WEST VIRGINIA RECORD

WAYNE – A man is suing Guaranteed Home Mortgage Company after he claims it engaged in predatory lending practices and caused him to suffer damages.

Fremont Investment & Loan; America’s Servicing Company, which is doing business as Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, Inc.; John Doe Holder; Kelly Clark Comer; Wesley Wood; and Jamil Allie were also named as defendants in the suit.

Terry Steele II relocated to West Virginia to take custody of his two sons and to care for his long-term girlfriend who suffers from multiple sclerosis and in April 2005, he purchased and financed a home through Comer, who was a broker, according to a complaint filed Jan. 8 in Wayne Circuit Court.

Steele claims Comer contacted him in November 2005 to refinance the home and suggested to him that he could get more money out of his house to make repairs, but did not provide him with any details or documents with information.

After a financial hardship, Steele sought assistance with the defendants for a loan modification, but the loan modification was mishandled and Steele was improperly charged illegal default charges and misapplied his payments, according to the suit.

Steele claims the defendants breached its fiduciary duty to him and caused him damages.

America’s Servicing Company also used fraudulent, deceptive or misleading representations or means to collect or attempt to collect claims or to obtain information concerning Steele, in violation of West Virginia code, according to the suit.

Steele is seeking actual damages and civil penalties of $4,600 for each violation pursuant to West Virginia code. He is being represented by Daniel F. Hedges and Jennifer S. Wagner.

The case has been assigned to Darrell Pratt.

Wayne Circuit Court case number: 13-C-006