Cooper
RALEIGH, N.C. (Legal Newsline) - North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper announced on Wednesday that he has halted the operations of a foreclosure assistance company that allegedly charged for services it never delivered.
A default judgment was granted against Peoples First Financial Inc. Under terms of the judgment, the California-based company may not perform or offer foreclosure assistance, loan modification or debt relief services in the state. The judgment also orders Peoples First Financial to pay $9,497.50 in refunds to consumers and another $25,000 in civil penalties that will benefit local public schools.
"Foreclosure assistance schemes take money out of the economy and push homeowners deeper into debt," Cooper said. "Homeowners often lose their homes and end up paying thousands of dollars for help that never comes."
Cooper learned of the company's alleged fraudulent actions in 2009 when complaints filed into his office.
Under state law, homeowners can not be charged an advance fee for loan modification services.
"Scammers undermine the good work being done by legitimate housing counselors to help families keep their homes," Cooper said. "There's real help for available for free for North Carolina homeowners who want options to avoid foreclosure."