Fraudulent foreclosure aid spurs $1M penalty

A Hawaii resident who refused to stop offering foreclosure defense services to local homeowners last year after being sued by the state for alleged fraudulent practices has been ordered to pay $1 million in fines and restitution.

Edna A. Franco, who operated Francha Services LLC, received the civil penalty from Maui Circuit Judge Rhonda Loo last week.

The judgment orders Franco and Francha Services to pay $168,648 in restitution and interest to 17 customers who filed state complaints against Franco, and $874,157 in civil fines and penalties.

Franco said she has ceased doing business but disputes that she violated state law or defrauded customers. She also said she will appeal the judge’s ruling.

"This is a false accusation," she said. "I’m not backing down."

It’s unclear whether the state or Francha Services customers will be able to collect the ordered payments.

Franco filed for bankruptcy protection in January, listing no income except for $3,000 a month in assistance from family and friends. Franco, who is contesting a lender’s foreclosure against her own home, also claimed having only $1,000 in assets and a sole debt of $338,648 owed to the state Office of Consumer Protection related to a preliminary injunction that previously attempted to bar Franco from operating her business.

James Evers, an attorney representing the agency, has raised questions in the bankruptcy case suggesting that Franco has not disclosed assets or has disposed of them.

The Office of Consumer Protection sued Franco two years ago alleging she violated the state’s Mortgage Rescue Fraud Prevention Act, which was established in 2008 and prohibits anyone from charging upfront fees for performing or offering services that include stopping or postponing a home foreclosure.

The agency said Franco, who lives on Hawaii island, targeted hundreds of homeowners on Maui, Oahu and Hawaii island with such services.

"Franco told the homeowners that she could save their properties from foreclosure or help them get their homes free and clear with forensic loan audits and offered to assist the victims with filing lawsuits against their lenders," the agency said in a statement.

The agency said Franco collected thousands of dollars from customers upfront but saved not a single home from foreclosure as services were either poorly rendered or never rendered at all.

Franco disputed those claims, saying that she has gotten lender foreclosure lawsuits dismissed and that the Mortgage Rescue Fraud Prevention Act doesn’t apply to her because she offers only forensic loan audits.

Forensic loan auditors examine mortgage documents for forgery, fraud and misrepresentation by lenders to give attorneys leverage opposing foreclosure cases.

Franco said she feels like she’s fighting against mortgage industry corruption that the state is helping protect by going after her. "I feel like I’m a whistle-blower," she said. "What they’re doing to me is trying to intimidate me."

Bruce Kim, executive director of the Office of Consumer Protection, said in a statement that the state intends to pursue illegal operations like Franco’s under the law that aims to protect homeowners who may be desperate and vulnerable to paying advance fees in the hopes of saving their homes.

"Judge Loo’s ruling sends a clear and unambiguous message that this type of illegal conduct targeting Hawaii’s homeowners will not be tolerated," he said.