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National Association of Consumer Advocates (NACA)


Self Description

March 2004: "NACA is a nationwide association of more than 1000 attorneys and consumer advocates who have a wide range of experience curbing abusive and predatory business practices and promoting justice for consumers. NACA is an organization with a shared philosophy and a distinct point of view. We believe that consumers, particularly those of modest means, are inadequately protected from unscrupulous business practices in connection with the extension of credit and the collection of debts. Financial institutions, from finance companies to mortgage brokers to credit card issuers, take advantage of the complexity of commercial transactions and the lack of sophistication of consumers and impose exorbitant charges on them. These corporations are motivated too often solely by the bottom line, without regard to the morality or even legality of their practices. The unfortunate result is that consumers are deprived of huge sums by these companies through fraudulent and deceptive practices in connection with the extension of credit. Within this site you can find fact sheets on consumer issues, a useful resource list of our members, who may be able to answer particular questions about the laws in your state."

http://www.naca.net/

Third-Party Descriptions

December 2010: '“Every day, smaller wrongs happen to people trying to save their homes: being charged the wrong amount of money, being wrongly denied a loan modification, being asked to hand over documents four or five times,” said Ira Rheingold, executive director of the National Association of Consumer Advocates.'

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/22/business/22lockout.html

December 2004: "It will not only encourage [violators], they won't even care much about being caught, because for $1,000, the plaintiff's lawyer won't get paid and won't bring a case," said Thomas D. Domonoske, a Virginia lawyer who represents consumers in Truth in Lending Act cases. Domonoske helped draft a friend-of-the-court brief for the National Association of Consumer Advocates, which supported the car buyer, Bradley Nigh, in the case.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A22990-2004Nov30.html

Relationships

RoleNameTypeLast Updated
Organization Head/Leader (past or present) Ira Rheingold Person Mar 3, 2004

Articles and Resources

Date Fairness.com Resource Read it at:
Dec 21, 2010 In a Sign of Foreclosure Flaws, Suits Claim Break-Ins by Banks

QUOTE: In an era when millions of homes have received foreclosure notices nationwide, lawsuits detailing bank break-ins like the one at Ms. Ash’s house keep surfacing. And in the wake of the scandal involving shoddy, sometimes illegal paperwork that has buffeted the nation’s biggest banks in recent months, critics say these situations reinforce their claims that the foreclosure process is fundamentally flawed.

 New York Times
Jun 02, 2008 Betting on Big Verdicts: Bethesda Firm's Cash Advances Come With High Risks

QUOTE: A Bethesda firm is entering a high-stakes business in which it buys a portion of the rights to civil lawsuits before the victim has collected a dime. Stone Street Capital's high-risk play can pay off big if it successfully bets on fat court settlements. But it can backfire if it advances money for a lawsuit that gets reversed or never pays. In that case, the plaintiff keeps the advance and Stone Street gets nothing.

 Washington Post
Mar 02, 2007 Foreclosures rising among high-risk US mortgages: Loans made to people with weak credit during the housing boom have pushed more than 20 companies into bankruptcy.

QUOTE: Across the nation, foreclosures and defaults are rising as mortgages that were once affordable are now expensive albatrosses as the introductory "teaser rates" that made the loan possible end and higher interest rates kick in. Some housing specialists worry that the mortgage industry – with more than 20 companies already in bankruptcy – will raise its lending standards so high that would-be homeowners with less-than-perfect credit will be frozen out.

 Christian Science Monitor
Mar 08, 2006 Judge Suspends Montgomery Law On Penalties for Predatory Lending

QUOTE: The new law in Montgomery sought to protect minority borrowers at a time when new federal lending statistics have found that blacks and Hispanics are paying much more for loans than whites and Asians....A state judge issued a temporary injunction to halt the law's enforcement for four months, and the Bush administration said the measure usurps federal authority.

 Washington Post
Jul 31, 2005 Small Print, Big Trouble: A common contract clause shields businesses, hurts consumers (Consumer Alert)

QUOTE: Buried in the fine print of many contracts lurks a legal loophole: a binding mandatory arbitration—BMA—clause. This clause stipulates that any dispute between you and the company will be hammered out not in a courtroom but in proceedings without judges and juries—and without much chance for a just resolution, consumer advocates say.

 AARP
Jun 04, 2005 Con Artists Play Troubling Game: Grand Theft Home

QUOTE: "The National Consumer Law Center, (which) this week issued a comprehensive report on "the rampant theft of Americans' homes and equity" by con artists who promise to save houses from foreclosure,..."

 Washington Post
Dec 01, 2004 High Court Puts Limit On Lender Liability

QUOTE: The Supreme Court yesterday overturned a five-figure damage award to an Alexandria man for a local auto dealer's alleged loan scam...

 Washington Post
Aug 01, 2004 How to Mend a Credit Report That's Not Really Broken

QUOTE: how hard it can be to clean up one's credit history, even when it is soiled in error....Lawyers and consumer advocates say the system is overwhelmed. Rather than truly investigating complaints, they say, the big credit bureaus make only cursory checks.

 New York Times
Feb 04, 2004 Fannie to Set New Policy On Arbitration Clauses; Mortgages Must Allow Borrowers to Sue

QUOTE: "This will impact the marketplace because two of the biggest financial institutions in America are saying that mandatory arbitration is abusive..."

Washington Post