Home owners fight back

VICTORVILLE • A local couple who say they were scammed by a loan modification company are the first in the country to use a new organization that guided them through the small claims court process and helped win a fight to get their money back.

With help from the Center for Litigation and Consumer Real Estate Education (CLCREE) Jeff and Jenette Lomax went after a loan modification company and its agent that they say took their money even though the firm apparently knew their house had been foreclosed on four days earlier. Lomax says they were not aware of the foreclosure proceedings when they handed over the money.

Lomax said he paid Certified Financial Protection Group, based in Temecula, $1,000 to begin a loan modification but nothing was ever done, so he sued to get their money back.

In Civil Court on Monday the couple won a big victory against Certified Financial Protection Group and its agent Mike Wayman after they failed to appear in court for a second time.

Judge Bruce Austin awarded the couple more than $7,000, three times the amount they were actually seeking including all court fees and other legal costs the defendant is ordered to pay.

A new California law just passed in June allows victims of scammers to receive punitive damages up to three times the amount they paid.

For the full story, read Tuesday's edition of the Daily Press. To subscribe to the Daily Press in print or online, call (760) 241-7755 or click here.

Patrick Thatcher may be reached at (760) 951-6227 or at pthatcher@VVDailyPress.com.