Category Archives: auditing

Under AG Foreclosure Settlement, Servicers Get Credit for Things They’re Supposed to Do

Last week, District Court Judge Rosemary Collyer approved the Attorney General Foreclosure Settlement (“AGFS”) without a hearing, and without any objection from investors.  According to the Judge, the Consent Judgment between the nation’s five largest servicers and the Attorneys General … Continue reading

Posted in Adam Levitin, Ally Bank, Attorneys General, auditing, bailout, Bank of New York, banks, BofA, Citigroup, conflicts of interest, contract rights, costs of the crisis, Countrywide, damages, foreclosure crisis, foreclosure rate, global settlement, homeowner relief, improper documentation, incentives, investors, JPMorgan, junior liens, liabilities, MBS, mortgage market, Neil Barofsky, pooling agreements, press, private label MBS, RMBS, robo-signers, servicer defaults, servicers, settlements, Wells Fargo | 2 Comments

Why Mortgage Loan Servicers Behave as They Do

Editor’s Note: It seems that we can’t go three months without hearing about yet another species of misconduct by mortgage servicers that shifts losses onto the lienholders they are supposed to protect.  We’ve read reports about force-placed insurance, inflated appraisal … Continue reading

Posted in accounting fraud, allocation of loss, appraisals, auditing, banks, broader credit crisis, causes of the crisis, conflicts of interest, contract rights, costs of the crisis, firing servicers, foreclosure crisis, improper documentation, incentives, investigations, junior liens, lending guidelines, loan modifications, MBIA, MBS, monolines, mortgage fraud, private label MBS, RMBS, robo-signers, securitization, servicer defaults, servicers, settlements, subprime, underwriting guidelines, underwriting practices, Way Too Big to Fail | 4 Comments

Creditor Rights: Use Them All!

by Steve Ruterman, guest blogger Much of the focus of mortgage crisis-related litigation and news coverage has been directed at put-back rights as a potential source of loss mitigation for mortgage creditors, including investors and bond insurers.  However, far less … Continue reading

Posted in auditing, banks, bondholder actions, chain of title, contract rights, due diligence firms, Event of Default, firing servicers, freeriders, guest posts, improper documentation, incentives, investors, irresponsible lending, lenders, lending guidelines, loan files, MBIA, MBS, negligence and recklessness, pooling agreements, private label MBS, putbacks, re-underwriting, rep and warranty, RMBS, robo-signers, securitization, servicer defaults, servicers, standing, The Subprime Shakeout, Trustees, underwriting practices | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Latest Gatekeeper Litigation: City of San Buenaventura Sues Deloitte Over WAMU Subprime Collapse

Following on the heels of the lawsuits against KPMG by New Century’s debtors for contributing to the collapse of the mortgage giant, accounting firm Deloitte & Touche (D&T) and the officers and directors of Washington Mutual Bank (WAMU) have been … Continue reading

Posted in accounting, auditing, Deloitte and Touche, Ernst and Young, gatekeeper litigation, incentives, KPMG, Lehman Brothers, loss causation, ratings agencies, subprime, WaMu | Leave a comment

KPMG Sued for $1 Billion Over New Century Meltdown

Two separate lawsuits were filed yesterday against Netherlands-based Big Four accounting giant, KPMG International, and its U.S. subsidiary, KPMG LLP, alleging that KPMG conducted “reckless and grossly negligent audits” that contributed to the collapse of top subprime lender New Century … Continue reading

Posted in accounting, auditing, bankruptcy, causes of the crisis, incentives, KPMG, lawsuits, loss causation, negligence and recklessness, New Century | Leave a comment