The Georgia Department of Banking and Finance this week issued a cease and desist order against two mortgage companies for allegedly conducting business in the state without a license.
According to final cease and desist orders issued on Oct. 27, Home Rights Advocates, Inc., Marietta, Ga., and The Marquise Group, Snellville, Ga., engaged in residential mortgage brokering or lending activities without properly being certified to carry out such work in the state.
Pursuant to Georgia law, it is prohibited for any person to directly or indirectly solicit (or offer to solicit), process, place, or negotiate mortgage loans for others, without a license or exemption. (The state also bars individuals to purchase, sell, or transfer mortgages or applications without being licensed.)
The principal of The Marquise group is Sherri Calloway, a certified Keller Williams Realty agent specializing in short sales. Rod Carnes, the deputy commissioner for non-depository financial institutions for the Georgia Department of Banking and Finance, said cease and desist orders are usually filed against individuals or companies that are attempting to conduct a short sale or loan modification without a license in order to make money on behalf of a client.
Home Rights Advocates is a non-profit organization dedicated to stopping foreclosures and keeping mortgagors in their homes by suing lenders on their behalf, according to a brochure written by the company.
At press time, The Marquise Group and Sherri Calloway did not return telephone calls seeking comment. The telephone number for Home Rights Advocates no longer worked.
