Banks, Foreclosure | featured news

Banks earned $13 billion in secret cut-rate loans from the Federal Reserve during the financial crisis, Bloomberg reports... "Many Americans are struggling to understand why banks deserve such preferential treatment while millions of homeowners are being denied assistance and are at increasing risk of foreclosure," Cummings wrote in his letter.

Five major banks could be required to commit roughly $15 billion to reduce principal balances for struggling homeowners and modify loans in other ways under a proposed deal to settle allegations linked to the "robo-signing" scandal... Five major banks could be required to commit roughly $15 billion to reduce principal balances for struggling homeowners and modify loans in other ways under a proposed deal to settle allegations linked to the "robo-signing" scandal.

Talks between states and top banks over mortgage abuses are nearing agreement on a major sticking point that has bogged down settlement negotiations for more than a year.

Bank of America is reportedly willing to pay its way out of future mortgage and foreclosure claims.

Financial firms trying to negotiate a settlement with states and the U.S. over the foreclosure mess are squabbling over who is most accountable, threatening a further delay in talks that already have dragged on.

JPMorgan Chase & Co has pushed out its head of home lending, David Lowman, who was sidelined in February after the bank racked up billions of dollars in losses on soured mortgages and became mired in litigation over a wave of foreclosures.

U.S. bank regulators said they will give 14 financial institutions an additional 30 days to submit plans to fix problems with their home-foreclosure practices, allowing more time to complete a broader settlement with state and federal agencies.

The nation's largest mortgage companies are operating on the assumption that they will have to pay as much as $20 billion to resolve claims of widespread foreclosure abuse, an amount four times what they had originally proposed, the top federal official overseeing the discussions told state officials Monday, according to people who participated in the conversation.

The nation’s biggest banks and mortgage lenders have amassed a glut of foreclosed homes that threatens to deepen the housing slump.

Bank regulators announced settlements on Wednesday with the largest home lenders over allegations of shoddy foreclosure practices, but the pacts did not include financial penalties.