Rust Consulting: promise that a check is in the mail is real

this is actually legit. check out federalreserve,gov i’m not doubting i will be getting a check. the question is what will be the amount?

Here is an update that came out today. Hope it helps. https://www.occ.gov/news-issuances/news-releases/2013/nr-ia-2013-60.html

I agree. We went through so much heartache having to leave our home but we did what had to be done. This would be a nice surprise. I would be happy with $300 at this point!

There are a number of different categories of what you qualify for on these checks. So don’t be surprised if it is as little as $400. I’ve heard of one person, that is all she got. Definitely not enough to compensate the loss of her home. It goes as high as 125k though, which a majority of that goes to military who were foreclosed on while they were active duty because they are protected under the Serviceman Civil Relief Act. But be aware that there are scams out there. If they request you to pay a fee or anything like that, it is a scam. The checks will be coming from Rust Consulting. I read a post somewhere saying as long as you filled out the documents for it you should get it within 21 days seeing as how they have already mailed a chunk of them.

I just got two checks today for $300 each. Is this legit? Came by regular mail and it’s in an envelope that looks like a scam letter.

I received a check two days ago for $3,000 and placed the funds into a savings account. A friend of mine from college in Florida received her check the same day. She said it was for $300. Not sure why the disparity in differences, but I’m not complaining. For what it’s worth, you will receive a 1099 at the end of the year for the money received. Don’t forget Uncle Sam will want his cut of the check.

I still find it humorous that I received a check for a foreclosure when I elected to walk away from my house because I was underwater by over 65% at the time of foreclosure. I’m a certified real estate appraiser in Arizona – I understand residential home values about as well as anyone in my profession – especially when it came to my own house.

I read some of the comments on here and I really don’t have much empathy for anyone. In reality, we didn’t pay our bills on our house for one reason or another (whether a loss in income/health/etc). If you don’t pay for something you don’t own outright, then the true owner will eventually reserve the right to take that item back (the bank in this case). It would be no different if you failed to make multiple car payments.

The idea that people are complaining about getting an additional check for such and such amounts because they didn’t pay their bills in the first place is comical (and is sad at the same time). Maybe it’s the sue happy reality we live in or the common belief that we’re all entitled to a handout nowadays. There’s little to no personal responsibility anymore – maybe it all started with the implementation of participation trophies when we were kids. Who knows? However, 98% of us weren’t wronged by the banks… we didn’t meet our end of a financial obligation after we signed our name to a contract (don’t sign something if you don’t fully understand what it means). I realize there are some extenuating circumstances for some limited individuals (some homeowners in the military for instance), however most of us aren’t in that situation. We didn’t make a payment for what we owed. Plain and simple.

The reality about my financial situation – I was never late on any other bill but the mortgage payment. I had gotten out of the Navy in 1999 and went to college right after. I graduated in the fall of 2004 with a degree in finance and had my first “full time” job by March of 2005 (I worked two “side” jobs up until I caught my first good job). In January of 2006, I purchased a newly constructed house for approximately $270K. At the time, I was making roughly $70K, but my income was definitely increasing as I was pretty hot at the national firm I worked for.

Reality hit in February of 2007. I had to turn down a job relocation offer in Florida at the national firm I worked for because I was too upside down on my house (I was down approximately $100K in value when the offer came over and market rent was $1,100 less a month than my mortgage and HOA payments combined). I remember the VP of the company sitting down with me and discussing a strategic foreclosure with me and urging me to take the job in Florida (which I really wanted). A competing firm though in Arizona offered me a position which would bring my income to low six figures (and would also mean I wouldn’t have to walk from the house). I accepted the job with the competing firm in April in 2007. By December of 2007, I opened up my own firm realizing I didn’t have to share the fruits of my hard work with a partner who didn’t put the same hours in as me. In 2008, I was still making low six figures with my own firm, but I noticed my bank deposits were getting smaller by the month in the latter part of the third quarter of the year (no bueno). After the second huge dip in the real estate market in late 2008, I made the financial decision to stop paying my mortgage. Seven months later (June of 2009), the house went to auction and sold for approximately $68K. At the time, I was probably making closer to $70K again (income was getting a lot tighter). I rented a place for peanuts in a better location and have since moved on to bigger and better things.

Ironically enough, even though I was never late on any other bill, the interest rates on all my existing credit cards at the time were raised (thought the move was shady to say the least, but I didn’t pay a bill that I OWED, so I had to live with the results of my actions). It was like they branded me with a Scarlet Letter “F”.

Am I complaining about receiving a $3,000 check? Ugh… no. If anything, it helps cover the increased interest I paid on those credit cards over time. Did I do anything for the $3,000? Not really. Like a lot of people, I received the card in the mail and made a quick five minute phone call a month ago to verify the legitimacy of the information on the card after reading up on the internet about the legitimacy of the settlement. I was joking with a friend a month ago that even getting $50 back would be cool – needless to say, getting $3,000 back was a nice surprise. Just the reality of my situation.