scam: Reverse Mortgage - Know What You're Signing. And to whom. - 09/13/10 01:58 PM
My wife and I were having dinner with her mother yesterday. Her mom's getting up in years and still lives in the big family home on an acre and has seen some decent appreciation even considering the recent bust.
Over dinner she asked if I knew anything about reverse mortgages? I told her I know 2 things about reverse mortgages -
For the right person a legitimate reverse mortgage can be a wonderful thng.
They are currently the most prevalent form of real estate fraud being perpetrated on elderly people.
Now Jan has had a reverse mortgage for 16 … (4 comments)

scam: Title Compliance Office - Homeowner FRAUD Alert - 09/09/10 11:01 AM
I posted an article about the Title Compliance Office Scam back in April. It currently sits at #2 on Google thanks to ActiveRain. But what's even better news is the responses I continue to get from people who have read it and avoided getting scammed. Not only did they save $167 but they avoided sending a copy of their signature in to scamsters who would proceed to do who knows what with it.
So to make it even easier, I've put a warning notice up on YouTube describing the problem. It's not just Riverside County, where I live, but people have … (2 comments)

scam: New Scam aimed directly at Realtors. Don't get bit. - 07/07/10 12:04 PM
This is a variation of the Craigslist scam and the Nigerian bank fraud. I sincerely hope no real estate professional has fallen for this grift ut since NAR is publicizing it - it's probably bit a few folks.
NAR Legal Affairs has learned of a new scheme designed to trick unwary real estate professionals
NAR Legal Affairs has learned of a new scheme designed to trick unwary real estate professionals into forwarding money to the scheme operators. The scheme works in the following manner: 
Salesperson receives an inquiry via email from an individual who identifies himself (no known female aliases … (13 comments)

scam: California - Title Compliance Office - SCAM ALERT! - 04/29/10 03:40 PM
Title Compliance Office – SCAM ALERT! Recently I’ve had several members phone me or send me a copy of a report allegedly from the Title Compliance Office in Riverside County. Printed in English on one side and Spanish on the other, they warn homeowners that they need to have a deed to their home so they can prove they own it. In official souding language they offer to get you an 'official' or 'certified' copyof your deed for the paltry sum of $167.
This is a blatant scam trying to separate you from $167. Everybody gets a copy of your Grant … (28 comments)

scam: CA AG Brown Sues Credit Repair Co. - 09/30/09 12:51 PM
It's only been a month or so since California Attorney General Jerry Brown issued a joint statement with the California Department of Real Estate and the State Bar Association promising to crack down on the rampant credit repair and loan modification scams endemic to our region. 
In the statement, Brown referred to the 1984 Credit Services Act that companies offering those services in the state would need to register with his office and post a $100,000 bond. He also published a list of companies who had not registered and posted a list on his website for consumers to refer to. 
Today … (2 comments)

scam: CA AG Brown Cracks Another Scam - 03/17/09 08:47 AM
You've heard the ads, you've gotten the emails - tap into the magic of eBay or Craigslist or Yahoo and money just comes rolling in. It's a lot like those companies that'll get you the top spot on Google - for a small fee. Anyway, I know these guys have been big on the airwaves in Cali and I have no reason to believe they'd stop at our borders - so some of the rest of you are probably seeing these ads right now. If your state hasn't cracked down yet, send your AG a copy of this release.

If … (0 comments)

scam: Cash For Keys Scam Goes Bust - 02/12/09 05:55 AM
This is an update to last weeks post 'Fraudster Claims Inalienable Right to Scam'. A take off on  the well honed rental fraud scheme, this agent and the illegal occupiers had posted prominent signs warning authorities that they enjoyed the 'inalienable right to self-preservation to repel by force, self-defense and justifiable homicide'. (Understand this is in a neighborhood where nearby homeowners include the owners of the Sacramento Kings and other business luminaries of our state Capitol.)
Well, police were not in the least intimidated. Yesterday they visited the property and kicked their way into the home finding nobody around to answer … (11 comments)

scam: More Scam Artists Trying To Take YOUR Money. - 04/15/08 11:32 AM
GET IN MY PANTS I don’t know about you, but I’m stretching my pennies these days. I’m squeezing every nickel until Ole’ George hollers. A lot of you are in the same boat. Times are tight right now – people losing their homes, a gallon of gas heading for $4 with a gallon of milk costing even more, auto sales slumping, advertisers cutting their budgets, everybody doing what it takes to get through this little gulley in the financial roadway of life. But it seems every time I turn around there’s somebody else trying to get their hand into my pocket … (7 comments)