Recommendations: Shop local

British Columbia’s regulator of mortgage brokers is warning
consumers to watch out for scams targeted at people looking for easy
access to mortgage funds.

The Office of the Registrar of Mortgage Brokers at the Financial
Institutions Commission (FICOM) recently identified companies promoting
their services through classified advertising that are not registered to
do business in this province.

Companies will often offer easy credit and use a toll-free number rather
than provide a local contact or office. They may ask for fees up front and
can use high pressure tactics to encourage clients to advance the money.

In one case, a B.C. woman was convinced to pay over $2,000 in “mortgage
insurance” to a company advertising loans through a toll-free number.
After a request for another fee, she went to a registered mortgage broker
who advised her not to provide any further payments.

“Fees can run in the thousands of dollars and usually cannot be
recovered,” says Carolyn Rogers, registrar of mortgage brokers. “We advise
people seeking mortgage funding to work with a registered mortgage broker
and to use our website to determine if a lender is registered to operate
in B.C.”