The Arizona attorney general has filed a consumer-fraud lawsuit against a Tucson-based company that allegedly defrauded consumers who sought foreclosure assistance.
Sonia Hodgin and Hodgin & Co. LLC are accused of violating the Arizona Consumer Fraud Act by charging struggling homeowners thousands of dollars for foreclosure assistance services and failing to provide those services, according to a news release from Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich.
The civil lawsuit alleges Hodgin and the company misrepresented the nature of fees charged for their services and withheld payments intended to avoid foreclosures.
Hodgin did not immediately respond to a request for comment. State records show she surrendered here real-estate license in October 2014 and her company’s license has been terminated.
In one case, the attorney general said, the company agreed to assume the homeowner’s mortgage loan obligation to help a client avoid foreclosure but failed to do so, resulting in the servicer foreclosing on the property.
The defendants also entered into agreements with separate consumers to sell the same property to purchasers, charging the buyers a down payment and monthly payments, but failed to pay the underlying mortgage loans and continued to accept monthly payments even after foreclosure proceedings were started, the attorney general said.
The state is seeking consumer restitution, reimbursement for the cost of the investigation, and attorneys’ fees, along with civil penalties of up to $10,000 per violation of state fraud laws.
