Countrywide slashes jobs as bad loans rise
The largest U.S. mortgage lender also said it eliminated 4,935 jobs last month, leaving it with 55,932. It has said it plans to cut as many as 12,000 jobs, or 20 percent, by December to cope with a deepening U.S. housing slump...Moore, the North Carolina treasurer, on October 8 wrote to SEC Chairman Christopher Cox questioning Mozilo's increasing his stock sales just as the subprime lending crisis was heating up. Mozilo received about $387 million from pay and stock option gains from 2002 to 2006, regulatory filings show. His stock sales resumed this week after a two-month hiatus. "There is a tremendous amount of smoke around the motivations and trading practices of at least the CEO of Countrywide, perhaps the whole senior management," Moore said on CNBC television.

Real Estate Disaster the Result of Greedy Lenders and Homebuilders, Says Watchdog Group
According to the release, the single biggest contributor to the 2007-2008 real estate disaster has been mortgage lenders being most concerned about making fast profits, regardless of the long term impact on the economy. This boils down to nothing more than greed, which AW says manifested itself in three primary ways: pay option adjustable rate mortgages, stated income loans and massive appraisal fraud on the part of homebuilders... Massive appraisal fraud occurred when homebuilders conspired with appraisers to over-value builders' new houses by as much as 25 to 35 percent. As a result, says AW, homeowners in existing neighborhoods naturally assumed their homes were worth more money than they actually were. AW says that now "our big worry is formerly hot real estate markets adjusting down 25% to 35% to pre-frenzy levels by this time next year."

Americas Watchdog Explains How The 2007 Real Estate Disaster Happened Along With A Grim Preview of 2008
For years Americas Watchdog has been warning about the implosion of the US real estate "bubble." Wall Street talks like the problem is behind us. In reality the "problem" is just in its initial stages, with more severe hardships that will affect individual homeowners as well as the over all economy. In order to better understand this real estate and economic disaster, Americas Watchdog along with its Homeowners Consumer Center have put together the main reasons this disaster happened, along with what citizens can do to position themselves from the storm that is about to come.

Mortgage scam threatens 200 homes with foreclosure
...The couple now fear they are victims of a $100 million mortgage fraud that may have touched hundreds across the south metro. Up and down their street, friends and neighbors who rented from Parish Marketing and Development - an Eagan homebuilder - have received foreclosure notices informing them their two-story dream homes will be sold at sheriff's sales. Some houses already have been resold.  As the housing market has cooled and foreclosure rates have skyrocketed, authorities are investigating a bevy of mortgage fraud cases across the state and nationwide - particularly in rural and far-reaching suburbs. This latest investigation is notable not only for the dollar amount but also for the number and concentration of homes.

Countrywide closes local subprime lending office
Countrywide Financial Corporation has shuttered its San Antonio office that specialized in subprime lending...Also, a joint venture between Countrywide and volume builder KB Home remains intact. Countrywide has an office at the KB Home office off of Fredericksburg Road just north of Loop 410. The partnership also often places Countrywide loan officers in KB model homes in San Antonio and across the country...Subprime mortgage loans are made to borrowers with a poor credit history or other factors that make them a high risk for a lender, and typically come with a higher interest rate and bigger fees.

Lenders still finding ways to finance home purchases, refis
Despite the relentless onslaught of alarming headlines in recent weeks, there are still plenty of mortgage lenders willing to extend credit to subprime borrowers.  Although you might be hard-pressed to find subprime or Alt-A lenders offering 2/28 hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs),100 percent financing or "piggyback" second loans, an informal survey of loan officers and mortgage brokers around the nation finds they're still able to help clients from all walks of life buy or refinance a home.

Buyer beware: Foreclosure sales not for everyone
Real estate buyers are taking note of the rise in foreclosures in many housing markets across the country, but foreclosure properties aren't for everyone, said David Levin, principal for David Levin & Associates, a Florida-based real estate consulting firm. "There are real risks in the foreclosures business ... in a normal market. If you're not schooled in this stuff it's not for the faint of heart," said Levin. During the days when home-price appreciation and sales were setting records month after month, investors could profit by scooping up properties for a quick flip. Foreclosures may lure buyers because of the potential for a discounted price, but there can be other associated costs. "I'm keeping my fingers crossed that people don't get seduced," he said.

Upside down: Homeowners share lessons in foreclosure
A housing market slowdown, coupled with a credit crunch, have put the brakes on home sales in some market areas, which has led to an increase in foreclosures nationwide. Data company RealtyTrac reported this month that U.S. foreclosure activity grew 93.4 percent in July compared to the same month last year, to a rate of one foreclosure filing for every 693 households.

Countrywide to Cut Up to 12,000 Jobs
Struggling mortgage lender Countrywide Financial Corp. will cut as many as 12,000 jobs in a bid to slash costs and cope with soaring foreclosures and defaults, the company said Friday. Countrywide has been struggling as the housing slump led to a sharp rise in mortgage defaults and foreclosures, particularly among borrowers with subprime loans.

Stewart Title Reaches $1 Million Settlement On Kickback Charges
California Department of Insurance said yesterday that it had reached a $1 million settlement agreement with Stewart Title Guaranty Company over a $46 million lawsuit targeting captive reinsurance agreements that the regulator characterized as “illegal and unfair.” The CDI had charged that Stewart — along with other major title insurance operations — paid a portion of the title insurance premium collected to builders, lenders, and title agents in return for the referral of business.