- 08
- Mar
As Boise real estate foreclosures rose in 2009, so did the number of complaints from residents seeking mortgage loan modifications. Foreclosures were up 89 percent from the previous year, but complaints about modifications leapt from a handful in 2008 to 353 in 2009, according to the attorney general’s office. These types of filed complaints made up one fifth of all complaints received by the AG’s office this year.
Idaho’s Attorney General has gone so far to say that the types of fraud being reported are outrageous. “Some of these operators took advantage of desperate homeowners by charging hundreds or even thousands of dollars in upfront fees, while taking no action to modify the mortgage.” In response, his office filed lawsuits against two modification and foreclosure consultants and made settlement agreements with three. This kind of criminal act leaves nearly all homeowners in the Boise real estate market without any avenue to keep their homes.
The Attorney Generals office even brought in a counselor to help Boise real estate owners avoid foreclosure through modifications or other foreclosure remedies. Two free consumer handbooks were published.
Recovering restitution in the amount of $7.4 million from various consumer complaints, which amounts to $12.14 for every tax dollar allocated to the program, the Attorney Generals office worked hard for consumers. The attorney general also recovered $5.9 million in civil penalties, fees and costs, also the largest amount ever recovered by the office in that category. The state received $31 million in 2009 from the tobacco master settlement agreement negotiated between the office and tobacco manufacturers in 1998. So far, this agreement has brought Idaho $254 million it wouldn’t otherwise have.
Adding up the amount of money that the consumer affairs division brings in, minus the $833,000 in operations, and you have an excellent ratio for Boise real estate holders and citizens in Idaho in general. The department was very effective in the broad range of topics it worked in last year. It prosecuted and settled consumer protection cases with Eli Lilly & Co., other pharmaceutical manufacturers and several businesses. Refusing to be a respecter of monopolies or price fixing criminal groups, Idaho’s Attorney General allowed no slack. They even managed to reach an agreement involving a price fixing vitamin company.
Regarding the No Call Law, more than 900,000 phone numbers were registered by year’s end and residents report that they’re getting fewer unwanted calls. To add to it all, the office will soon come out with an instructional DVD on how teens can avoid being trapped by online sexual predators.
The author enjoys writing articles about boise real estate & Boise real estate source. To learn more about these topics click on the links above! Get a totally unique version of this article from our article submission service
