Margert in the News
Margert Continues to
Fight Predatory Lending
The Full Story
November 20, 2009
Mortgage Scams
Attention Homeowners! If you are a homeowner and need repairs, or are falling
behind in your mortgage payments, be very careful not to borrow money out of
desperation. It may cause you to lose your home. Beware of advertisements on TV,
in newspapers, or that arrive in the mail that offer fast cash as a home equity
loan.
Mortgage Counseling
Margert Community Corporation is certified by the U.S. Department of Housing
and Urban Development (HUD) to provide mortgage counseling. Services include
efforts to screen for and prevent predatory lending, and intervention with
lenders and loan servicers geared toward helping to secure and maintain
affordable loan terms. Our services are free!
Home Improvement Scams
Home improvement scam artists often go door to door asking people if they
want home repairs. Some promise to provide financing for you, regardless of your
credit history or income. Mainly, they are looking out for their own interests,
not yours, and will provide you with shoddy work and an expensive loan.
Refinancing Scams
Few things can be as unsettling as falling behind on your mortgage or getting
into debt. Scam artists realize this, and see it as a perfect opportunity to
take advantage of people.
If you fall behind on your mortgage payment or property taxes, or find
yourself in debt on your credit cards, utilities, or other bills, you may
receive mailings or visits from mortgage lenders or brokers who offer to provide
refinancing and lower monthly payments.
Beware of quick fixes and terms that sound too good to be true. Once the
papers are signed, you may find that the loan and the monthly payments are much
higher than expected and are often more than you can afford.
Please call us and speak to a Housing Counselor
before signing anything!
Margert Community Corporation is a New York State Division of
Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR) Neighborhood Preservation Company, a HUD
and HPD approved housing counseling agency and a partner with NEDAP and the
Center for NYC Neighborhoods in protecting homeowners from foreclosure and
predatory lending.
View
HUD's New Loan Fraud Brochure
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Margert brings HAMP to New
York Homeowners
The Full Story
February 26, 2010
If you are a New York homeowner looking for help with your mortgage loan,
please contact Margert by email or phone or browse
the programs and services sections on this website.
Whatever you decide to do, stay away from fee-for-service “consultants.”
These people are dangerous and we hear horror stories every day from people who
have been scammed by unregulated consultants who promised them the world and
then disappeared after taking a fee - this conduct is illegal - and will make a
bad situation worse for a homeowner.
Lenders are not easy to deal with and this area can be even more confusing
once a foreclosure action (which is actually a lawsuit) has been started.
Lender’s lawyers often do not call back homeowners or when they do the
conversation can be confusing to a layperson. You may want to see whether our
professional, certified housing counselors are able to help you.
The Making Home Affordable Program (HAMP)
is part of the Obama Administration’s broad, comprehensive strategy to get the
economy and the housing market back on track.
HAMP offers strong options for homeowners: (1) refinancing mortgage loans
through the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP), (2) modifying first and
second mortgage loans through the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP)
and the Second Lien Modification Program (2MP) and (3) offering other
alternatives to foreclosure through the Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives
Program (HAFA).
All servicers for loans owned or guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are
required to participate. Additional servicers are strongly encouraged to
participate, and the list of servicer participants is available on the HAMP
mortgage servicer "search" section of their website.
There should never be a fee for assistance with or information about the
Making Home Affordable Program.
Beware of any person or organization that asks you to pay an upfront fee in
exchange for a counseling service or modification of a delinquent loan. Do not
pay – walk away!
Beware of anyone who says they can “save” your home if you sign or transfer
over the deed to your house. Do not sign over the deed to your property to any
organization or individual unless you are working directly with your mortgage
company to forgive your debt.
Never make your mortgage payments to anyone other than your mortgage company
without their approval.
The Obama Administration has launched a coordinated effort across federal and
state government and the private sector to target mortgage loan modification
fraud and foreclosure rescue scams that threaten to hurt American homeowners and
prevent them from getting the help they need during these challenging times.
Beware of Foreclosure Rescue Scams - Help from Margert is Free!
Margert Community Corporation is a New York State Division of
Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR) Neighborhood Preservation Company, a HUD
and HPD approved housing counseling agency and a partner with NEDAP and the
Center for NYC Neighborhoods in protecting homeowners from foreclosure and
predatory lending.
If you reside outside Margert's service territory, please contact a
HUD-approved housing counselor through the Homeowner’s HOPETM Hotline at
888-995-HOPE 888-995-HOPE (4673).
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Banks Repossess a Record
Number of Homes
The Full Story
Bank of America Corp., the second-largest U.S. home lender, added 2,000
employees since April to work with borrowers having trouble paying their
mortgages, a senior executive said.
The lender now has more than 18,000 workers in “default management,” a 60
percent increase since January 2009, Barbara Desoer, president of Bank of
America’s home-loan and insurance unit, said in testimony prepared for a
congressional hearing on U.S. housing policy tomorrow. Those workers handle
100,000 calls a day, she said.
Wells Fargo & Co., the largest U.S. home lender, Bank of America and other
companies have hired thousands of employees or shifted staff from other
departments to work with borrowers who have lost jobs or experienced declining
incomes.
Banks repossessed a record 257,944 homes in the first quarter, 35 percent
more than a year earlier, according to Irvine, California-based RealtyTrac Inc.
More than a fifth of U.S. mortgage holders owed more than their homes were
worth, Seattle-based real estate data provider Zillow.com reported last month.
“Given the depth of the nation’s recessionary impacts on homeowners, a
considerable number of customers will transition from homeownership over the
next two years,” Desoer said in the testimony. “We must compassionately and
responsibly help those customers who have exhausted all their options and can no
longer afford to stay in their homes.”
View full story
Margert Community Corporation is a New York State Division of
Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR) Neighborhood Preservation Company, a HUD
and HPD approved housing counseling agency and a partner with NEDAP and the
Center for NYC Neighborhoods in protecting homeowners from foreclosure and
predatory lending.
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Queens Home Rescue Fair
The Full Story
Margert Community Corporation will play a major role in the next
Rise Up & Stay Put! home rescue fair which will be hosted at York College in Jamaica,
Queens on Saturday, August 7th. If you are a homeowner looking for help with
your mortgage loan, please mark your calendar for this special event.
Bring copies of all your paperwork (see flyer below for necessary documents)
and be prepared to work directly with HUD-certified housing counselors, major
lenders, attorneys and other partners that
will be offering free services to distressed New York City homeowners.
Services will be provided in a variety of languages and dialects.
View
outreach flyer
Margert is a
housing counseling network partner of the Center for New
York City Neighborhoods (CNYCN) providing direct mortgage foreclosure prevention
services to borrowers.
The Center for New York City Neighborhoods (CNYCN) was created to coordinate
and expand services to New York City residents at risk of losing their homes to
foreclosure.
Rise Up & Stay Put! Home Rescue Fair featured on CNN
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