In times of trouble many people are too apt to quickly jump in to the arms of the first savior that comes along. Today, with millions of Americans in foreclosure trouble, it's all too easy to make the wrong choice under the pressures of either trying to save your home or delay the time it takes for your lender to foreclose. In fact the FBI says over the past two-years there has been a 71 percent increase in scams targeting citizens facing foreclosure.
The first place many people look for help is the internet - which in the case of real foreclosure help seems to lead more often that not to nowhere. The majority of foreclosure searches will bring you to numerous sham web sites trying to sell you something that is not valuable or that's no help at all. Many are actually just shills which seek to fish-net your personal information so that it can be sold to investors and sharks waiting in the wings. And many sites are selling rather common information for hundreds or even thousands of dollars.

The second place most people turn to for help in times of trouble are professionals like lawyers and mortgage brokers and real estate brokers. And, like those times when you got sick and just ran to any old available doctor, many people will make the same mistakes when seeking professional help with their foreclosure. As an attorney for the past fourteen years I've seen a lot of unscrupulous professionals. Both criminal (crime committing) lawyers and criminal real estate brokers. You know, the kind that want your money and your blood and really aren't even considering your well being.
Please don't send me email outraged over this attack of your "noble" professions before you do some googling. There's stories of professional abuse and misuse all over the internet. Check out "Operation Home Wrecker" In that one nineteen people, most from Southern California, were indicted for mortgage fraud. These people were preying on desperate foreclosure victims.
Other scams involve getting needy people to deed over their homes with false promises of help. You sign your deed over and they get your home and you get nothing.
Now this is not to say that there are not many moral professionals out there But just like in the general societal gene pool, there are good and bad people in every walk of life. If you are going to seek outside help with your problems be sure to do your homework. Read anything you are going to sign before you sign it. Ask for references of people who have dealt with the lawyer, or real estate broker, or mortgage broker in the past. Look for long-standing well established people. If they have been in the community for many years they should have developed good relationships with their clients and can provided more than a few good references. Check local organizations, like the better business bureau, the local law associations (usually bar associations) for complaints filed against the person or company you are considering.

Watch out for quick cash offers and rescue scams and web sites asking you to enter your personal information (including you name and home address).
Remember, depending on how you are approaching your particular pre-foreclosure or foreclosure problems there are many things you can do without third party help. The one thing you can not do is afford to wait. Whatever your problems are the best way to solve them is to get the right infomration you need and act decidedly and fast!

In Foreclosure Trouble? Don't Trust Anyone! | Foreclosure Slam