How this mortgage scam is putting seniors at risk of losing their homes (Marketplace)

The police should make a big example out of these fraudsters by charging heavy fines and jail time

RULE #1 OF LIFE: NEVER OPEN THE DOOR TO ANYONE YOU’RE NOT EXPECTING. EVER.

Are we living in Canada? How could this be happening and no serious action is being taken against these fraudsters???????

This is one of the few times the government needs to step in and void any and all of the contracts in these scams. Banks and other other companies involved should have no ability to stop the governments intervention. Our top national security agencies should be used to identify, track, and convict all those involved.

These people were forced to pay 25% interest rate....catch the lawyer and mortgage broker and jail them forever. These guys are criminals.

I'm so grateful for Market Place. Thank you for looking out for all of us 💟 I'm not a victim, but I understand their pains
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People did this to my mom before I moved in to help her. They charged her $30, 000. They came back to try to get her to sign a mortgage - but I was home and after I grabbed my ax and chased the bastard away they never came back!! I'm sure there is some politician involved for them to keep getting away with this sh!t!!!! Greg helped us out a lot - he's a great lawyer!!

These people need to be prosecuted and go to jail for a very long time

A judge should just void every single contract for duress, undue influence and fraud.

These scammers should be punished severely. It is so inhumane to target our vulnerable populations.

Carl shouldn’t have to pay one cent and should even be paid for the stress he has gone through. Scammers are despicable. Older seniors are from an era when people were a lot nicer and they don’t expect to be cheated. Scammers have no scruples, they have no heart. You can’t trust anyone these days.

Thank you Marketplace for making us all aware of the dangers we all face. I hope these criminals are caught and put away for life.

How can someone target seniors and disabled , they should all be given a punishment that they will remember all their life. Shame and such a disgrace on man kind .
Thanks market place

CBC Marketplace creating awareness and motivating change for problems affecting all of us in Canada. Thank you!

Absolutely pathetic using seniors into these kinds of financial frauds. Need strict laws and jail times for those doing it.

I am a private detective in New Orleans and have worked on some title and mortgage fraud cases, but this mechanism is truly bizarre and convoluted.

my heart melted after seeing Karl, how can people be so heartless

This is predatory and these people that committed these crimes need to be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.

So sad for these vulnerable elders. But why would they even open doors to strangers? And why didn’t they called their kids and tell them right away

These scammers must be put in jail without parole!

Kudos for this example of genuinely good journalism! Housing should be a very basic right for people above all for the climate condition we have in Canada. If this is not possible, at least we have to protect people form this kind of fraudsters in usury who exploit legal loopholes to extort money from vulnerabilities of people.

Preying on our most vulnerable in their most vulnerable time of life is the lowest of the low one can ever go with this kind of fraud. I hope they get them all and make an example of them all.

I'm not Canadian, but I'd be going to the scammers' homes and confronting them personally, especially the lawyers.

How is this legal? Whoever the "lender" is, they should be investigated immediately for fraud and have their lending licenses revoked. Whoever the CEO is, he or she need to be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.

This is completely inhumane to take advantage of seniors like this!! The police needs to get to the bottom of this and arrest these scumbags!!

If you have elderly relatives put a security system in their house that calls your phone whenever someone is at the door, with cameras & audio outside & inside so you can hear and speak back.

Never let anyone work on your house until they produce a contract of what they are going to do and the cost and have your own money or financing in place to do the job and never talk to strangers who show up at your door

can't believe this is the world we live in. and even big companies scam too, i got scammed twice by phone a company when i lived in Canada for 2 years. couldn't believe it. Thank you Marketplace for what you do

For the love of gawd people, PLEASE tell the elders in your family to NEVER NEVER EVER open their door to anyone unless it is someone they know or are expecting. SCAMMERS are ORGANIZED CRIME, and it needs to stop!

The same thing happened to my mentally ill vulnerable sister she had 4 mortgages she wasn’t aware if….she was preyed upon…honest journalism!

This is utterly shocking, and not surprising because the government has been too lenient by NOT taking any action against various forms of FINANCIAL CRIMES! This has embolden these fools! 😢

So many sick scammer’s preying on the innocent these days and they come in so many ways. I’m so glad we have this type of investigators looking into these situations. Thank you! I hope the victims find peace.

This happens in the states, from walk in tubs ( way overpriced ) to carpets ( just sign here ). Surprisingly common and under reported. Thanks for this story, folks talk to you older relative's and have them call you before they sign anything.

Thanks CBC FOR showing these scams! It's an eye opening to every Canadians

These criminal scam businesses need to be shut down immediately. And never allow those criminals to open another one EVER. And these people should be prosecuted in a court of law. The families of these older people need to get Power of Attorney over them. They're vulnerable and should be protected

Market place is initself the best example for funding public broadcasting and news . Thank you

Les aînés et les enfants sont la victime facile , c’est triste et malheureux de voir qu’il y’a des gens aussi cruels et lâches dans le monde …. C’est juste triste .

