Lawyer went the extra 29 miles to shut down refinance scam - Paralegal and Certified Legal Document Preparer Mark Smith, LL.M.

A lawyer in Charlotte, North Carolina, put the knowledge that he gained at a fall conference to use when he visited a homeowner and averted a financial scam. WSOC-TV has the story on lawyer Charles W. Hands III of the Hands Law Firm and his paralegal Devera Alston, who became suspicious when a man seeking a cash-out refinance was a no-show for a Zoom meeting. The man claiming to be the homeowner was in touch with the broker, UMortgage, by phone and text. He provided all the needed documents, including a copy of the homeowner’s driver’s license and tax records. Hands had attended a conference that discussed refinancing fraud and advised lawyers to always meet the homeowner face to face. Hands and Alston decided that they should visit the property being refinanced and made a 29-mile round trip to the home of Samuel Helmick. Hands told WSOC-TV that Helmick’s face matched that of the driver’s license sent to them online, but Helmick “had no idea who we were or knew anything about a refinance with us at all.” Helmick’s home was completely paid off. He told WSOC-TV that he was “absolutely stunned” to learn that someone was seeking about $450,000 in cash by refinancing his home. “They shut everything down, thank God,” Helmick said of Hands and Alston. “They took the time to come to my home, knock on the door and come on inside, and lay it all out for me. And I’ll always be appreciative of that.” UMortgage gave WSOC-TV a statement crediting “a system of checks and balances” for preventing financial loss to Helmick. “UMortgage takes cybersecurity very seriously and is committed to maintaining the highest standards of integrity and security in our operations,” the statement said. WSOC-TV advises homeowners to freeze their credit and open all their mail, even if it looks like junk mail, to avoid such scams. Hands, Alston and Helmick would also like to see a rule requiring lenders to verify a homeowner’s identity in person.