supported a change in state law which provides homeowners with more protections when facing foreclosure.

These new changes in state law empower the homeowner and place disclosure requirements on companies that engage in these types of activities. The law now:

• Requires various written disclosures to inform homeowners about significant aspects of the service they are purchasing
• Provides a 3-day right to cancel
• Prohibits a company/individual from obtaining power of attorney from the homeowner. In some cases, homeowners were unknowingly appointing the foreclosure consultant to act on the homeowners behalf.
• Requires foreclosures consultants to obtain a surety bond of at least $25,000

[Moe Bedard]

If you need an attorney you can visist www.NACA.net or http://www.lsoi.org/stc_site/ -
Legal Services programs are private non-profit organizations providing free legal assistance to low income consumers. At least one program serves every city and town in Indiana. Many areas are served by more than one program. Legal Services programs generally serve clients with income below 125% of the federal poverty level (Click Here to see a chart showing these amounts) but there are exceptions under some circumstances. Many legal services programs have special grants to serve elders regardless of their income.

Like Moe sez, you really need an attorney to represent you on this situation, and one of the other resources you might try is Legal Aid, this is more than just a "property" issue apparently, and since there is a family member involved you will need multiple issues addressed.