A former mortgage broker has been declared guilty of numerous charges associated with his false mortgage “elimination” business. Attorney General Terry Goddard announced that Edward L. Carpenter, currently a minister from Phoenix, Arizona, was found guilty of the 10 charges by a Superior Court jury.

Carpenter reportedly reached out to homeowners, saying that his mortgage elimination business could get rid of the names of the homeowners from their mortgages. He claimed that his business was legal and would give the homeowners full property ownership. Carpenter charged the homeowners fees of over $1,000 upfront.

With his financial knowledge, the minister filed false foreclosure papers, using the homeowners to aid him in his fraudulent efforts. The papers were purposely designed to be misleading and confusing. Ultimately, the filings caused several mortgage companies to provide loans. Carpenter received portions of these loans. He made over $250,000 illegally with the scam.

According to Goddard, the fraudster used his status as a minister to “gain the trust of homeowners”. He falsely stated that the homeowners could own their properties without any mortgage loans, and then went on to file false foreclosure papers, wronging consumers and title and mortgage companies. Carpenter is now in custody, and will face sentencing in October.

Home mortgage rates have decreased to record lows.  These low rates have prompted a sudden surge in refinancing, with more homeowners applying for refinancing this month than has been seen since May of 2009.

Charles DiPino Jr. of New Penn Financial says that they are “extremely busy”, with many calls being received throughout the past month. Freddie Mac has also reported that the average rate for a 30-year loan has dropped to around 4.36 percent. Such low numbers have not occurred since 1953.

As well, rates for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages are down to 3.86 percent as of last week. Adjustable-rate mortgages are also down to 3.52 percent. With the weak recovery of the United States’ economy, it appears that mortgage rates will continue to reach new record lows.

Still, most experts are advising homeowners to not wait to refinance. Although some believe that rates will continue to lower, this will only mean that the economy is getting weaker and weaker. Greg McBride, an analyst with Bankrate.com says that if you wait too long to refinance, and the economy has weakened, you might “lose your job and not quality for the lower rate.”

People refinance for several reasons. It can reduce monthly payments, but it can also reduce the loan term and allow people to depend on a fixed-rate loan. Still, the numbers are low, according to Freddie Mac. Although not everyone is able to qualify, most experts believe it is worth looking at for many homeowners.

For the first time since they were bailed out by Congress two years ago, it seems that many banks are finally starting to ease standards on lending for small businesses and individuals. However, despite the increased availability for credit nationwide, there is little demand for it anymore.

Many people have placed the blame of the slow economic recovery on the banks unwillingness to lend money. And since individuals and small businesses depend on banks for loans, analysts say that the lack of credit being given by banks has significantly reduced spending and hiring for consumers and small businesses, further slowing down recovery of the economy.

Now, as banks begin to increase credit, it seems that it may not have the effect needed to aid the U.S. economy. More and more banks are increasing availability for industrial and commercial loans. However, demand for credit is barely increasing, with most banks stating that demand was “about the same”. The public is concerned about debt, and is more reluctant than ever to use loans to make investments and purchases.

Overall, consumers are spending less and less to make up for the overspending that occurred for many people before the financial crisis began. Having credit is now undesirable for many who are just looking to save their money.

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Recent car buyers may be able to save money by refinancing their loans.  Rates for auto loans have significantly decreased over the past year, and with auto loan refinancing, consumers may be able to lower their current rates throughout the remainder of their loan.

Unlike mortgages, auto loans are extremely simple to refinance. Appraisals are not necessary, and with online services, it is easy for borrowers to check on the status of their application within hours of applying. Borrowers will have to send some paperwork to their lender should they accept an offer, but once the lenders have the necessary information about the car and the loan, refinancing can occur within one or two days.

There may be some additional fees, like a re-reregistration and title transfer fee. Still, the lender may charge further fees, with lenders like Bank of America charging a $200 fee for processing.

If you have met the qualifications for a new car loan over the last year, it should be easy to refinance your auto loans. However, different lenders might have different requirements for the car itself, such as age or mileage.  As well, the loan will often have to have at least one year of payments left before refinancing is possible.

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For many California homeowners, foreclosure has become a serious worry. Thanks to a significant refinance mortgage loophole in California’s state law, lenders are able to sue homeowners even once they have taken back the property.

Currently, there is not any protection for those who have refinanced their properties if the borrower fails to make payments on any mortgage that is worth more than the value of the property. This is called a “deficiency” liability, and as of now, lenders are allowed to sue borrowers for the full amount of the deficiency.

Even if their property has been taken away, homeowners in California can still be sued. This is causing concern for many organizations and consumers.

The California Association of Realtors is trying to raise awareness of the issue, and has sponsored Senate Bill 1178 to terminate the loophole. The president of the association, Steve Goddard, says that many homeowners are not aware that they are “personally liable”, and he warns that getting sued after foreclosure occurs can cause serious financial trouble for many families.

In the past, California has helped homeowners by protecting them from the deficiency liability by ensuring that the liability on their home after a default will be no more than the actual property that the mortgage has been taken out on. However, state law can currently not offer this protection for those who have taken out loans that refinance the original debt.

For many homeowners, this might mean that they will be sued by their lenders after foreclosure.

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Experian has announced their new range of services and products that will aim to help clients to comply with requirements set out by the Risk-Based Pricing Rule.

The Federal Reserve Board and the Federal Trade Commission are requiring that lenders send a Risk-Based Pricing Notice to their borrowers if they are not providing the consumer with the best rate. The plan will be officially implemented on January 1^st, 2011.

Andrew Sheehan of Experian Consumer Information Services says that lenders should “begin their preparations” to meet the terms of the regulation. The company will provide its clients with products and services to help them fulfill the terms of the regulation, such as credit score disclosure products, pricing services, VantageScore, and custom consulting.

For many lenders, a Risk-Based Pricing Notice may be desirable when they want to minimize costs. The notices will be mailed to consumers who do not have the best rates or terms for their credit when they apply.

The regulation will make it necessary to send the notices before the consumer signs a contract, but after the terms of the rates are set. Experian says that it will be able to help lenders figure out who should be sent a notice through the use of its programs and services.