With the number of Pasadena foreclosures on the rise it should come as no surprise that more people are becoming victims of various Pasadena foreclosure scams. The best way to not fall victim to any of these scams is to get tough. When scammers contact you they are not going to take no for an answer, but they will also do and say anything to make you feel that they are your only hope. Most people fall victim to these scams because they are scared about going through the foreclosure process, while others simply just want it to go away so they grab the first life preserver thrown to them.
No matter how stressful a Pasadena foreclosure is to face becoming a victim of a foreclosure scam makes things worse. The only way not to fall victim is to make it harder on the scam artists by knowing what to look for. Here are the features that you will want to watch for:
Image by Getty Images via @daylife· Appearance: Most people are under the impression that scam artists are going to act shady or even appear to be crooks. The problem here is that most scam artists look just like your next-door neighbor. Scam artists often act nice and helpful so most people trust them instinctively. Scam artists always appear to be legitimate, but they are using that to gain your trust. They will even go so far as to belong to some of the same organizations that you do, all to help make you feel more at ease with them.
· Money Upfront: If people are requesting that you pay a portion of the money upfront, no matter how small the amount is, do not accept there assistance. Paying any money upfront is a bad idea because you will never see your money again nor the person you gave it to. Any legitimate program available to help you with avoiding Pasadena foreclosure will not require any money upfront.
· Promises: If a person is telling you something that sounds too good to be true chances are it is a scam. Scam artists will do and say anything they can to convince you to give them your money. The problem with these scam artists is that everything that they are saying sounds true, so you can’t help but believe them. The most common promises that you will here is that they can make the Pasadena foreclosure go away or that they can stop the foreclosure process with just a few phone calls.
· Credentials: If somebody is going to be charging you a fee to work with your lender in the State of California that person must be licensed with the California Department of Real Estate. Just because a person states they are licensed doesn’t mean they are licensed. Before doing business with anybody check the status of their license at www.dre.ca.gov and do some other research. You can check with the Better Business Bureau, public records, and the Internet to help verify information. Always ask for and verify references, as well as going to the physical address of the business.
· Expects Immediate Action: All scam artists are going to push for an immediate answer. They do this because they don’t want you to have a chance to think things through, verify the information, read through the paperwork, or even talk to a friend or family member about what is going on for fear that you will find out about the scam.
· Signature Required: Never sign anything unless you have read and understood everything first. If lines are blank or if the person tells you that a specific part doesn’t matter or means something other than it says do not sign the papers.
· Asks for Your Participation: Many scam artists will often ask you to help out in stopping the Pasadena foreclosure by doing something improper or even illegal. If you get involved in the scheme they are betting that you won’t turn them in for fear of being in trouble yourself. Never do anything that goes against your values and morals no matter how desperate the situation is.
· Ignoring Questions: Often times you have questions about the Pasadena foreclosure process because it is something you haven’t experienced before. A sure sign of a scam artist is one that ignores any questions that you might ask or who doesn’t know the answers to your questions. To help weed out the frauds ask lots of questions, even ones you know the answers to, you will be amazed at how brazen some of these people are.
No comments:
Post a Comment