news-record.com

The N.C. Attorney General’s Office has filed lawsuits against three companies it claims took struggling homeowners’ money with false promises of rescuing them from foreclosure.

A High Point couple’s complaint led to the suit against one of the companies: American Mortgage Assistance of Fort Mill, S.C., operated by Robert E. Cassell Jr.

The other two companies are based in Charlotte: Metrolina Mortgage Relief LLC and Home Assure LLC.

“So-called foreclosure rescue schemes prey on desperate homeowners, pushing them even closer to losing their homes,” Attorney General Roy Cooper said.

The lawsuits, filed late Wednesday in Wake County Superior Court, ask the court to bar the companies from taking any money from North Carolina consumers for debt adjusting or foreclosure assistance services. The attorney general also wants refunds for consumers, civil penalties and cancellation of all contracts.

The suit filed against AMA was based on an affidavit from Michael and Trena McNeill, who lost their house in High Point.

According to the lawsuit, the McNeills paid AMA $769.73 in February to “negotiate with their mortgage lender to obtain a lower monthly payment or a fixed-rate mortgage.”

For three months, AMA claimed it was negotiating with the McNeills’ lender. The couple was told they would have to pay $5,000 before the lender would agree to negotiate, the suit said.

The McNeills, who declined to comment Friday, lost their home to foreclosure in July.

“With foreclosures on the rise, we’re starting to see more and more of these (scams),” said Noelle Talley, an Attorney General’s Office spokeswoman. “It certainly seems to be a growing problem. ...We anticipate there are other victims out there.”

A state law passed in 2005 makes it illegal for any foreclosure assistance business to collect fees in advance.

According to the lawsuit against AMA, the company searched court records to find people facing foreclosure, then solicited them with claims of being experts who could save them from foreclosure.

“After consumers pay AMA for 'foreclosure consulting’ services, the defendant instructs its consumer clients to cease all contact with the consumer’s mortgage lender and to allow the defendant to handle all mortgage lender communications,” the suit reads.

“They tell people not to contact their lender, and that’s the absolute worst thing you can do,” Talley said. “So victims of these scams are not only losing money, they’re also losing time that could be spent on finding a real solution.”

A telephone message left Friday afternoon at AMA’s office was not returned.

The N.C. Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division has received three complaints against AMA, seven against Metrolina and eight against Home Assure.

Contact Jeff Mills at 373-7024 or jeff.mills@news-record.com