Robbing Them of House and Home

As many as 1,000 poor, elderly widows have lost their modest homes in South-Central Los Angeles recently to unscrupulous salesmen using a cynical scam. But a lawyers’ group and a black church are working to put a stop to it, and they deserve considerable praise for their efforts.

The scam works this way: Predators billing themselves as home-improvement salesmen go door-to-door in black neighborhoods. They target old women who live in homes purchased decades ago. The old houses--which may have cost as little as $7,000--are worth 10 times that now, sometimes more, but need repairs.

A new roof, a heating system, new carpeting or the like are tempting. The widow agrees and signs up for what she believes are small monthly payments. But there is trouble in the fine print. The papers--actually a loan contract and mortgage--require a large balloon payment at the end of one year, sometimes as much as $25,000. When the owner can’t come up with the money, she loses her house.

Lawyers for Bet Tzedek Legal Services--a nonprofit law firm started originally to help elderly Jewish women--have so far managed to save a dozen houses. But stopping foreclosure is difficult after the papers have been signed. So now they are trying to get the word out to elderly people in the community to be wary beforehand. And the lawyers have formed a Home Equity Task Force at the First African Methodist Episcopal Church to train volunteers to sound a warning: Don’t sign anything without legal advice and counseling.

The task force, the brainchild of Julius Butler, who belongs to the law firm and to the church, is contacting other congregations to spread the word. Los Angeles City Councilmen Bob Farrell, Gil Lindsay and Nate Holden have been asked to pitch in. The task force is also letting people know that help is available from the Los Angeles Department of Consumer Affairs. A telephone call to (213) 974-1452 can start the process of saving a home, if the owner is willing to complain.

Too many elderly women have lost their houses to this scam already. A few may get restitution if either the city attorney or district attorney can successfully prosecute the salesmen and loan companies involved, but in many cases widows still lose their treasured homes. Here’s hoping the Home Equity Task Force can put a stop to this scurrilous scam.