Oh my dear Lord. As a retired mortgage advisor of over 20 years I am just appalled livid upon these fraudsters to take advantage and my compassionate tears goes out with prayers and justice for these home owners 🙏🕯️

The punishment they may receive is very minimal when compare with what they got. The risk is being catch is so low compare with the money the earn. Sometimes I think the law and judge is helping them too.

I am so sorry for the victims and it is so painful situation.

Centum mortgages branch owner Ranjit Dhillon and lawyer Anant Jain should be ashamed of themselves.

I think CBC is not going far enough. The real question is, what law(s) need to be put in place to quickly strike down scams like that

I am looking forward to a follow up of this investigation. The municipal, provincial, and federal governments should collectively look out for the interests of our seniors. The homes that have been snatched away should be returned back to their rightful owners along with a substantial compensation. Unfortunately, I see an outcome where the criminals will walk away without significant penalties.

Wait, aren't contracts signed under false pretences or under duress automatically null and void? Why would these people be on the hook for these bills when what really happened was people broke in, vandalised the home, then left a pretend bill as part of a scam? How is it possible for a lien to be taken out against a home over a fraudulent charge the homeowner doesn't know anything about? Wouldn't that mean I can just take liens out on Trudeau or Ford's home and they'd actually have to pay?

Please help them by all means! Put those crooks to jail!

The lawyers should be disbarred for their participation in an obvious criminal enterprise and likewise the mortgage companies should lose their license to practice. The victims should band together and sue for restitution to claw back any money paid. I'm sure almost none of these signed contracts would be legally upheld if they were challenged.

My elderly father put his house in both our names (only child) so any mortgage registered would be sent to both owners….just saying it’s a safe guard and crooks like this could not get away with this 💩

Ahh, this brings me to tears. These poor people, they had no idea.

Some of these old people need to start trusting their family members to assist them. They would prefer to trust some stranger who knocks at their door, more than their families.

So sad that after contributing to society all your life, this is what happens to you in your most vulnerable age. I feel after certain age, doctors should also advice that people should have an additional family member they trust to co-sign on their agreements. I understand people like to be independent but with these scammers, an extra layer of security like this will keep some of these scams away.

If someone you don't know approaches you out of the blue, especially at your home, with a smile on their face, you know they want something from you that you probably shouldn't give them.

Don't they need to get the loans, then the mortgages approved first.?
Wouldn't the banks not approve such loans or 2nd mortgage?
I am confused how this could happen.
Aren't there safeguards?
Also, shouldn't fraudulent loans or contractors' agreements be deemed invalid and these seniors be off the hook.
This just doesn't make any sense.
Horrible absolutely horrible 🤬

The Governments should protect all of us by having tougher regulations especially involving elderly. They should shut down these small shady mortgage companies, disbarred unscrupulous lawyers and jail the scammers! The white collar crime punishment is laughable! 😡😡😡👎👎👎

Put the scammer to jail for life.

True journalism CBC you are a hero and I hope the fraudsters get caught

If this happened to loved ones then vigilante justice would have to reign over those responsible. Life would be wasted and the rage and sickness would take over and culminate with a bullet in the scammers head, with no remorse. I apologize for this detail but my granny got scammed by a few times. My heart goes out to these people. May these scumbags feel infinite pain for doing this to vulnerable people.

There is a special place in hell for the criminal who are stealing from these poor elderly people

SE CUIDA USTED Y SU FAMILIA CON MUCHO RESPETO PARA USTED SU FAMILIA Y TODO SU EQUIPO DE TRABAJO AL HIGUAL QUE PARA TODAS LAS FAMILIAS DEL MUNDO

Less than 15 years jail, for scammers will be justice denied. 😡

Surely there must be a way to legally assign your loved ones' financial assets to a Public Trustee or a family trust to prevent these fraudulent financial committments being made.

Anyone fleecing anyone - seniors especially - with any sort of scam should get an automatic 20 years in prison with hard labor and no possibility of parole. That put and end to it all PDQ.

It make me sick to see how these people can do such thing to another human being. By ripping them off of their savings .

Sounds similar to what Kurt Browning advertises … reverse mortgages. You may think you’ll never fall prey to this, but you never know. We should protect the vulnerable members of our community - may be us one day.

I feel for them this is horrible it is just as bad as those call scammers taking money from the elderly, but this is worse because they design it to take there home and all their assets also because what do your do get a foreclosures lose your house and then file bankruptcy because you dont have money to afford payments. I hope by the end this can get fixed and help the ones in this video and the ones that have been taken advantage of that aren't on video I bet there is a lot. They should be put in jail!

That's the best part of my grandma being in a home, none of these guys to worry about

This is heart breaking.

I hope they find how did this and all of them go to jail for the life this so sad.

