Posts tagged as:

lending

Reverse mortgages: trouble brewing

July 2, 2009

In recent years, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC)– the main federal regulator of the nation’s biggest banks – has seemed concerned with consumer protection only when it was acting aggressively to protect “its” banks from the prospect of being sued by state attorneys general for their predatory practices.  The OCC pursued [...]

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Mortgage modification: what you can and cannot get

July 1, 2009

The government and the banks say consumers are getting mortgage modifications, while the numbers and consumer advocate say otherwise. Minnesota business lawyer Nathan Brandenburg took a stab at unraveling the confusion which may be part of the reason why consumers are not getting the modifications they want.
He points out two important features of the loan [...]

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Why is Obama silent on bankruptcy reform?

May 19, 2009

The Red Tape Chronicles asks whether Obama is “backing the wrong horse” by championing credit card reform while ignoring bankruptcy reform that would allow bankruptcy judges to reduce mortgage loans in bankruptcy—just like they can do for all other debts. Credit card reform is a great thing, of course, but it will have a tiny [...]

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Produce the note!

February 26, 2009

Sometimes the court system actually works. The AP has an interesting article on homeowners who are forcing lenders to <gasp> produce the note—the proof the lender issued a mortgage. Apparently some people are having some success in delaying or stopping foreclosure by simply asking whomever is trying to foreclose to produce the original mortgage note. [...]

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Subprime lending dropped in ‘07, but people of color still bear the brunt of it (AFFIL Week)

February 11, 2009

Today marks the release of Changing Patterns XV, the fifteenth annual report on mortgage lending in Massachusetts that I’ve prepared for the Massachusetts Community and Banking Council.
Lots of high-cost subprime lenders bit the dust in 2007, so subprime lending fell dramatically that year.  In Massachusetts, there were 5,085 subprime home-purchase loans made, down from 14,639 [...]

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Caveat Emptor playlist: Community Reinvestment Act

October 28, 2008
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Ohio Payday Lenders Caught Lying in Ballot Initiative Signature Drive

August 13, 2008

Ohio Payday Lenders Caught Lying in Ballot Initiative Signature Drive | Consumer Law & Policy

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In Pictures : Mortgage Guidelines Get Tough For All Borrower Types — Quickly

August 13, 2008

In Pictures : Mortgage Guidelines Get Tough For All Borrower Types — Quickly | Homes and Money

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Throwdown! Connecticut Sues Countrywide For Deceptive Lending

August 8, 2008

Throwdown! Connecticut Sues Countrywide For Deceptive Lending | Consumerist

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Racial bias in mortgage lending

August 1, 2008

It should come as no surprise to anyone that despite laws against discrimination in lending and a few lawsuits, race still plays a role in the quality of loan a person gets. A new report by the National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC) shows that minority consumers, regardless of income level, are most at risk of [...]

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Fed to Issue New Mortgage Lending Regulations Next Week

July 9, 2008

Fed to Issue New Mortgage Lending Regulations Next Week | Consumer Law & Policy

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The Interest Rate Outlook Continues to Improve

June 26, 2008

The Interest Rate Outlook Continues to Improve | Queercents

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Former Bear hedge fund managers surrender

June 19, 2008

Former Bear hedge fund managers surrender Ralph Cioffi and Matthew Tannin, who managed Bear Stearns hedge funds before the subprime collapse, charged with lying to investors about mortgage market risk. | CNN Money

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Anatomy of a Meltdown: The Credit Crisis

June 18, 2008

Anatomy of a Meltdown: The Credit Crisis | Washington Post

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In trouble with an internet payday loan? Change banks.

June 11, 2008

Nathalie Martin at Credit Slips reports that many internet payday loans are illegal and therefore unenforceable. But they can be a big problem, since most automatically deduct their fee from consumers’ bank accounts and roll over without warning.
Since many of these loans are illegal under state payday lending laws, consumers can simply change bank accounts [...]

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What in the world is a credit recession?

June 5, 2008

Apparently it is the reduced availability of credit. Think of it as the natural consequence of the overabundance of credit that tanked our economy in the first place. And it may last for a couple of years.
Consider this a good reason to move your finances to a cash model.
Experts: ‘Credit recession’ could last two years [...]

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Countrywide Is About To Foreclose On Ed McMahon

June 4, 2008

Countrywide Is About To Foreclose On Ed McMahon | Consumerist

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Payday lending interest rates forced down in Ohio

June 3, 2008

On Monday, Ohio Governor Ted Strickland signed a law capping payday loan interest rates at 28% and limiting borrowers to 4 payday loans per year.
Previously, payday lenders would charge interest rates close to 400%. Under the new law, they will be limited to 28%, which looks more like a (bad) credit card interest rate.
The payday [...]

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Big surprise: greedy subprime security buyers didn’t listen to their own consultants

May 28, 2008

Tracy Warren was a quality-control consultant for Bear Stearns and other mortgage security purchasers on Wall Street. Her job was to review mortgage loans to determine whether they had merit for investment purposes. (She saw the loans after they were made, but before they were sold to investors and led to the national economy’s crash-and-burn [...]

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Minnesota legislature passes Subprime Borrower Relief Act

May 20, 2008

The Subprime Borrower Relief Act gives borrowers with subprime loans the right to defer a foreclosure sale of their residence for one year after the bill becomes law.

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