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On November 1, 2022, BBB Serving the Atlantic Provinces attempted to send correspondence to 1660 Hollis Street, Halifax, NS, B3J 1V7. Our mail was returned as undeliverable from this address. We were unsuccessful in locating a new address, resulting in BBB not having complete and current information. If you have information that would assist your BBB in developing a report, please speak with a BBB Marketplace Counsellor.
BBB Serving the Atlantic Provinces has concluded an investigation into the status of Rocket Money Lending and is satisfied by the results of our investigations that this is not a legitimate business.
The investigation was prompted by several phone inquiries and one formal complaint against Rocket Money Lending. After multiple attempts to contact this business via postal mail, email & via phone, we were unable to contact the business. The business is not listed on the NS Joint Stock Registry. The business is using an address of a commercial tower without mentioning the suite number. BBB reached out to the property management company for the location of the address mentioned on the business’s website. The property management company stated that they have no knowledge of the said business. Therefore, it is a firm belief that this is a fraudulent business.
Rocket Money Lending guarantees loans without seeing your credit history. They ask you for an upfront fee to lock in a loan. But once you hand over the payment, the "lender” vanishes along with your promised money. There are many versions of this con: home mortgage refinancing, low-cost government loans, student loan consolidation, special grants, or just an emergency loan to pay the bills.
The catch is some kind of fee upfront, such as a “processing fee” or insurance to get the loan or to lock in the low-interest rate. Once you hand over the payment, the "lender” vanishes along with the money. In Canada, it is illegal for companies doing business by phone to promise a loan and require payment before the funds are released into the bank account.
Tips to spot this scam:
• Vague or unclear fees charged before you get the money. There are often fees charged for loans: application fees, appraisals, and credit report fees. A real lender will post those fees prominently and collect them from the money they are lending you, but a scam lender may try to collect them as a condition for you to get money. Any up-front fee you must pay before getting the loan is a cue to walk away.
• Avoid guarantees and unusual payment methods. Real lenders never guarantee a loan in advance. They will check your credit score and other documents before providing an interest rate and/or loan amount and will not ask you to pay an upfront fee. Unusual payment methods and payments to an individual are a big tip-off.
• Do your research. Scammers try to trick you by pretending to be from official or trustworthy institutions (including Better Business Bureau or your current lender) or sounding like a known organization. Contact the agency directly to check if the program is real. Lenders and loan brokers must register where they do business. In Canada, contact the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions.
For more information
Check out BBB's tips for avoiding advanced fee loan scams.
Report scams to BBB Scam Tracker.
