Speak Out Americans!

"Poster Child" for Everything Wrong in America

Why Does A Victim of EMC Still Suffer While the FTC Wins $28 Million

and Former CEO, James E. Cayne, Walks Off with $155 Million

and Our Government Bails Out the Predatory Lenders

At a Tune of $700 Billion of Taxpayer Dollars???

See video of former EMC employee, Miranda Henderson, at bottom of page. She explains how EMC (and Wall Street banks) make money on foreclosures.

My Personal Foreclosure story with EMC Mortgage and Litton Loans (aka: Bearn Streans and Goldman Sachs.)

I'm a middle class American. I went back to college as a single parent in my late 30s and worked hard to build a career. Over 15 years I worked for companies that offered health insurance. Between combined contributions by employers and my monthly premium deductions over $150,000 was paid to insurance companies for health insurance. I was young. My daughter was healthy, so we didn't require much medical care. The insurance companies profited. (I paid a considerable amount in taxes during that time and took care for my elderly parents, so saving was not easy.)

I’ve had ADHD and multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) all my life. I learned to compensate for these disabilities to become a productive citizen. Stress is an important factor in managing these potentially debilitating disabilities. Even then, I work twice as hard to acheive what I do than someone without these disabilies.

I was laid off from my position as a software engineer when the economy nose-dived after 911. The software industry was hit hard. I was unemployed along with thousands of other software engineers laid off at the time. At age 50 I found myself in a flooded job market in an industry that favors youth. After I depleted my unemployment insurance and most of my savings, I realized I was not likely to find another job soon, so I started my own business.

I lost 85% of the value of my 401K in stock crashes that followed 911, so I cashed out what was left. I refinanced my home and took out some equity for business capital. The SBA told me I was horribly underfunded, but what else could I do? I cut our living cost everywhere possible and of course I could not keep up the $350/month cobra payment for my health insurance.

People’s Choice refinanced my home. People’s Choice delayed the closing on my refinance by two weeks. They knew I had plans to go overseas for my business and would be gone for six months. The loan finally closed at 2 PM on the same day my flight left at 6 PM. Who is going to read all the fine print under those circumstances? I did not learn until after I returned home that People's Choice switched the terms of my loan. It was supposed to be a 30-year fixed at 7%, instead it was an ARM. The loan was supposed to have no early pre-payment penalty, but instead it had a high penalty if I refinanced before two years.

People’s Choice sold my mortgage to EMC within a couple months after closing; while I was still overseas. As a fledgling small business, between 2004 and 2006 I occasionally got behind in my mortgage; never more than 60 days and I always caught up. In late 2005 EMC falsely claimed I missed five payments and threatened to foreclose. I did not miss five payments but with my ADHD my record keeping is horrendously bad.

I was already under a lot of stress, cash strapped and feeling I could not afford an attorney, I sought help from a non-profit agency in Portland. They advised me to sign a forbearance agreement to keep EMC from foreclosing then request EMC’s payment history to rectify the discrepancy. EMC never provided me with the requested payment history.

I made my mortgage payments on time under the forbearance agreement. Fed up with EMC, I decided to refinance. In early 2006 I applied for a loan and discovered that from early 2004 EMC incorrectly reported me as being over 90 days late on my credit report. This prevented me from refinancing. I called EMC to find out why. They told me they sold my loan. The company they referred me to, did not have my loan.

At this point I called every agency I could think of including the State Attorney’s Office, the Office of Thrift Supervision, the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Trade Commission. I found out companies like People's Choice and EMC are not regulated.

The Federal Trade Commission, (FTC), called me back and asked me to send them the records from my case. They were investigating EMC for violations of the Fair Credit Acts they regulate because they received so many consumer complaints about EMC. At the time their investigation was not yet public. (In September 2008 they settled for $28 Million) I have yet to see a penny of that money. My Congressman, David Wu, has been communicating with the FTC to try to increase my amount from that settlement, but has little hope I will get enough to even pay for much needed dental/medical care, let alone cover my actual damages.

Back when I discovered EMC Mortgage had sold my loan, in a state of sheer panic and despair, I had called my State Representative. He referred me to a county mental health service where I was able to get medication and counseling for my ADHD, which was so out-of-control by this time I could barely function. I was in constant and severe physical pain, but it turned out getting medical attention for my physical problems was impossible. After months of being shuffled from place to place I learned Oregon basically has no health plan for people like me. (What was all that money I paid in taxes used for? The war in Iran?)

My State Representative also put me in touch with an attorney who helped me without requiring payment upfront. By this time I had received a letter from Litton Loan Servicing claiming they had my mortgage loan. They placed my home in foreclosure based on EMC’s false claim I was behind five months. (Litton Loans, owned by Goldman Sachs, is another predatory lender with a reputation specific to foreclosures.) This attorney finally got EMC’s payment history. We proved that I made all the payments EMC claimed I missed.

