Capitol Notebook: Iowa AG reaches settlement with company that deceived Iowa homeowners facing foreclosure

A Florida-based social media influencer and software developer accused of committing fraud and scamming Iowa homeowners out of $30,000 has agreed to refund Iowans’ foreclosure consulting fees, according to a settlement agreement.

The Iowa Attorney General’s office alleged Robert Boligan, owner of Summit Software Systems, violated Iowa's Consumer Fraud Act by using “deceptive, misleading and unfair” business practices targeting homeowners at risk of foreclosure, including tricking residents into believing the company was affiliated with the government and offering adjustments on mortgage loans.

“Defendants claimed, demanded, charged, collected or received compensation before they had fully performed each and every service they contracted to perform or represented they would perform,” including promising to negotiate a mortgage loan modification, forbearance or repayment plan, according to the Attorney General’s Office.

Boligan and Summit Software Systems deny the allegations but agreed to halt all "foreclosure consultant" services in Iowa. A court-enforced consent order also directs the company to “reimburse every Iowa consumer who purchased merchandise sold by Summit Software Systems,” noting that each Iowa consumer is “entitled to a complete, automatic refund of all amounts paid” to Summit.

The refunds are to be paid by Summit to the Iowa Attorney General’s Office. The company has six months to pay the full amount, at a rate of at least $5,000 per month. The attorney general will then forward the refunds directly to Summit’s Iowa customers.

Nearly 3,290 Iowans received mailers with 15 Iowa households paying Summit and Boligan a total of $30,626, according to the AG’s office.

“Iowans facing foreclosure are already struggling enough,” Attorney General Brenna Bird said in a statement. “For a company to trick them out of money on top of that is just flat wrong. My office is committed to protecting Iowans from fraud, and we are so glad to be able to return Iowa families their hard-earned money."

Summit also agreed to pay $50,000 to the Attorney General’s Office if it is later proven that the company violated the terms of the agreement.

The Iowa Attorney General’s office reminds Iowans facing foreclosure that they can contact Iowa’s safe and free mortgage counseling resource at www.iowamortgagehelp.com.

Iowa elections official highlights safety measures

Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate, the state’s top elections official, said the state is once again partnering with multiple state and federal agencies to ensure Iowa’s elections operate safely and properly.

The Secretary of State’s office is working with the Iowa Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management to monitor Election Day activity, and with the federal government to ensure elections are protected, and on cybersecurity protections, Pate’s office said.

Iowa’s 2023 municipal elections are Nov. 7. Early voting is underway.

“In Iowa, we take a holistic approach to election integrity and security — pre-election testing, paper ballots, post-election audits, enhancing cybersecurity measures, and partnerships with our Election Security A Team make that possible,” Pate said in a news release. “The public should be reassured that we are protecting the integrity of their vote in all 99 counties.”

Gazette-Lee Des Moines Bureau