As Boise real estate foreclosures rose in 2009, so did the number of complaints from residents seeking mortgage loan modifications. Foreclosures were up 89 percent from the previous year, but complaints about modifications leapt from a handful in 2008 to 353 in 2009, according to the attorney general's office. These types of filed complaints made up one fifth of all complaints received by the AG's office this year.
Idaho's Attorney General has gone so far to say that the types of fraud being reported are outrageous. "Some of these operators took advantage of desperate homeowners by charging hundreds or even thousands of dollars in upfront fees, while taking no action to modify the mortgage." Meanwhile, lawsuits have been filed on behalf of the consumers on 2 of the loan modification companies, and settlements have been reached with three others. This kind of criminal act leaves nearly all homeowners in the Boise real estate market without any avenue to keep their homes.
The Attorney Generals office even brought in a counselor to help Boise real estate owners avoid foreclosure through modifications or other foreclosure remedies. To help out, free foreclosure handbooks were printed up and handed out.
Efforts last year netted the largest amount of restitution ever recovered by the office - $7.4 million, about $12.14 for each taxpayer dollar budgeted for consumer operations, Wasden said. Topping any previous records, the AG's office also collected $5.9 million in penalties, fines and fees for Idaho taxpayers. In 2009, the office also recovered $31 million through the tobacco master settlement agreement which was agreed upon in 1998 by the two parties. With a total net to date of $254 million, this agreement has helped Idaho tremendously.
"All together, the 13 people in our consumer protection division brought in $44 million for Boise real estate owners and the state last year, while we spent only $833,000 on consumer operations," Wasden said. The department was very effective in the broad range of topics it worked in last year. Regardless of the size of the business, the attorney general pursued claims against pharmaceutical giants and small businesses alike. Illegal monopolies and price fixing remained huge targets, as well as any issue in the anti-trust arena. They even managed to reach an agreement involving a price fixing vitamin company.
Regarding the No Call Law, more than 900,000 phone numbers were registered by year's end and residents report that they're getting fewer unwanted calls. In addition to all this, the Attorney Generals office is also planning no releasing a video designed to protect kids from sexual predators on the internet.
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