My attorney asked Litton Loans to postpone the Trustee’s sale. They never responded. I had over $150,000 equity in my home, my attorney felt Litton intended to proceed knowing I did not have the funds to fight them so they could basically steal my home's equity. She suggested I file bankruptcy to protect my home. This is what I had to do.

The severe stress of this situation only aggravated my health problems and for several months I could hardly work. I was in constant pain, but had to push through it so I could earn enough money to make my mortgage payments while in bankruptcy. My business finally secured a good contract, but it is out-of-state. I could not get health insurance and I’ve paid exorbitant amounts of money for medical care, over $15,000 in the past year. (What happened to the $150,000 I paid to insurance companies? They took my money when I was well and left me high and dry when I was laid off and sick.)

After a diagnosis of fibromyalgia, it was finally discovered that I'm suffering from mercury poisoning. I have a mouth full of dental amalgams; many over 35 years old. My teeth started to break down around the amalgams about the same time my health started to fail, about the same time EMC Mortgage falsely claimed I missed payments I had not.

When one tooth broke off in 2007 I was in agony for two weeks while I called every dentist office and charity in my city until I finally found a charity that paid to have it fixed, of course with more amalgam. Little did I know at the time, that dental amalgams are 50% mercury. Now the mercury is leaching into my body and causing my pain and other health problems. (View a video showing how mercury vapors are released from dental amalgams.) It turns out I have a genetic variation that prevents my body from eliminating heavy metals, like mercury.

Excessive and prolonged stress from the experiences with EMC Mortgage and Litton Loans caused me to start grinding my teeth when I sleep. (ABC News recently did a story on this, “Many Turn to Teeth Grinding for Stress Relief”, August 27, 2008.) This caused my teeth to break apart around the amalgams and for the amalgams themselves to deteriorate and leach mercury vapor. It will cost over $30,000 to remove and replace all the dental amalgams and for medical treatments to remove the heavy metals already in my body.

Insurance rates are based on credit scores, so I was not able to get affordable health insurance; and I cannot borrow money either due to my credit score ruined by EMC Mortgage and Litton Loans, and now the bankruptcy. My condition will continue to deteriorate just as if I were being given small daily doses of arsenic, another heavy metal.

I'm trying to find a way to get the dental work done a little at a time (which will not be as effective and could open up more risk.) I have been getting sicker while I try to find a way to get this dental and medical work done. My hair is falling out and I have so little energy I barely make it through each day. I am in terrible pain. I will eventually die if the poisoning is not stopped.

I suffer from chemical sensitivity that has become exceptionally acute in the past year. Exposure to chemicals in perfumes and other fragrances worn by co-workers or used in cleaning products causes me to experience immediate tissue swelling that causes severe headaches, I was taking over 4000 mg of ibuprofen a day to make it through a work day, but my doctor said this is damaging my kidneys and liver, and told me to avoid taking ibuprofen. To make it through a work day now, I wear a mask and an air purifier around my neck, which is not only uncomfortable and expensive, it makes me feel like a freak. I have no social life and out-side of work rarely leave my chemical free living space. (Read more about multiple chemical sensitivity or MCS).

My doctor says I have chronic chemical bronchitis due to the mercury vapors. Results from recent medical tests show that my endocrine system is functioning at 30% and my adrenal glands are fatigued. Just this week (1/20/2009) I was diagnosed with shingles. Although my doctor says this is not necessarily related to the mercury poisoning, I researched shingles on the internet and discovered that high stress and a weakened immune system are considered triggers.

Once the amalgams are replaced and medical treatment to remove heavy metals from my body starts I should be back in good health in about a year.

I wake up some nights in a cold sweat in fear I will become so sick I won't be able to work. I pay about $250/month for pain management so I can work. Filters for the mask have to wear cost $10/each and they are last about 8 hours of constant use. Sometimes no amount of ibuprofen helps the headaches I get from exposure to chemicals. My doctor recently prescribed a migraine medication; the generic costs $281 for 8 tablets.

As a small business owner I provide two other people with regular income, so if I become too sick to work we all suffer.

I have enough equity in my house to pay for the dental and medical care I need to get well. My business bank expressed willingness to refinance my home at a prime rate in spite of the bankruptcy as a special case under the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act). The problem is that Litton Loans has been charging me excessive interest based on the credit score they and EMC Mortgage created. They have folded the difference between the payments I’ve made while in the bankruptcy and the payments they claim I should be making based on the higher interest rate back into my loan’s principle. This artificially inflates my payoff by at least $30,000 over the past two years.

Now they sold the loan to yet another unregulated mortgage company, MGC Mortgage Inc. The FTC told me a long time ago to take legal action against EMC Mortgage and Litton Loans for violations of the Fait Credit Reporting and Collection Acts. My bankruptcy attorney does not know this area of law, nor does my previous attorney. I tried to find an attorney that does, but they say the case is complex because my loan has been sold so many times, and they would need a high retainer fee, which of course I cannot afford. (Read about how the high cost of litigation denies many Americans access to jutice.). My bankruptcy attorney suggested I contact the media.

