Refinancing to take advantage of the low interest rates, has put some families into a financial tailspin because the original mortgage is coming back to haunt them. Families across the United States are running into this similar situation and some are now facing foreclosure.

The problem seems to stem from poor record keeping during the housing boom on the part of mortgage companies. As the loans were sold off to other investors, and then resold around the world, the original mortgage servicer sidestepped crucial legal procedures. It's becoming clear now that the system was not accurate in its recording of mortgages.

According to foreclosure-fraud investigators, there are many people who are facing phantom mortgage debts, or soon will be. There are no current statistics on wrongful foreclosures, but as the mortgage industry enters its fifth year of the housing market crash, there will be more cases where people who don't owe anything on a previous mortgage, will become involved in a battle as if they've missed 10 payments.

This mortgage issue casts another shadow over the industry as a whole. In the United States, it is reported that 12.5 percent of homes with mortgages are either in foreclosure or the loans are at least 30 days past due. This represents about $1 trillion in value.

A task force has been formed from the U.S. Justice Department to address the financial misconduct and to help homeowners who are in this situation. The federal Office of the Comptroller of Currency has been handling these foreclosures that may have been wrongly pursued or over charged, but critics of the OCC feel that there is a conflict of interest.

The OCC for its part disputes this claim and has gone to great lengths to make sure that the consultants hired to review the foreclosures, report any procedural errors to regulators and not the mortgage companies.

It looks like the mortgage mess is going to continue for some time, but if you find yourself in a situation where you don't know where to turn; your best bet is to consult an attorney that specializes in foreclosure issues. They can create a plan that fits your particular situation.

Source: Reuters, "Old mortgages rise from the dead, haunt homeowners," Michelle Conlin, Jan. 26, 2012