Sold a Nightmare
Beazer Homes USA said Wednesday it is cooperating with a federal investigation of its mortgage business. A subsidiary of the builder, Beazer Mortgage, arranges loans for many buyers in its subdivisions.

Sold a Nightmare
UPDATES TO THIS REPORT
Builder says U.S. attorney wants info; shares down over 8%

Beazer Homes USA said Wednesday it is cooperating with a federal investigation of its mortgage business. A subsidiary of the builder, Beazer Mortgage, arranges loans for many buyers in its subdivisions.

Home bailouts are often traps
Many who are offering mortgage help are stripping value, taking over houses
As risky mortgage loans fuel a rise in foreclosures, some opportunists are targeting struggling U.S. homeowners, promising a quick bailout but ultimately stripping the properties of their value or owning the homes outright.

Sold a Nightmare
Concord subdivision proves lucrative for builder and costly for 1st-time owners

Seventy-seven buyers have lost homes to foreclosure in Southern Chase, a subdivision of 406 homes.

• The Response: Beazer says it followed the law
• The Escape: Home saved by a 2nd income
• The Loans: Data wrong on some applications
• The Construction: House had code violations
• The Impulse Buy: '$1 down' was an ominous sign
• The Prices: Homes with Beazer loans cost more
• No Money Down: Why it Leaves Buyers Vulnerable
• Low Introductory Payments: Higher payments later
• What is a foreclosure?
• Findings of our 4-day series
• How we did this series

Easy-credit loans can be hard on us all.

Observer series shows destabilizing threat to entire communities
When a gleaming new house goes up, and the homeowner moves in, most people celebrate that as good growth. Observer series shows destabilizing threat to entire communities

Part Two
Starter homes, sad endings

Number of foreclosures climbs as 1st-time buyers lose low-priced houses

A wave of loan defaults in starter-home developments is pushing the foreclosure count in Mecklenburg County to record heights, an Observer analysis shows.

• How to buy your 1st home

 

Part Three

One builder, hundreds of foreclosures

10 Beazer developments in Mecklenburg riddled by foreclosures

In the past decade, Beazer Homes USA built more houses in Mecklenburg County that have since foreclosed than any other builder.

• Federal review of Beazer loans
• Observer editorial | The foreclosure mess

 

Part Four

Failed mortgages fly under the radar

From feds on down, no one keeps close track of foreclosures, limiting oversight

The city of Charlotte does not count foreclosures. Neither does Mecklenburg County. Nor the state of North Carolina. Nor the federal government.

• Proposed N.C. legislation
• How to Get Help
• Special Report Staff

http://charlotte.com/523