Foreclosure Rescue Scams in Hawaiʻi: How to Protect Yourself Before You Sign Anything

When you're behind on your mortgage, your phone and mailbox can suddenly fill up with people offering to "save your home." Some are genuinely trying to help. Others are counting on your fear to get you to sign something you'll regret. Here's how to tell the difference before it costs you your home or your equity.

Why homeowners in foreclosure are targeted

Public foreclosure notices in Hawaiʻi are exactly that — public. Scammers pull these records and target homeowners the moment a notice is filed, often before the homeowner has even talked to an attorney or housing counselor. The pressure of a ticking clock makes people more likely to skip due diligence.

Common foreclosure rescue scams to watch for

• Upfront "rescue" fees. Someone promises to stop your foreclosure or negotiate with your lender for a large fee paid before any work is done — then does little or nothing.
• The deed transfer trap. You're asked to sign over the deed to your home "temporarily" so a company can "help" with the mortgage, with a verbal promise you can buy it back later. Often there's no enforceable path back, and you've simply given away your home.
• Fake government or lender affiliation. Callers or letters implying they're connected to your lender, HUD, or a government program, when they're an unrelated third party.
• Rent-to-buy-back schemes. You sell your home to a "rescuer," stay as a renter, and are told you'll buy it back — but the terms are stacked so you can never actually qualify, and you lose the home for good.
• Pressure to sign fast, alone, without review. Any legitimate offer can survive you taking it to an attorney or HUD-approved housing counselor first. Pressure to sign immediately, without anyone else reviewing it, is a major red flag on its own.

How to protect yourself

• Never pay a large upfront fee for foreclosure help before services are actually delivered.
• Never sign a deed transfer, power of attorney, or any document you haven't had reviewed by an attorney or HUD-approved housing counselor.
• Verify who you're talking to — call your loan servicer directly using the number on your mortgage statement, not a number given to you by the person contacting you.
• Get any promises in writing, and don't rely on verbal assurances about buying your home back or reversing a transfer.
• If it feels rushed, that's the point — legitimate help doesn't disappear if you take 24 hours to have someone else look at it.

What legitimate help looks like

Real help explains your actual options — loan modification, repayment plan, short sale, or otherwise — clearly, in writing, with no obligation to act immediately. It doesn't require you to transfer your deed or pay a large fee before anything happens. If someone can't explain exactly what they're doing and why in plain language, slow down.