Victim of loan modification fraud speaks out

Porterville resident Joaquin Uriostegui was one of numerous victims of a local paralegal posing as a foreclosure consultant who promised he would help people save their homes from foreclosure, but instead swindled them of thousands.

Uriostegui — a single father of four — sought to modify his mortgage loan for a lower monthly payment, which led him to the offices of Albert Carazolez, owner of Quick Action Paralegal Services in Porterville.

Carazolez, 43, pleaded no contest to 21 separate charges pertaining to unlawful activities in conjunction with mortgage loan modification, collecting fees as a foreclosure consultant prior to providing all services and for the unauthorized practice of law. He is out on bail, but as part of the sentence, he has been ordered to pay full restitution in the amount of $19,875 to the Tulare County Probation Department and is facing a sentence of felony probation and one year in county jail. Formal sentencing is scheduled for May 11 in Tulare County Superior Court in Visalia.

Uriostegui, however, says the restitution and potential jail time is not enough to repay all of Carazolez’ victims. He wants Carazolez to suffer more than the penalty proposed.

“I don’t expect to recover what I lost. What I want is justice for the harm he has caused and for leaving families without a home — I came very close to losing my home.”

Uriostegui paid Carazolez $1,000 in up-front costs. He was eight payments past due on his mortgage and never saw results, he said.

In May 2010, he filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau.

In his response to the complaint, Carazolez said he completed the loan modification and that Uriostegui failed to pay his account, terminating their agreement.

“Since that time I have sold the business and no longer offer services to the public...I am considering this a frivolous complaint and will file suit against the complainant for defamation and slander if this continues. I am therefore offering no refund especially since the complainant failed to pay the balance after the work was executed...In 20 years of business I have only seven complaints listed, which I consider a success,” Carazolez stated in his response to the BBB complaint.

Two months later, a private investigator with the Tulare County District Attorney’s Office contacted Uriostegui and reportedly informed him he was Carazolez’ 89th fraud victim.

“He said that after visiting me, he was going to visit a 90th victim which would suffice for Carazolez’ arrest,” Uriostegui said.

But he believes they are only scratching the surface.

As a local hair stylist, Uriostegui says he has come across many others, mostly Hispanic, who are also victims of fraud orchestrated by Carazolez and his staff.  

Maria Alcaraz is one of them.

She looked to lower her monthly mortgage payment after her husband was incapacitated by an accident and unable to work. She feared home foreclosure.

Alcaraz said she paid Carazolez $1,000 in up-front costs, plus an additional $400 to have her home appraised.

“They acted as if they made phone calls to the bank, but they never actually did anything,” she said. “After two years and after several attempts to contact him, I stopped trying.”

According to Uriostegui, like Alcaraz, many of the paralegal’s victims are afraid to speak up for fear of involvement.

“There are many others who are facing the same problem. A middleman is not necessary for a loan modification, it’s a very quick process — something very simple,” he said, adding that since the incident he completed and submitted the loan modification for free, and was approved eight days later.  

Numerous attempts to reach Carazolez and his attorney, Timothy Rote, were unsuccessful.

Contact Denise Madrid at 784-5000, Ext. 1047 or dmadrid@portervillerecorder.com.

Stop Loan Modification Fraud

Following are tips to avoid being scammed, provided by the Office of the Attorney General:

• Don’t pay up-front fees. Foreclosure consultants are prohibited by law from collecting money before services are performed.

• Don’t ignore letters from your lender or loan servicer. Responding to those letters is your best bet for saving your house.

• Don’t transfer title or sell your house to a “foreclosure rescuer.” Beware. This is a scam to convince homeowners they can stay in the home as renters and buy their home back later. It might also be    part of a fraudulent bankruptcy filing. Either way, a scammer can then evict the victim and take the home.

• Don’t pay your mortgage payments to anyone other than your lender or loan servicer. Mortgage consultants often keep the money for themselves.

• Never sign any documents without reading them first. Many homeowners think that they are signing documents for a loan modification or for a new loan to pay off the mortgage they are behind on. Later, they discover that they actually transferred ownership of their home to someone who is now trying to evict them.