GREFPAC - New York Time GREFPAC NEWS 
Official Publication of the Georgia Real Estate Fraud Prevention and Awareness Coalition, Inc. 
A service to our members, industries and communities.

        2012 Issue 1

INSIDE GREFPAC
Get Ready for the 8th Annual Educational Conference

GREFPAC's 8th Annual Educational Conference will be held March 7, 2012 at the Cobb Galleria Centre.  The agenda is being finalized, but outstanding speakers will address evolving fraud trends, as well as best practices to detect and prevent fraud.  CE credits will be available for attorneys, real estate brokers and salespersons, appraisers, and CFEs.


Reverse Mortgage Fraud Subject of December Meeting

 

GREFPAC extends its gratitude to Gale McKenzie, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia, and Larry Ruder, Director of Quality Risk Management at Generation Mortgage, the presenters at the December 7 quarterly educational meeting.  Assistant U.S. Attorney McKenzie and Mr. Ruder provided a wealth of information on reverse mortgage fraud.
GEORGIA NEWS
Alleged Home Stealer Could Face More Charges
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution | Oct. 27, 2011

A Cobb County woman accused of stealing three million-dollar metro Atlanta homes could be charged with trying to heist nine more. Read More
DBF Enters into Consent Order
Ga. Dep't of Banking and Fin.

The Georgia Department of Banking and Finance (DBF) entered into a consent order with a mortgage loan originator licensee to resolve allegations pertaining to violations of the Georgia Residential Mortgage Act (GRMA) and agency rules, including allegations of making false statements or misrepresenting facts to lenders.  The order includes a provision that requires completion of education from a DBF-approved provider of mortgage coursework on GRMA, including mortgage fraud.  Read More

Federal Court:  Violation of Ga. Residential Mortgage Fraud Act Provision Does Not Give Rise to Private Cause of Action

U.S. Dist. Court for the Middle Dist. of Ga. | Sept. 29, 2011

As stated in Jenkins v. BAC Home Loan Servicing, LP, No. 7:11-CV-73, --- F.Supp.2d ---, 2011 WL 4543488 (M.D.Ga. Sept. 29, 2011):
 

"In Georgia, residential mortgage fraud is a criminal offense that can rise to the level of a felony.  A person is guilty of residential mortgage fraud when that person [violates O.C.G.A. � 16-8-102, a section of the Georgia Residential Mortgage Fraud Act].

 

"However, 'the violation of a penal statute does not automatically give rise to a civil cause of action on the part of one who is purportedly injured thereby.'  Specifically, section 16-8-102 does not provide a private cause of action.

 

"In this case, Plaintiff attempts to bring a civil cause of action for mortgage fraud, which is governed in Georgia under O.C.G.A. � 16-8-102, a criminal code section.  Section 16-8-102 is not a proper vehicle for civil relief, and therefore Plaintiff's claim for mortgage fraud fails to state an appropriate claim. Therefore, Count XVI must be dismissed."  (citations omitted)

NATIONAL NEWS AFFECTING GEORGIA
FHA Extends Waiver of Anti-Flipping Regulations Through 2012 
U.S. Dep't of Hous. and Urban Dev. | Dec. 28, 2011
 
In an effort to continue stabilizing home values and improve conditions in communities experiencing high foreclosure activity, Acting Federal Housing Administration Commissioner Carol J. Galante today extended a temporary waiver of FHA's anti-flipping regulations through 2012.  The extension announced today is effective through December 31, 2012, unless otherwise extended or withdrawn by FHA.  All other terms of the existing Waiver will remain the same.  The Waiver contains strict conditions and guidelines to prevent the predatory practice of property flipping, in which properties are quickly resold at inflated prices to unsuspecting borrowers. Read More
Attorney General Holder Announces Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force Executive Director
U.S. Dep't of Justice | Dec. 7, 2011
 
U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder today announced the appointment of Michael J. Bresnick as the new executive director of President Barack Obama's Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force.  Read More 
SIGTARP, CFPB, and Treasury Form Joint Task Force to Combat HAMP Mortgage Modification Scams; Release a Consumer Fraud Alert to Protect Homeowners
Consumer Fin. Protection Bureau | Dec. 1, 2011

