Look Out for Scams When Considering a Loan Mod

The Pennsylvania Department of Banking is seeing growth in advertising for companies offering to help people modify their mortgages for a fee. The reality is that some of these offers are scams intended to prey upon people who are in financial distress, said Secretary of Banking Steve Kaplan. "At the very least, they are charging consumers for a service they can get for free or do by themselves," said Mr. Kaplan. The department is urging borrowers with questions about modifications to seek out professional housing counseling agencies that are certified by the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency. There is never a cost to the consumer for using these certified professionals, he said. Consumers should be wary of marketing techniques and come-ons that can mislead people into believing a company is associated with the federal government or the federal stimulus package, added Mr. Kaplan. In addition, he urged that consumers study carefully use of the words "law," "legal" and "attorney" in advertising as well as any guarantees or claims of extraordinary success rates.