Upon review of my documentation, you will see that Scott Veerkamp must have "skipped class" the day they held ethics training at the National Association of Realtors.
NAR and the Center For Responsible Lending produced a brochure entitled: "How to Avoid Predatory Lending." Please take a moment to review this information from the NAR website...
http://www.realtor.org/home_buyers_and_sellers/how_to_avoid_predatory_lending
NAR says: "Here are some common problems with predatory loans." (I have included examples from my personal experience with Scott Veerkamp.)
1. High interest rates and fees:
Example A: $960 application fee. Example B: $500 processing fee. As discussed earlier, the National Association of Mortgage Brokers says it is not necessary to pay "application" fees and "processing" fees. Therefore, the cost of these items should be ZERO as opposed to $1,460.
2. Loan "Steering":
Example A: $4,799 Yield Spread Premium. Example B: $1,440 Yield Spread Premium. The Center for Responsible Lending states the following with regard to Yield Spread Premium: YSP is "a bonus a lender pays to reward a mortgage broker for placing or "steering" a borrower into a higher-cost loan than the borrower qualifies for." "Yield Spread Premiums are a destructive feature of the subprime market because they give brokers an incentive to act contrary to a borrowers best interest." "The effect of YSP is to steal equity from struggling families."
3. Broken promises, "Bait and Switch.":
Example A: "As qualified professionals, we'll guide you through the entire home buying experience and assist you in being an educated buyer." Example B: "We will do our very best to help you get the lowest interest rates possible at the lowest possible price." Example C: "You can trust our REALTORS to always keep your interest first and foremost." Example D: "Keeping the interest of my clients above all else." Example E: "Serving Others First." Example F: REALTORS are required to "protect and promote the interest of the client" at all times. Example G: REALTORS are required to follow the "Golden Rule" at all times. Example H: "The term REALTOR has come to connote competency, fairness, and high integrity."
In addition, NAR says you should ask the following question: "Does the lender belong to a trade association with ethics requirements for members"? In my case, the answer is yes. Scott Veerkamp is a member of MIBOR and the National Association of Realtors.
The article also encourages people to do the following: "Share predatory lending "horror" stories with regulators, other consumers, REALTORS, counseling groups, housing professionals, and the media." As everyone knows, I have taken their advice on this issue. I believe it is important for consumers to be aware of Predatory Lending tactics in their community.
In closing, please review the articles below from the Center for Responsible Lending. This will give you a better understanding of the "Bait and Switch" tactics some brokers use when misrepresenting their clients.
Warning Letter To Scott Veerkamp From The Office Of The Indiana Attorney General...
ReplyDeleteWarning Letter.pdf (51 KB)
Scott Veerkamp is the President of the Franklin Township School Board and a member of the National Association of Realtors. Please ask Scott to post a copy of his WARNING letter from the office of the Indiana Attorney General. In addition, please encourage Scott to provide a written response to items 1-16 on this website.
Items 1-8 in group A: 1. I have documentation of a WARNING letter that was sent to Scott Veerkamp from the office of the Indiana Attorney General. 2. This letter was sent to Scott in November of 2008. 3. Here are the questions I have regarding this letter: A. Is a WARNING letter supposed to be an example of how Scott Veerkamp was "exonerated" by the office of the Indiana Attorney General? B. Can Scott post a copy of his WARNING letter for the public to review? 4. Please explain how a $1,440 Yield Spread Premium "protects and promotes the interest of your client." FYI: The federal government has banned the use of YSP. 5. Please explain how a $4,799 Yield Spread Premium "Serves Others First." This is in reference to your OTHER client in Wanamaker, IN. 6. Please provide documentation that shows how you "protected and promoted the interest of your client" when you attempted to sell a $120,000 property on a land contract with a "due on sale clause." 7. Please explain how you honored your fiduciary responsibility to your client when you made approximately $26,000 on a $120,000 property listed with REMAX Central in your own neighborhood. 8. Please provide documentation that shows how you "did your very best" when you refused to conduct an open house on a property located "one block down the street" from the house you were living in.
Items 9-16 in group B: 9. Apparently, $26,000 was not enough money to justify Scott driving "one block down the street" to conduct an open house on the $120,000 property. 10. David Worley used to work for Scott Veerkamp at REMAX Central. Scott had an appraisal conducted on the $120,000 property in response to my complaint. The appraisal was conducted by Bill Worley. Are David Worley and Bill Worley related? 11. Scott refers to me as licensed real estate agent. I would like for Scott to provide documentation that supports this statement. 12. Please explain why you removed my property from the multiple listing service after I filed my complaint with MIBOR. How was I supposed to sell this property if you refuse to conduct an open house? How was I supposed to sell this property if you remove it from the MLS? 13. The National Association of Mortgage Brokers stated it is not necessary to pay an application fee. Please explain how a $960 application fee keeps the interest of your client "first and foremost." 14. NAMB says processing fees are a violation of their code of ethics because "they're generally not related to any actual service performed by a broker." Please explain how a $500 processing fee "protects and promotes the interest of your client." 15. Scott ran an advertisement in Christian Phone Book with the following statement: "We will do our very best to help you get the lowest possible interest rates at the lowest possible price." A. Please provide documentation that explains how a $4,799 Yield Spread Premium represents "the lowest possible interest rate." B. Likewise, please explain how a $960 application fee represents "the lowest possible price." 16. ISBA Code of Ethics: Please provide documentation that shows how you "met the responsibilities to your community" when you steered people into high cost loans.
I look forward to a written response from Scott Veerkamp on items 1-16.
Jim Bruggenschmidt
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