It seems to me these unregulated mortgage companies do this on purpose to prevent their victims from seeking legal relief. Attorneys tell me the FTC laws don't regulate the reporters of credit so there is nothing I can do about EMC Mortgage and Litton Loans falsely reporting my credit. Because they forced me into bankruptcy there is no easy remedy for the harm they have caused me, since the bankruptcy will affect my credit for the next ten years AFTER the bankruptcy is resolved.

The Fair Credit Reporting and Fair Debt Collection Practices Acts are supposed to protect Amercians from predatory lending practices. What good do they do when Amercian consumers cannot get restitution for damages and harm caused to them? The quality of our lives are greatly affected by our credit scores. Our credit score can keep us from getting a job and cost us thousands of extra dollars in insurance rates and interest rates when we borrow, yet there is so little we can do when our credit score is destroyed through no fault of our own.

And what about other government agencies that are supposed to protect Americans?

When I researched mercury poisoning and amalgam dental fillings I was heart broken by what I discovered. These fillings are commonly called “silver” fillings, but they are actually an alloy made a very small amount of silver and other metals. Amalgam contains 50% mercury. Mercury is one of the most toxic and poisonous substances known to the human body. The World Health Organization has recognized the health threat of mercury in dental amalgams for over ten years. Amalgam use has been banned in every other developed nation, and even in India, a developing nation.

Yet in the United States the FDA, a government agency that is supposed to protect Americans, continued to claim that dental amalgams cause no health threats. That is until a few months ago, when they settled a class action lawsuit by agreeing to warn the public that mercury in dental amalgams can cause health problems for susceptible groups. Read one of the many online accounts, or read the actual legal petition, or a legal brief in the case, and What the FDA now says about dental amalgams.

In spite of the FDA backing down on its position about the safety of dental amalgams, the American Dental Association made a public announcement that it still stands behind its claim that dental amalgams do not pose any health risks. I researched this as well, and discovered that the ADA has used extortion, threatening to revoke the license of dentists who openly inform patients and the American public about the danger of dental amalgams; and that the insurance industry is behind this.

Since this happened to me I’ve met several people who told me their dentists suggested replacing their amalgams. I also read online that the ADA will sanction dentists who publically make statements against the use of amalgam. I asked the dentist I saw, who clearly believes amalgam causes health risks, about this and why the ADA is so adamant about denying the health risk of mercury. He said it is because of the insurance industry. If the public is informed about the health risks, Americans will want their amalgams removed and the insurance industry (and the government, in the case of poor people) will have to pay for it.

Insurance companies only care about profits! A couple years ago the insurance industry had a $43 billion surplus and the same year they trumped up false claims to deny Katrina victims insurance payouts on their lost homes.

I am disgusted by how little my government seems to care about the safety and health of its citizens, and places more importance on money and the interests of big business.

My story is only one of millions of American stories about how our health care system fails our people. It is a disgrace that the United States, the richest country in the world, cannot provide adequate and affordable health care to over 43 million American citizens. It is a disgrace that the United States government has let the interests of big business, and the insurance industry in particular; regulate American health care policies to the detriment of American citizens.

Americans pay more each year to the insurance industry than they do in taxes to the federal government and their State governments combined. Is it any wonder that the insurance industry has so much money for lobbyists to shape laws that favor their industry over the welfare of the American public?

Think about how much we pay for automobile and home owners insurance. Add to that what we and our employers pay for health insurance premiums. Those are direct insurance costs. Now consider what Americans pay to the insurance industry indirectly; the high cost of malpractice insurance is passed on by doctors to the American public through the high medical fees they charge for health care. Businesses and corporations pass on the high cost of their insurance to American consumers, too.

Small businesses are charged much more for health insurance compared to large corporations. Forcing small businesses to pay for health insurance or penalizing them for not providing health insurance to their employees is not a solution. Small business owners want to provide insurance for employees, but many of them, me included can't even afford health insurance for themselves. Many small businesses will continue to limp along without employees under this kind plan. This will not create jobs, or stimulate the economy, or solve our healthcare problem.

I can only hope with our new President, Barack Obama, we will move forward in finding solutions to these problems for all Americans.

Former EMC Employee Publicly Discloses the Ugly Truth About the Mortgage Servicing Industry

By Denise Richardson, July 11, 2008

The Consumer Warning Network released a stunning video that has a former EMC employee reciting an inside story that paints a picture of why so many people can't get their loan out of default and why some people lost homes even though they had the money to pay off their note. Investigative studies, insiders and victims -have claimed that mortgage servicing companies can make MORE money off of homeowners when they keep your loan in default.

"The media has failed to tell the full story" says Danny Schechter, producer and director of 'In Debt We Trust' and the 'News Dissector' from mediachannel.org. See: Bringing the Wall Street Crisis to Main Street!

Professor Katherine Porter described many of the same disturbing findings in her recent study: "Misbehavoir and Mistakes..." To watch her on CNN see: Are you facing an Unfair Foreclosure?

View more videos about EMC Mortgage and Bear Stearns predatory lending and loan servicing practices