Many people who are concerned about making their mortgage payments during the COVID-19 crisis were relieved to hear that their lender might be able to help. Although this is true, make sure you understand the terms of your agreement. It's not free money or a free mortgage payment. Here's a quick overview of some of the options: A mortgage forbearance allows borrowers to temporarily stop making their monthly payments, but be careful! At the end of a forbearance period, genera

Unfortunately, in times of crisis, there are still those who look for ways to take advantage of others. Freddie Mac warned this week that it learned of a scam where borrowers were receiving fraudulent calls impersonating the mortgage financing giant in offering low interest rates and other false promises. I know you are under a lot of stress but be careful and follow the tips below: If you need mortgage relief, call the lender directly. It's unlikely that lenders will call yo

Hadn't thought about this until I read this article in my Realtor Magazinge. Good advise to protect yourself against fraud in 2020. Security officials are warning consumers to not abbreviate “2020” in official documents because they say it can be an easy way for scammers to commit forgery. They say the abbreviation makes it easy for scammers to change out the numbers on paperwork. For example, if you write a date like “1/3/20,” scammers could change it to “1/3/2000” or 1/3/20

Another scam just hit the streets and it's hard to keep track of them all. Here's the latest...... If you receive a letter from "First National Bank" that is offering lines of credit and secured or long-term loans, do not contact them! The federal authorities are warning that First National Bank is “not a licensed or chartered bank.” The "bank" claims to be from Minneapolis and is falsely claiming “to be a financial institution offering business banking services.” They are ta

Here are 6 types of mortgage fraud that have been found in applications. According to Corelogic, fraud is again on the rise. It climbed 12% year over year. Potential borrowers have provided false or misleading information in order to qualify for a mortgage when home prices are rising and demand is strong. This issue was rampant prior to 2007 and many attributed the crash to the banks making loans to those who could not not afford their payment. Are we heading down the same ro