December 7th, 2010, Michael Danielson  Forty-two years ago, the Truth In Lending Act advanced consumer protection rights by requiring that all costs and terms of any type of loan or credit be presented to the customer before any contracts were signed. Today, as America struggles to recover from the worst economic times since the Great Depression, the Federal Reserve is considering profoundly amending the Act to be less powerful in its defense of homeowners. Civil rights groups, consumer advocacy groups, and foreclosure attorneys are up in arms, claiming that the amendment should be delayed and handled not by the Fed, but by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which begins operations early next year → Read More November 22nd, 2010, Carlo Gabriel Simbajon  U.S. Vice President Joe Biden announced yesterday the administration’s plan to ban mortgage-relief companies from charging advance fees to individuals who seek assistance in paying off their home loans. The ban, which will be imposed by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, was announced by Biden yesterday during a news conference in Washington. Biden said the measure is part of the plans of the Obama administration to help middle and low-income class families who are having trouble paying their bills. → Read More November 18th, 2010, Carlo Gabriel Simbajon  State attorneys general who are looking into the ongoing mortgage and foreclosures scandal are considering the possibility of establishing a foreclosure fund to compensate homeowners who were victims of wrongful foreclosures. A report by the Washington Post said, the 50-state coordinated probe is looking at having the banks finance the foreclosure compensation fund. Under the proposal, borrowers who can prove they lost their homes because of improper foreclosure procedures can seek compensation. → Read More November 17th, 2010, Carlo Gabriel Simbajon  There is more to the ongoing mortgage and foreclosures scandal than just sloppy and fraudulent paperwork caused by “robo-signers.” A senate committee believes the “robo-signing” mess is an indicator of a much larger problem besetting the mortgage industry. During the hearing conducted by the Senate Banking Committee yesterday, Senator Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., the committee head, said shoddy foreclosures paperwork “are simply the tip of a much larger iceberg, that they are emblematic of much deeper problems in the mortgage servicing business — problems that have resulted in homeowners losing their homes in unjustifiable foreclosures.” → Read More November 16th, 2010, Carlo Gabriel Simbajon  A congressional panel tasked to oversee President Barack Obama’s Wall Street bailout fears the ongoing mortgage and foreclosures scandal could mean serious new troubles for the housing market, a Reuters report said. A study prepared by the Congressional Oversight Panel outlined a range of best-case and worst-case scenarios that could emerge from the foreclosures crisis. In a best-case outcome, the concerns about the scandal are “overblown,” the report said. However, a worst-case scenario could mean the banks face billions of dollars in losses, the study said. → Read More November 11th, 2010, Carlo Gabriel Simbajon  Fannie Mae (OTC:FNMA) has officially terminated the services of a controversial Florida law firm which has figured prominently in the ongoing mortgage and foreclosures scandal. In a statement posted on FannieMae.com, Fannie Mae said it “has terminated its relationship with the Law Offices of David J. Stern, P.A” (NASDAQ:DJSP). The nation’s largest → Read More November 10th, 2010, Michael Danielson  In Part 1, we looked at the background behind the “collateralized debt obligation”, or CDO, and promised to connect the story back to the Tier 5 unemployment extension. Unfortunately, the matter is so complex that this isn’t the end of the tale — a third part will be necessary to bring everything around full circle. For now, let’s talk about how the CDOs got introduced to the public as perfectly safe and happy investments. (In large part, the information in this article is derived from the book The Looting of America by Les Leopold.) → Read More November 9th, 2010, Michael Danielson  The 99ers and other people in the ever-growing lower class have long suspected that the wealthy were in some way to blame for the Great Recession, and thought they ought to pay for the Tier 5 unemployment extension and other social safety nets as part of their coming clean with society. The proof, however, is hard to pin down. The Great Recession is a complex beast. With time and understanding however, comes a lot of insight. (In large part, the information in this article is derived from the book The Looting of America by Les Leopold.) → Read More |
