Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison today filed a settlement of his Office’s investigation into an Arizona-based finance company called Unlock Partnership Solutions, Inc. for illegally entering into mortgage loans. Unlock marketed and entered into what it called “home equity agreements” with Minnesota homeowners, in which the company advanced a lump sum to financially strapped consumers in exchange for a large percentage of the consumer’s home equity, to be redeemed within 10 years to pay back the advance. 

“Homeownership is a primary means for Minnesotans to obtain financial stability and secure a place to live and raise a family. That’s why my team and I work so hard to enforce laws against abusive lending practices that threaten Minnesotans’ equity and housing stability. I brought this action to stop practices that attempted to evade those protections and misled consumers. I’m glad that Unlock has agreed to resolve the matter, abide by Minnesota law, and pay nearly $1 million that will be used to compensate Minnesota consumers who were harmed by these violations.” – AG Ellison