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 2

INSIDE GREFPAC
GREFPAC Awards UGA Student $2,500 Grant 

 

2012-ReginaldMiller-Grant
GREFPAC President Tom Merkel (left) and UGA Professor Andy Carswell (right) present UGA Student Reginald Miller with $2,500 grant.
At its Educational Conference, GREFPAC awarded its $2,500 Founders Grant to Reginald Miller, a Ph.D. student and graduate assistant in Housing and Consumer Economics at the University of Georgia.  Ph.D. candidate Miller will use the grant to research the effects of two types of foreclosures:  those that arise out of mortgage fraud and those that arise out of other causes, such as job loss or divorce.  It has been suggested that the effects of fraud-based foreclosures are harsher, due to the criminal elements involved with the transaction in the first place, and the research will help to prove or disprove that theory.  In addition, the grant will aid the effort to catalog mortgage fraud's long-term damage to communities.  Reginald will make a presentation on his research and findings at GREFPAC's 2013 Educational Conference.
Tradition of Top-Notch Education Continues at 8th Conference

TerryFranzen-TomMerkel
GREFPAC President
 Tom Merkel (left) presents Terry Franzen, Esq. with 2012 GREFPAC Outstanding Support Award.
GREFPAC's 8th Educational Conference was held on March 7 at the Cobb Galleria Centre.  It featured outstanding speakers, who alerted attendees on evolving real estate fraud trends, regulatory changes, the impact of fraud on neighborhoods, and best practices to detect and prevent fraud.  A recap of the day's events is posted here.  Plans are already underway for next year's conference.
Joint Luncheon Meeting with NAPMW Planned for April 

GREFPAC and National Association of Professional Mortgage Women (NAPMW)-Atlanta are working to host a joint luncheon meeting on April 17 at the Dunwoody Country Club.  More information will be distributed as it becomes available.  It is anticipated that GREFPAC members may attend at NAPMW member prices.
June Meeting: "Sovereign Citizens" and Adverse Possession of Vacant Homes

 
The June 6 quarterly educational meeting will focus on the "Sovereign Citizens" and the emerging trend of persons claiming adverse possession of vacant homes. An election of the 2012-13 GREFPAC board of directors and officers will also be held at this meeting.  

 

GEORGIA NEWS
Disbarred Lawyer Indicted and Arrested for Running a Corrupt Real Estate Practice
U.S. Attorney's Office for the N. Dist. of Ga. | Mar. 30, 2012

United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates said, "In real estate closings, lenders trust the attorneys who represent them to fairly and honestly conduct the closings and appropriately handle the funds with which they are entrusted.  This defendant is charged with running a Ponzi scheme out of his law firm, often using the proceeds from real estate transactions for his own personal benefit rather than the business purpose for which they were intended." Read More
Fraudsters Sentenced to Prison for Reverse Mortgage Scheme
U.S. Attorney's Office for the N. Dist. of Ga. | Feb. 23, 2012

United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates said, "HUD's Home Equity Conversion Program was designed to enable seniors to buy a home or to stay in a home at a time in their lives when it may be very difficult for them to obtain a conventional loan.  These defendants took money out of the hands of the elderly and then put them in houses worth only a fraction of the amounts represented.  This case represents yet another variation of mortgage fraud we are combating through investigation and prosecution."  Read More

Former Cartersville Mayoral Candidate Sentenced to Federal Prison for Bank Fraud

U.S. Attorney's Office for the N. Dist. of Ga. | Feb. 17, 2012
 

According to United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates, the charges and other information presented in court:  In March 2003, H. Gregory Cordell, a realtor and real estate developer, bought a house and six acres of land for $1.25 million.  Although the seller had listed the property for approximately $950,000, Cordell and the seller agreed to inflate the sales price by $307,000, obtain an inflated mortgage, and then pay the extra $307,000 to Cordell after closing. Read More 

Two Individuals Plead Guilty to Mortgage Fraud in South Atlanta
Ga. Attorney Gen. | Jan. 10, 2012

 

Two women have pled guilty to mortgage fraud involving properties in South Atlanta.  They are part of a group of 10 defendants indicted in March 2011 for fraud including 12 properties. Read More
NATIONAL NEWS AFFECTING GEORGIA
Interthinx 2011 Annual Report Sees Disturbing Rise in Employment/Income Mortgage Fraud Risk 
Interthinx | Mar. 28, 2012

 

