McKenna earns an A in helping families keep their homes

Attorney General Rob McKenna was one of just 18 state Attorneys General to earn an A from a national community organization for protecting homeowners from losing their homes to foreclosure. ACORN, the country's largest community organization of low- and moderate-income families, issued the report this week, ranking Attorneys General for their effectiveness in fighting the foreclosure crisis.

McKenna convened a mortgage think-tank in the summer of 2007 and successfully worked with the state legislature to pass a law that protects homeowners against mortgage foreclosure rescue schemes.  That law goes into effect June 12.

"Home ownership is one of the most prized achievements in our country--the foundation for the American dream," McKenna said. "Too many homeowners were lured or tricked into mortgages they couldn't sustain and now predators are swooping in to finish them off. I'm proud of the work my office has done to protect families and to bring mortgage scammers to justice."

More than 12,000 Washington residents received settlement checks as part of the Ameriquest settlement last fall, splitting roughly $9.1 million. The Washington State Attorney General's Office led the settlement negotiations, alleging that Ameriquest "schemed to sell mortgages that trapped consumers and put them at high risk of foreclosure."