Sometimes, the offer of a helping hand is really a cement lifejacket in disguise.
We've all seen the ads: free foreclosure help, stop foreclosure, foreclosure solutions, mortgage mediators, save your home, etc. Have you ever read our recently enacted Clear Skys Initiatives? Despite its proactive title, it has weakened many parts of the Clean Air Act and neutered many eco and enviro-friendly restrictions in favor of reinstating industry practices which pollute, rape, and destroy our environment including the air we breathe and water we drink. The Clear Skies Initiative is anything but.
At least We Buy Houses is upfront about what it is they do, while others have brilliantly disguised their intent.
I've deliberated posting my opinion about a specific "service" and instead will generalize on the ilk.
An excellent marketing scheme, imbedding solicitors on websites frequented by distressed homeowners creating a wide-mouthed funnel to collect leads for a select few to 'cherry pick' who offer services (oftentimes offered without charge by non profits, or the mortgagee itself). Disbursing vital information to homeowners in jeopardy of losing their homes is a noble effort, as long as the information isn't simply a disguised solicitation for business. In theory, it's a terrific idea. In practice, however, the self-interests of the cherry picking few are in conflict with the folks who simply want to get back on track and save their homes.
You might say the non profit community offers a last chance to those who have responded to well placed, and compelling advertisements which offer unrealistically quick and easy solutions to problems whose solutions require the homeowner collect ALL the facts, then analyze the facts, arrive at a decision, then act on the decision. Many people who end up seeking help from churches, other non profits, social service organizations, and consumer rights lawyers have been drawn in and spit out by these so-called 'foreclosure solutions' MLM programs.
All too often the promised "solution" fails to live up to expectations leaving the distressed homeowner in worse shape.... having wasted precious time and perhaps after spending hundreds of dollars for an otherwise free for the asking service.
Do some people benefit from such a one-stop solution shoppe? Sure. The folks who collect money for selling boilerplate websites and then conferring "loss mitigation certifications" to its customers... and to those who do provide and charge for a service. They make out fine.
I'll concede some homeowners may be helped. But in my experience, the majority of homeowners seeking help are viewed not as neighbors or friends needing help, but instead as ATM machines.
preforeclosure listing bootcamp
Comments(3)