Ameriquest Mortgage Company Ameriquest overappraised our home and suckered us into deeper debt than we had before! Indianapolis Indiana

Josh - I am a former loan officer of Ameriquest. I was with the company in 2004. You are correct that your home's value was inflated. Here is a little history on the operations in Indy. The loan officers were hired with absolutely NO mortgage experience. We were sent to training where we were told only what we had to know to get by. We were hired based on our sales skills alone.

After training, we sat in large rooms and were REQUIRED to make 150 outbound telephone calls or take 4 applications EVERY SINGLE DAY. When a borrower applied to refinance, they would receive a lower rate if the amount borrowed was significantly lower than the amount appraised. This is the case with any lender. However, at Ameriquest, it was not uncommon to ask the appraiser to find comparable properties that would bring in a higher value.

If there was a particularly hard case, we all knew which appraisers would inflate values and which would not. They often used appraisers who were "black listed" with reputable mortgage companies because they were caught inflating values. The Branch Managers were aware of who they were and still utilized their sevices. I know of several loan officers who also committed fraud by falsifying pay stubs and W-2s. There was an enormous amount of turn over and loan officers often disappeared. I didn't last too long.

The pressure was too much...not to even mention my consience. It was a terrible experience. It makes me sick to see the posts on this site and to know that I was a part of that. I am pretty confident that my borrowers should be okay. I always tried to do the right thing, but I was a rarity. If I can help anyone with any info, I would be happy to help. Good luck to all.

It's a knowen fact that Ameriquest,amc, and town & country are predator lenders, and over estimate the value of a piece of propery to secure a larger loan, or mortgage.

as for your question about refi prior to the two year rule...a mortgage co. can only charge two months interest to close out the rule. I got this information from AMC.

Good Luck

Josh, As much as I hate Ameriquest and think they committed fradulent things, I am not sure you were ripped off. I don't know if you have turned the t.v. on or read any recent newspapers but the entire country is losing value on property. It is not surprising at all that your house is worth less than it was at the time of your refinance.

In terms of the pre-payment penalty, how could you not know there was one on your loan? You have to sign a paper at closing called a "pre-payment rider" which tells you exactly what the pre-payment penalty will be on your loan... not to mention it is in the paperwork approx. 4 other times. Did you read what you signed?

I agree with the previous person, do a short sale on the house or stick it out until the pre-payment penalty is over and then refinance. I don't see the ripoff on this one, but I hope it all works out for you.

my suggestion is to sell your house. it sounds like you overpaid for it, and were approved by a finance company for a loan you should never have been approved for. through the past few years, they have been over-loaning, which is resulting in their bankruptcy. your best bet is to try to sell your house and get out from the majority of your debt.
some finance companies will help you with a short sell, which will allow you to sell your home for less than you owe at a closer to market value.