In this week's blog we will talk about home improvement fraud first and then debt relief
You should be suspicious of the contractor who:
***solicits door-to-door business
***asked you to get the required building permits
***only accepts cash payments
***do they have a local business address or telephone number
***uses high-pressure sales tactics
***fails to provide a written contract
***request for payment before completing work
***offers exceptionally long guarantees
***offers home improvement loans
These should be warning signs to you that you may not be dealing with a legitimate contractor.
***obtain more than one bid for the job and insist that the contract be in writing
***do not sign a contract or pay any money before you have your attorney review the contract
***never put down more than one third of the contract price before your work begins
***your contract should state the exact work to be done, start and completion dates and the total cost of the project
***get the license number and the name the license is under and the address not a( PO Box) and phone number of the contractor
***make sure your contractor is registered in the state that you live in and check the Better Business Bureau to see if any complaints have been filed against the contractor
***and never make the final payment until completely satisfied with the work that was done
An important resource to go to if you are contemplating home improvements is the HUD Website, they have an extensive list of organizations that provide homeowners with home repairs and improvements by city,town and County.
If you become a victim of home improvement fraud you should contact your local authorities. Notify the Better Business Bureau and contact your attorney.
It is important when you are considering a home improvement to do the proper due diligence. By following these tips it should reduce your risk of home improvement fraud and to get the job completed at the price quoted by the date committed to by the contractor.
Debt relief fraud
Bogus credit counseling services
***lie about nonprofit status
***don't provide education and counseling
***often arrange for consumers to pay debt through a DMP
***may have been shut down by the FTC
How a DMP works
You deposit money each month to the credit counseling service, which uses your deposits to pay your debts.Then your counselor works with your creditors to develop a payment schedule.
Your creditors may agree to a low interest rate and wave fees. Counseling service must make regular timely payments.
You could take up to 48 months to complete.
You cannot incur any additional credit while in the plan.
Bogus Debt negotiation programs
***pay off debt from 10 to 50% of balance owed.
***claim services will not have negative impact on your credit rating
***claim negative information will be removed from your credit report.
***have you send your payments to them instead of the creditor.
***say they will set up a special account and pay your creditors on your behalf..
The truth
***no guaranteed creditor will accept partial payment
***you will have a negative entry on credit report
***you can still be sued by a creditor and interest and fees continue if you stop making payments
***debt negotiation companies charge a monthly service fee and a percent of the money you saved to establish an account
*** there is no guarantee that the services are legitimate
Tips to avoid debt management fraud
***confirm with your creditors that they have accepted the proposal
***read your monthly statements properly
***do not make any commitments over the telephone and make sure your DMP agreement is in writing and is a detailed price quote of all fees charged
***do not pay upfront fees to enroll in credit counseling or DMP
***ask how your privacy is safeguarded
***check HUD website for a list of bona fide credit counselors
As I've mentioned in previous blogs Peter Brusso peter@infocard.cc and I have a website dedicated to informing senior citizens of various scams and identity theft frauds. We've just posted a new podcast which can be viewed at: http://seniorscamspodcast.com/index.html
Have a good week and I will be back next week to discuss a couple more of the top 10 frauds and scams
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