There are just so many scams these days . The latest one is a short-term loan and if a payment is missed they sieze your vehicle and then want to charge you $5000. storage fees to get it back. This one with elderly trusting people or people with poor business acumen is pure greed. Laws must be changed to not allow this kind of predatory practice. A mortgage at
a 25% interest rate!

😢😢
We should form an agreement with North Korea. Scammers should be arrested and sent to North Korea labour camps.

Centum mortgage smart better lose in court! A lawyer should find all the victims and make a class action lawsuit. We need an Erin Brockovich on this case.

Time to throw the book at these crooks that go door to door and scam people/pressure people to sign up for this, especially our most vulnerable. Mortgage brokers and lawyers that sign off on this should also be on the hook.

Why on earth should they even have to pay at all? It was clearly fraud, these poor people were clearly misled, and whatever documents they were coerced in to signing need to be thrown out immediately! Unbelievable!

Its heartbreaking to see people using evil tactics to target seniors and disables. Nobody should ever go thru this. I hope govt do something and dismisses those mortages.
May the wrongdoers be severely punished.

When I started watching it, I had an instinctive feeling that Indians would be involved in this. And I am not wrong. Btw, I am an Indian and it's ok to use the community's name... These people should be sued and stripped of every penny they own and then put in jail forever

Rules to live by: 1, do not answer the door. 2, do not answer the phone. 3, do not be polite to strangers. I'm gonna be the meanest old lady you ever met. GET OFF MY LAWN!!!

Whether its legal or not, always record (audio/visual) the people you are doing business with. Defamation is not as grave as being scammed like these people have been. Get their ID cards not business cards. Or cancel the deal.

I hope these scammers burn in hell !!

Make a law that requires lenders to independently contact the homeowners and verify that the mortgage is what they wanted. Give the homeowner time to consult with his/her representative. If the mortgage is being obtained under false pretenses, then no mortgage.

I always say that don’t open the door, and let strangers come in your house😢

CBC Market place is great. If they were only this honest and transparent with everything they did we'd be in much better shape.

I hope there's a special place for the cockroaches who pull this evil on anyone, not just the vulnerable.

What vile soulless creatures scam people, especially the vulnerable!

This is absolutely heartbreaking and gut wrenching. I literally felt nauseous looking at the pain and suffering that people had to endure. Shame on the law enforcement, shame on the justice system and shame on the politicians.

This is the Canada I have become accustomed to. If the government can screw generation after generation out of owning a home what kind of example is being set for these scammers.

It pains me to see this is happening.

My Mom fell prey to a similar scam. Checking up on her one day she had papers on her kitchen table with a new home insurance policy and congratulations on her new home purchase. I intervened and we managed to rally the police, provincial land titles, and our lawyer to get a $365,000 mortgage lien removed from her land title. Turns out we helped bust a larger fraud ring that had preyed on many others. The root cause I see is the lack of rigour by the provinces who hold your land title. Any lawyer can have any lien applied against your title and the province has no obligation to inform the land owner on record. Those with a free title (no mortgage or lines of credit) are at the most risk.

Why am I not surprised about the Brampton connection😂

C'mon these vultures should be prosecuted.

Never deal with a mortgage broker that parks a boat in front of the office door. Some things are instinctive.

Would it have helped if the property was in both the mom’s and daughter’s name….so sad to hear this story

Prosecuting the perpetrators is a must, but that's after harm is done. Loneliness is the root cause. Scumbags can easily prey on isolated people, because "community" is too sparse to notice. Canadians don't know their neighbours. We need trustworthy friends within walking distance, and common places to begin new friendships. People are suffering from a lack of regular human contact.

Holy hell. I *NEVER* sign anything without having a lawyer read it first.

I sincerely believe that theres a special place in hell for scammers like this🤬🤬

I like how they blocked out the license plate and pops back in at 15:40

Sick scammers preying on these elderly people.

It’s very unfortunate that these elders had to go through this on their old age. I don’t understand why they open the doors to strangers, and why didn’t they call their kids? And why sign any documents without anyone in their corner present. Remind me of romance scams

Something in common with a lot of these mortgage scams. By demographic ratio when you read the papers from coast to coast theres is a correlation and its not Smith & Smith or Douglas & Wilson hint hint nudge nudge. Sad too as it ruins the reputation of many that do work hard, add value via merit. Not like the ole days of F'around and F'out.

The government should go after those people and those people come up with criminal charges and jail time.pure greed towards seniors.

The 2 lady investigators just made me think of the 2 detectives in the Netflix unbelievable series. Maybe they'll get a movie or TV series too. I'm starting to only trust female police to do their job lol...

The question is how this scammers get that information that these people are easy target and own a house ? Someone who has this information is helping them to get to them.they are not knocking doors and they find a victim , it got to have some social worker or someone that knew their condition. Hope they get to the bottom of this , it is unacceptable that people loose their house that easy !