California man pleads guilty to mortgage modification scam

Rodriguez, 47, of Laguna Niguel, Calif., pled guilty to one count of wire fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison along with a maximum fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense, the US Attorney’s Office noted.

According to a recent study, some parts of California are among the most at-risk housing markets vulnerable to pandemic-fueled economic damage. ATTOM, self-described as curator of the nation’s premier property database, released its fourth-quarter Special Coronavirus Report spotlighting vulnerable housing markets across the US at the county level.

California figured prominently in that study. California, combined with New Jersey and Illinois, had 31 of the 50 counties most vulnerable to potential economic impact of the pandemic – and, presumably, a vulnerability to fraudulent schemes positing solutions. The 50 most at-risk counties included seven sprinkled throughout northern, central and southern California, the report showed.

According to the ATTOM study, those seven vulnerable counties in California are: Butte County (Chico), El Dorado County (east of Sacramento), Humboldt County (Eureka) and Shasta County (Redding) in the northern part of the state; as well as Kern County (Bakersfield), Madera County (outside Fresno) and Riverside County (east of Los Angeles) in the central and southern sections of the state.