A New York investigation appears to center on the Steven J. Baum foreclosure firm headquartered in upstate New York and his servicing firm Pillar Processing. Here is the NY Times article on this breaking news.

The New York Law Journal through law.com is reporting on a major settlement with a plaintiff’s foreclosure firm: Read more

Here is an article that discusses the profits being made by these non-profit companies that Congress made the watchdogs over bankrupt consumers. I have never met a Judge, Trustee, or another attorney who thinks that these counseling companies do anything useful. Nearly everyone views them and the process with disdain. For most clients who file bankruptcy, they must spend a few minutes online or on a call with the counseling company as part of the pre-filing process but the entire procedure seems pretty useless to me. I have never heard of a counselor who could actually help save someone’s home or help in any way at all. The procedure is the equivalent of a visit to the DMV – you just go through the motions and do it because you have to. Apparently, the only people who benefit from this now are the “non-profit” companies that do the counseling.