As if facing foreclosure wasn’t bad enough, now you have to be on the lookout for foreclosure rescue scams. In these scams, companies claim they can help save your home by working out a deal with your mortgage loan. The scams often require upfront payments. In the end, you’re out of hundreds of dollars and still facing foreclosure of your mortgage loan.

Sometimes foreclosure rescue scams come to you after a foreclosure notice is posted at your county or city courthouse. Other scams are advertised on television, radio, and the internet.

You can tell whether a foreclosure rescue service is a scam by looking for certain warning signs:

• The company asks you to pay a fee before they do anything or asks you to send a fee via cashier’s check or wire transfer.
• The company tells you to pay them instead of your lender. Foreclosure scam artists often tell homeowners not to contact their lender at all.
• The company promises it will stop the foreclosure process. Your lender is the only one who can stop your property from being foreclosed. Foreclosure rescue companies can’t guarantee your home won’t be foreclosed.
• The company asks you to transfer your title or deed.

Types of Foreclosure Rescue Scams

Foreclosure rescue scammers use a few different tactics to trick you out of your money, your home, or both.

Rent, Then Buy Scam

In this scam, the foreclosure rescue company tells you to sign over the title of your home so they can sell it to a buyer who can afford your home. In exchange, you get to rent your home for a few years until you can buy it back. Only when the time comes to buy back your home, you’re not able to buy it. The new homebuyer might even default on the mortgage, causing you to be evicted and homeless anyway.

There are other versions of this scam where the landlord continually increases your rent until you can no longer afford it, then evicts you for non-payment.

If you sign over your deed, you’ve given up ownership of your home, but not the mortgage attached to the home.

Fake Mortgage Counseling

There are real housing counselors out there and of course, fake ones. Housing counselors that work through the government’s Housing Counseling Program are not allowed to charge for foreclosure prevention and homeless counseling services.

Scammers trick desperate homeowners who are facing foreclosure by charging upfront fees for their “counseling services.” These scammers might tell you not to contact your lender, attorney, or any other housing counseling service. They might even tell you to start sending your mortgage payments to them instead of your mortgage lender.

How to Get Real Help

Your lender should always be the first point of contact for help with your mortgage. You may be able to temporarily reduce or suspend your payments through forbearance or deferment. Your lender can also tell you if you’re eligible for a loan modification or refinance.

You can find a legitimate housing counselor through the HUD’s website.

If you’ve been a victim of a foreclosure rescue scam, contact the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) at ftc.gov or 1-877-FTC-HELP.