The Office of the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP), the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), and the U.S. Department of the Treasury announced the creation of a joint task force to combat scams targeted at homeowners seeking to apply for the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP). SIGTARP, the CFPB, and Treasury have partnered to protect taxpayers by investigating and shutting down these scams and by providing education programs to vulnerable homeowners. The joint task force issued a consumer fraud alert to protect homeowners from HAMP-related mortgage modification scams. The fraud alert will also be provided directly to homeowners eligible for HAMP. Read More
SIGTARP Shuts Down Online Mortgage Modification Scams Advertised on Google, Yahoo! and Bing
Office of the Special Inspector Gen. for the Troubled Assets Relief Program | Nov. 21, 2011

The Office of the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP) today announced that it has shut down online mortgage modification scams that prey on vulnerable homeowners through Web banners and other Web advertisements on Yahoo! and Bing.  Last week, SIGTARP announced that it had shut down similar online mortgage modification scams advertised on Google. SIGTARP investigates, among other things, mortgage modification schemes in which companies charge struggling homeowners a fee in exchange for false promises of lowering the homeowner's mortgage through TARP's housing program known as the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP).  In the past week, SIGTARP has shut down 125 of these alleged scams advertised on Yahoo!, Bing, and Google. Read More
NOTICE AND DISCLAIMER:
Copyright 2012 Georgia Real Estate Fraud Prevention and Awareness Coalition, Inc. All rights reserved. Unauthorized use of the Georgia Real Estate Fraud Prevention and Awareness Coalition, Inc. or GREFPAC names or logos is prohibited.  You may reproduce a reasonable number of copies of this newsletter for your own personal use or for non-commercial distribution, but all all copies must be unmodified and must include the above copyright notice.  Reproduction or distribution of this newsletter for commercial purposes is prohibited. GREFPAC cannot guarantee that material accessible from this newsletter is free of viruses or other malicious code, and GREFPAC does not accept any responsibility for any loss caused by any such code.  GREFPAC is not responsible for any third party content, products or services that may be accessed through this newsletter, and the availability of links in this newsletter to such third party content, products or services should not be construed as referrals to, or endorsements of, the linked entities or the content, products or services that they make available. GREFPAC will cease providing links from future issues of this newsletter upon request from the linked party.  The information in this newsletter is presented as general information and is not intended to be, and should not be relied upon as, legal advice or legal opinions on specific facts.  You should not rely on information in this newsletter or its applicability to any specific questions or circumstances without first seeking your own professional's advice.  GREFPAC is not a law firm and does not offer professional legal services.  The information in this publication is not intended to create, and the transmission and receipt of it does not constitute, a confidential or lawyer-client relationship.  The act of contacting GREFPAC will not create a confidential or lawyer-client relationship, and your communication will not be treated as confidential. GREFPAC makes no warranties, representations, or claims of any kind concerning the information available from, or the distribution of, this newsletter.  GREFPAC and contributing authors expressly disclaim all liability to any person in respect of the consequences of anything done or omitted to be done wholly or partly in reliance upon the use or contents of this newsletter.  The information contained in this newsletter may concern allegations made in civil lawsuits and in criminal indictments. Such allegations may be found by the court to be untrue.  All persons are presumed innocent of criminal allegations until convicted of a crime.  Court opinions may be subject to the parties' motion for reconsideration, the court's reconsideration, and editorial changes made by the reporter of decisions.  We are eager to make corrections quickly and candidly.  An aggrieved party need not have a letter to the editor published for us to correct a mistake. We will publish corrections on our own and in our voice as soon as we are told about them and can confirm them.
UPCOMING EVENTS
 AT A GLANCE 

 

Mar. 7, 2012
Annual Educational Conference
7:30am - 5:00pm
Cobb Galleria Centre
2 Galleria Parkway
Atlanta, GA 30339
 
June 6, 2012
Sept. 12, 2012
Dec. 5, 2012
Quarterly Educational Meetings
9:30am - Noon
Atlanta Jr. League
3154 N'side Pkwy.
Atlanta, GA 30327

 



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Real Property Law Section of State Bar of Georgia
 

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Georgia Real Estate Fraud Prevention and Awareness Coalition, Inc.
1188 Dorby Park Drive
Atlanta, GA
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