Georgia Mortgages

One of the ironic elements in the recent explosive growth in mortgage fraud is that it is the lenders who are being ripped off, even more so than the consumer. The impact of mortgage fraud in Georgia has led to the formation of the Georgia Real Estate Fraud Prevention & Awareness Coalition (GREFPAC). This group is made of principally of professionals in the industry who have a compelling interest in closing the loopholes in the lending process that allow for theft.

GREFPAC has a website that provides a volume of consumer information regarding the types of mortgage fraud that exist and how to spot a scam. Mortgage fraud often involves defrauding the lending institution, but the term also includes types of scams that lead to consumers losing their homes in phony refinancing deals. This organization is also making an effort to educate the law enforcement community on the nature and sophistication of mortgage fraud in the state, particularly in the Atlanta area. Visit their site at http://www.grefpac.org/.

Georgia's Department of Banking and Finance also has a consumer oriented resource located at http://dbf.georgia.gov/00/channel_title/0,2094,43414745_46296143,00.html. There you can find information on the Georgia Fair Lending Act; this legislation puts teeth in the regulations regarding excessive fees and loan misrepresentation. There is also a Mortgage FAQ section that covers issues for both professional and consumer. There are sections on licensing; fees; escrow accounts; insurance and many other relevant topics. Finally, the web page has a section on financial issues for seniors that covers reverse mortgages in some detail.

The same State Department has also compiled an alphabetical list of FAQs that you can search by letter. They extend from adjustable rate mortgages to vehicle leasing; there are no w; x; y or z FAQs. There are some unexpected surprises among the information there; a random selection of 'escrow fees' led to a HUD web site that explained how escrow fees are limited by federal law and escrow violations detailed in the same federal act. Their section on ARMs leads to the Federal Reserve Board's consumer basics on these loans. There is also a mortgage shopping worksheet at the Fed's site that could prove to be useful.

Georgia's state regulatory apparatus seems to be up to date on the problems in the present mortgage market and has a solid record of consumer advocacy. In 2002, Georgia passed one of the country's toughest anti-predatory lending laws. Among other things, it would have made not just the originator of a loan liable for abusive practices, but any investor who purchased the loan in the secondary market. Numerous lenders threatened to stop doing business in Georgia.

Shortly afterward, the two principal federal regulators - the Office of the Controller of the Currency and the Office of Thrift Supervision - said that Georgia's law didn't apply to their regulated institutions. This notion of pre-emption has caused the paralysis in Washington over irresponsible banking to impact state-level legislation. Georgia later weakened the law's most contentious provisions.