Police looking for help from victims of lawyers suspected in loan fraud
Police Chief John Romero has launched an investigation into mortgage broker scams, focusing on the involvement of local lawyers who he says took "under-the-table money" from home buyers who got duped into taking out loans they couldn't afford.

Metro Atlanta Foreclosures Reach a Record High in January According to Equity Depot
Equity Depot LLC reported that pending foreclosures hit a record high this month with 4,823 properties advertised for foreclosure sale in the 13 county metro Atlanta area. This represents a 25 % month to month increase from 3,842 in December 2006 to January, 2007. Overall in 2006, pending foreclosures increased from 37,605 properties advertised for foreclosure sale in 2005 to 44,971 in 2006...home ownership is at an all time high and foreclosures are a bi-product of this activity.

NY contractors admit stealing workers' wages Three construction companies and their owners have pleaded guilty to failing to pay more than 400 workers about $6.5 million in wages, Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's office said Friday. The companies, along with their owners, must pay a total of $9.5 million in fines and restitution. Authorities say the three involved companies are 4-A General Construction Corp., SNA General Construction Corp. and SSN General Construction Corp. All are based in New York City.

Name change should foil fraudulent contractors
Since July 1, the state Department of Business and Professional Regulation has received 791 complaints about unlicensed construction activity. "It's been a problem for years," said Richard Hickok, executive director of the Constructions Trade Quality Board for the city of Jacksonville. Hickok said properly licensed contractors must post bonds so consumers can seek compensation for shoddy work.

Texas faces obvious problems that the 80th Lege should fix. It probably won't
On the frigid day in Texas that Rick Perry was sworn in for the term that will make him our longest-serving governor, one in five Texas children did not have health insurance...Tom Craddick won his third term as House speaker after fighting back an insurgent challenge to his leadership fueled in part by growing disgust over the undue influence of rich campaign contributors, whose largesse has been rewarded with limits on lawsuits and protections for homebuilders. The flow of money continues to course unchecked through Texas politics...Most recently, in the 2005-2006 election cycle, Leininger gave more than $5 million to Texas candidates. He's not the only one. Republican home builder Bob Perry"€”the biggest political donor in the state and nation"€”gave $6.7 million to Texas candidates and political action committees, according to campaign watchdog Texans for Public Justice.

Convicted con artist shows how system flaws could allow him to steal your home
A one-time millionaire with a house on a golf course, Barber was sentenced in October to 12 years in prison for masterminding the largest mortgage fraud ever prosecuted in Missouri, and most other states too, the FBI says. He pleaded guilty to a five-year scam that involved nearly 300 properties in Kansas City, Mo., and victimized more than 80 people. Nationally, mortgage fraud has spread in the past few years, with losses totaling around $1 billion last year, the FBI says. The real estate boom, along with looser lending standards, built an ideal breeding ground for smooth-talking con artists like Barber.

Home builder found shot dead
"Tony" Ippolito was an active member of the Home Builders Association of Greater Columbia and formerly served on its board of directors, according to Earl McLeod, the executive director.The body of Anthony Francis Ippolito, 65, of Laurel Branch Way was found facedown under shrubbery near the edge of the parking lot of Lexington Partners Inc. about 8:51 a.m., the release said.

Building Delays
Brante Sampey just moved his family into a brand new Beazer home right before the New Year. He says, "When walking through, we realized many things missing like a tray ceiling that we paid for and the entire bath was pieced together and it's incomplete." Brante's master bathroom had no shower door, temporary sinks and counter tops. He says he was told at closing it would be installed with-in a few days, but that got delayed.

Eight indicted in mortgage cases
Eight Houston-area individuals, from real estate agents to loan officers, have been indicted in connection with alleged mortgage fraud that entangled 300 homes worth more than $40 million, according to the Harris County District Attorney's Office.Mortgage fraud has become so prevalent in the Houston area that the FBI's Houston division has formed a unit dedicated solely to fighting mortgage fraud.Texas ranks seventh in the nation for loans that involved fraud, according to the Mortgage Asset Research Institute, and Houston ranks third in serious early loan defaults.

Coalition of Advocacy Groups Calls for Legislative Action on Behalf of Texas Homeowners
A coalition of consumer advocacy organizations including the Texas Public Interest Research Group (TexPIRG), Texas Watch and Home Owners for Better Building, are calling on the Texas Legislature to enact legislation to relieve the plight of Texas homeowners.  According to these groups, Texas homeowners are facing pressures from a poorly-functioning government bureaucracy, exploitative homeowners' insurance rates and predatory mortgage lending. These problems, the coalition says, are turning the dream of owning a home into a nightmare for many Texans. The groups released a report entitled Homeowners Rights in Texas: What the Legislature Must Do to highlight the issues. See Photos

Letters: From dream home to nightmare
 Law should force builders to be responsible "Couple's dream home a 10-year legal nightmare – Builder fights claim of faulty house in court to which he's donated," Sunday news story. Original Article: Dream home becomes legal nightmare

Coalition: Insurance relief hasn't come 
 A coalition of consumer groups called on the Legislature on Tuesday to come to the aid of homeowners paying exorbitant insurance rates and those fighting a losing battle with their builders before a state agency that is supposed to mediate such disputes... "The TRCC is actually little more than a barrier protecting the building industry by preventing homeowners from taking legitimate legal action against incompetent and unscrupulous builders," he said, noting homeowners are forbidden to take legal action until they have completed a dispute resolution process at the agency "that is stacked decisively against the homeowner and in favor of the builder."

Dream home becomes legal nightmare
A tortuous legal battle has carried the retirement-age couple through the courts, to arbitration and now through the courts again – all the way to the Texas Supreme Court. The Culls have won every round, but their home has not been fixed, legal costs have soared and the couple has postponed retirement plans. ..Particularly this builder: Mr. Perry is the nation's most generous individual political donor. He has been a leading advocate of laws to limit court awards against businesses and a financial benefactor to politicians and judges. And he has funded Republican candidates up and down the ballot in Texas, including more than $340,000 to the nine justices that will hear the Culls' case.

Chief: Fire at mold house may be accidental
Nancy Davis and her husband, Rick, moved from the house at 20 Shawnee Road in 2003 because the mold infestation made them sick. They took a huge loss on the house, for which they paid $227,900, when they let the bank have it back for $1...Davis, who now lives in an apartment with her husband near their former home, said she saw the flames coming from the vacant house about 6:35 p.m. The fire gutted the home...Although she no longer has a financial connection to the home, her fear was that someone would come in, do some cosmetic changes and then try to resell it without dealing with the mold issue. "In some ways, it's a godsend that it burned," she said. "A least now I'm not worried about another family living there."