Foreclosure Rescue Scams Multiply

USA Today (08/04/08); Leinwand, Donna
Foreclosure rescue scams are becoming more of a problem, and cases are starting to emerge. The Federal Trade Commission has already filed three major foreclosure rescue cases this year, compared with zero a year ago; and one case involves thousands of victims and property worth millions of dollars, according to FTC regional director Brad Elbein, who heads the agency's foreclosure rescue campaign. At least 14 states have passed new laws this year to protect struggling homeowners--including a new one in Idaho that requires a written contract with a rescue company and gives homeowners five days to change their minds. "The scope is probably going to be potentially as large as the mortgage fraud problem itself," says Sharon Ormsby, the FBI's chief of financial crimes.