Who Says You Can\'t Buy a Home! Ivan and Delores Eichers are among thousands of people who fall each year for offers that promise to help them avoid foreclosure but that leave them with none of the equity they had built up in their property. Their situation matches one of the three common models of foreclosure fraud the National Consumer Law Center described in a report on the problem. The number of foreclosures nationwide soared 42 percent in 2006 to 1.26 million, said RealtyTrac, a company that tracks foreclosures. That creates opportunities for more foreclosure fraud, although the exact number of cases is hard to determine.

The Eichers thought they were taking out a $1,700 loan to help them pay the roughly $4,700 in back payments they owed on their mortgage. They learned too late they had signed their house over to Mid-America Financial Investment Corp. and agreed to lease their home from Mid-America when they accepted that loan. Although the couple no longer owned their home, the mortgage remained in their names, so they made their $554 payments on the loan through Mid-America, along with monthly fees of at least $100. A second scheme described in the report involves consultants charging high fees to help homeowners out of trouble but never delivering the promised services. A third involves an agreement where a homeowner knowingly signs over his or her home and agrees to buy it back over time, but the terms of the agreement make it nearly impossible for the homeowner to succeed.

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