26 June 2020 – In the wake of a lawsuit by the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (CFPB), the US District Court for the Central District of California just issued a stipulated judgment and order for CFLA (Certified Forensic Loan Auditors) and Andrew Lehman to desist from offering mortgage relief and financial advisory services, and to pay $40,000 in restitution, plus $3 million in redress to be suspended if Lehman complies with the order. See the order here:
219-cv-07722 20200626 CFLA & Andrew Lehman shutdown and fine
219-cv-07722 20200522 Andrew Lehman in forma pauperis request
Note to gullible mortgagors thinking about a securitization audit or chain of title audit…
The CFPB attacked CFLA, Andrew Lehman, and Michael Carrigan for good reason: they had brought in millions of dollars by scamming thousands of borrowers and hopeful service providers by selling securitization audits and teaching people how to conduct them, even though courts across the land have denounced or otherwise treated the audits as worthless. The audits did not save homes from foreclosure. Angry clients complained to the CFPB which eventually took action.
The allegedly “Certified” loan auditors of CFLA had no valid certification from any government-authorized entity. Lehman used that term in the company name, and “J.D.” signifying a law degree, to give CFLA and his pronouncements marketing “altitude” and make them seem credible and legitimate.
The RipoffReport website contains only glowing reports about CFLA because Lehman paid (I would say “bribed”) the RipoffReport site owner to remove complaints and replace them with marketing fluff. In reality Lehman scammed many clients and students. That’s why the CFPB shut CFLA, Lehman, and Carrigan down and forbade them from offering any mortgage relief or financial advisory services in the future, under penalty of serious fines.
Word to the Wise: stay away from such scams and scammers. Securitization and Chain of Title audits are WORTHLESS.
If You Want to Know Who Owns Your Loan, Ask Your Servicer
The CFPB web site provides advice here:
https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/how-can-i-tell-who-owns-my-mortgage-en-214/
UPDATED AUG 29, 2019
How can I tell who owns my mortgage?
You can look up who owns your mortgage online, call, or send a written request to your servicer asking who owns your mortgage. The servicer has an obligation to provide you, to the best of its knowledge, the name, address, and telephone number of who owns your loan.
It’s not always easy to tell who owns your mortgage. Many mortgage loans are sold and the servicer you pay every month may not own your mortgage. Whenever the owner of your loan transfers the mortgage to a new owner, the new owner is required to send you a notice.
If you don’t know who owns your mortgage, there are different ways to find out.
Call your mortgage servicer
You can find the number for your mortgage servicer on your monthly mortgage statement or coupon book.
Look it up online
There are some online tools you can use to look up who owns your mortgage.
- Many mortgages are owned by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Both offer a mortgage look up tool on their website.
You can look up your mortgage servicer by searching the Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems (MERS) website.
Send a written request
Another option is to send a written request to your mortgage servicer. Your servicer is obligated to provide you, to the best of their knowledge, with the name, address, and telephone number of the owner of your loan. You can send a Qualified Written Request or a Request for Information.
Here is a sample letter to help you write your mortgage servicer to request information.
