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Foreclosure fraud, is it a problem here?
Posted: 10.14.2010 at 8:13 PM
Meghan Lane

Meghan is a Live at Sunrise anchor.

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JEFFERSON CITY, MO. -- Foreclosure fraud.

It's something the Jefferson City realtors and bankers said is not mid-Missouri's problem.

"It's a huge problem in New York, it is a big problem in California, I think even Illinois has had this problem, we've not seen it as much in Missouri" Missouri Bankers Association's William Ratliff said.

Realtors and bankers said the lack of fraud is due to the lack of foreclosures in general in Missouri.

"We've had about 9,000 in Missouri throughout the course of the year, when you look at how many are in Chicago alone, were not even a fraction of that. it's bad but its not that bad," Ratliff said.

Mid-Missouri has even fewer foreclosures than the big cities of St. Louis or Kansas City.

Even so, Attorney General Chris Koster is still concerned.

"The real question is whether or not these banks, it's not just JP Morgan chase and a lot of other big banks, do they have the proper documentation to foreclose on the houses across Missouri and across the country that have fallen into default,” Koster said.

The problem is what the industry refers to as "robo-signing," or signing documents without making sure they're accurate and without a notary present.

"We want to make sure the consumers are protected before these foreclosures go forward," Koster said.

Koster said he has received few foreclosure complaints in Jefferson City.

"We think that the attorney general of Missouri is making some good points," Ratliff said.

The complaint from 49 attorneys general across the country asked mortgage companies to revamp the way they handle foreclosures, pay penalties for violations and expand help to homeowners on the verge of foreclosure.

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