Interthinx has released its annual Mortgage Fraud Risk Report, which highlights some of the most significant mortgage fraud risk trends based on analysis of loan applications processed in 2011 by the Interthinx FraudGUARD system.  According to the annual report, the Employment/Income Fraud Risk Index rose 14 percent during 2011 and has been on an upward trend for more than two years for a total increase of more than 45 percent.  The report lists Georgia as the eighth riskiest state, the same position it held a year ago, but points out that Georgia was among the states with the largest decreases in the mortgage fraud risk index between 2010 and 2011, with a decrease of 15 points. Read More
Mortgage Loan Fraud Reports Suspicious Activity Rose in Third Quarter 2011 Compared with Third Quarter 2012
Fin. Crimes Enforcement Network | Mar. 5, 2012

Almost 62 percent of mortgage loan fraud suspicious activity report (MLF SAR) filings reported in the 2011 third quarter involved suspicious activities that started four or more years ago.  These filings, driving the continued rise in the MLF SAR numbers, stem largely from mortgage repurchase demands and special filings generated by several depository institutions related to mortgages originated in the height of the housing boom. Read More
MBA to Hold National Fraud Issues Conference
Mortgage Bankers Ass'n 

MBA's National Fraud Issues Conference 2012 will be held April 22-25 in Phoenix. Read More
Fannie Mae Releases Monthly Mortgage Fraud Findings Statistics
Fed. Nat'l Mortgage Ass'n | Jan.-Mar. 2012

Based on Fannie Mae loan reviews completed through the end of February 2012, among all states, Georgia had the sixth most loans with significant misrepresentation findings for 2012 and 2011 originations and the eighth most for 2010 originations. Read More 
FTC Action Leads to Ban on Alleged Mortgage Relief Scammers Who Harmed Thousands of Consumers
Fed. Trade Comm'n | Feb. 14, 2012

At the request of the Federal Trade Commission, a U.S. district court put the mortgage relief business permanently off limits to marketers who allegedly charged thousands of consumers up to $2,600 each, based on bogus promises to provide loan modifications that would make mortgages much more affordable. Read More
Interthinx Releases Q4 2011 Mortgage Fraud Risk Report
Interthinx | Feb. 2012

Interthinx released its latest Mortgage Fraud Risk Report, reflecting data collected in the fourth quarter of 2011.  According to the report, the national Mortgage Fraud Risk Index increased 1.4% from the last quarter and 3.6% from a year ago; while the Income/Employment Fraud Risk index rose only 1% from Q3, it has jumped by nearly 14% from one year ago and by 46% over the last two years; and although the overall Index has remained relatively flat, the Property Valuation Fraud Risk index jumped nearly 8% over the last quarter after a period of decline and stability.  In addition, the report indicates that Georgia has the eighth highest mortgage fraud risk among all states and that the Atlanta metropolitan statistical area remains in the "very high risk" category. Read More
Amendments Proposed for Mortgage Fraud Sentencing Guidelines 
U.S. Sentencing Comm'n | Jan. 19, 2012
 
In addressing a Dodd-Frank Act directive, the U.S. Sentencing Commission proposes changes to the calculation of loss in cases of a fraud involving a mortgage loan, including that (i) the loss should be determined by the amount recovered from the foreclosure sale where the collateral has been disposed of at a foreclosure sale; and (ii) reasonably foreseeable administrative costs to the lending institution associated with foreclosing on the mortgaged property may be included as reasonably foreseeable pecuniary harm provided that the lending institution exercised due diligence in the initiation, processing, and monitoring of the loan and the disposal of the collateral. 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 

  

Apr. 17, 2012
(tentative)
GREFPAC/NAPMW

Joint Luncheon Meeting
11:30am - 1:00pm
Dunwoody Country Club
1600 Dunwoody Country Club Dr., Atlanta, GA 30350

 

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


THANK YOU
2012 SPONSORS

Silver


 

CBC National Bank
 

Flagstar Bank

GREFPAC - New York Time

 

GA Banking

 

Interthinx
 

LotsteinLegal
 

LSI Mortgage Plug
 

StoneHill Group


Bronze

Accurate Quality Control

 

Casey Gilson P.C.

 

Coleman | Talley, LLP

 

DataVerify

 

Dickenson Gilroy

 

Fifth Third Bank

 

Gateway Compliance

 

Fifth Third Bank

 
Georgia Real Estate Closing Attorneys Ass'n (GRECAA)

 

LoanSouth Mortgage

 

LSI Local Solutions
 

Morris | Hardwick | Schneider, LLC

 

NREIS
(Nat'l Real Estate Info. Services)

 

Old Republic National Title Insurance Co.
 

RealEC

 

Richard C. Wayne & Associates

 

Stewart Title Guaranty Company

  

Valuation Management Group

 
Georgia Real Estate Fraud Prevention and Awareness Coalition, Inc.
1188 Dorby Park Drive
Atlanta, GA
30319
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