Doubts on Countrywide deal rise

SURE FORECLOSE ON MORTGAGES PUT PEOPLE OUT OF THEIR HOMES BUT GIVE THE FAT HEADED CEO A BIG BONUS , what a way to go. MORE UNDER HANDED MOVES.

I think the injustice is not with the mortgage lendors, but in the consumers not doing their due diligence research to understand what they are getting into. Lenders are in the business to loan you money. Their job is to make it work. It’s frustrating that there are so many consumers who are niave enough to think lenders would say to you “no you can’t have your dream home,” because in 5 years interest rates may adjust and you may not be able to afford your loan. I think consumers need to take ownership of their debts and pay their commitments. Be frugal. Make wiser spending choices.

Sorry to say that the deal between the two companies will close by July. This comes from an industry insider.

I feel that they should let Countrywide fall as hard as it can and then pull a jP Morgan / Fed type taxpayer rescue. We don’t really mind paying billions in taxpayer funds to bailout such honest companies. $30 Billion to bailout Bear Stearns This is a great country we live in where the government steps in to protect the wealthy corporations by printing money to provide corporate handouts. They will not be able to save our economy this time around. The mortgage and housing mess is to deep and getting deeper. Other investment bankers will fail and at least 2 banks will fall.

I stand corrected. The web site has actually included my comments. They must have been momentarily removed, and then placed back. My apologies. Thank you. For below.

This web site is anti-Countrywide. Last night I posted a pro Countrywide stock price scenario based on current and historical facts. Upon submission, there is a disclaimer saying that certain commentary can be removed by the reviewer. The next day, I went to work to see if anyone had responded to my encouragement that the US is not going to be thrown into the second Great Depression as a result of Countrywide and other mortgage lenders, only to find that my comments had been removed. So much for freedom of speech. Beware of what you read on this site. Thank you.

I work for countrywide…. And everything negative about the company is true

Loans that are done at countrywide are originated by a bunch of recent college grads who only know as much about a mortgage as their manager allows them. Like all reactive companies cw is trying to fill their sales chairs as quickly as possible to try and uncover as much business as possible. However, the loans are processed in small operation centers all across the united states; you may remember these being coined as “retail branches” in past articles. When the media reports layoffs, these are the people they are refering to. So, what is happening here, is that they are pushing more and more loans into their pipeline with no one on the other end to flush them out. The time to close that Anonymous Coward metioned, is not do to high levels of applications (note that application rates are down) but rather because of the lack of workers and quality of those works. Oh, and just a parting thought, I’ve had VP’s at mortgage company’s that don’t know how to read a TIL, a HUD or a note… so why should we assume that a client can?

Don’t mean to be rude to some of you…but you are allowed to say no to loans. Majority of loans are closed and signed within 35 days. FHA loans take 60 days to close. Each loan has its own guidelines to when they will close. To comment on the last borrower, you refinanced twice with Countrywide in the past year and you’re mad at them for charging you? Do what we were taught when we were young…Just Say NO!

I am currently refinancing an interest only ARM with CountryWide. They approached me. It has been two months and it still isn’t done. They are overwhelmed with refinancing right now. From an investment perspective consider this: I am paying closing costs, again. I am refinancing the loan for the full ammount, again. CountryWide will have made nearly ten grand in closing costs and points and twenty grand in interest in the one year i’ve owned the house. And they are doing this with so many people they can’t close a loan in under two months. I think CW will come out of this smelling like a rose.

Lets get real! Those borrower’s that signed the loan documentation agreed to the terms at closing. They were provided a Truth in Lending, copy of their Mortgage and Note which very clearly outline the terms of the loan. No one forced them to sign for the loan. No one forced them to apply. The bottom line is that the borrowers should have never taken on a loan if they did not understand the terms. For those reponsible borrowers like myself that took a 30 yr fixed (first time homebuyer, by the way), hats off to you. I knew I didn’t want to take risk for an ARM or an Interest only. If you have to take an interest only product… that’s your first hint that you can’t afford the home! I think the BAC acquisition is a great one. Just think what our gov’t would have to do if BAC didn’t come to the rescue. This is one lender - the largest, that had to be saved. Remember if you can’t afford it, don’t buy it! I’m sick of everyone blaming the lenders. Take some fiscal respsonsibility!

OVERSIGHT……My friends, in credit lending, reporting, cards, etc., etc. Thats the job of our elected officials a concept that has become all but extinct, These civil servants conduct themselves like rock-stars, signing autographs, limo’s, book deals, private jets, etc. The ridiculous scoring system from credit agencie’s. Your set to lose before you begin, and some of the comment’s about people knowing what they were getting into and pay your bill’s PLEASE… You just show your arrogance and possibly lousy breeding…Direct your anger and cold comments to the people who deserve them …..Mostly your government in the land of the free ……….Ha!!!!

Jason, your wife probably did not work at CW for long. “Liar Loans’ is a term coined by politicians (not CW). The same ones who get millions from in campaign funds from these firms. Now that the spot light is on the lenders, they all want to point the finger. Every buyer knows what they are signing on the application and at closing. They knew that they could’nt afford that home when they signed the contract. There is a reason that the buyer was a SUBPRIME buyer. You cannot change bad habbits and poor financial decisions. If congress is so ethical, why are we still able to buy tabacco? Or for that matter, why is oil at $111? Most AEs and managers taught LOs the loop holes and how to munipulate the system. The very system that was designed to be Munipulated. STOP BLAMING OTHERS FOR YOUR OWN MISTAKES. PAY YOUR BILLS!!

Home prices still are unaffordable for the average worker. How did the system fail? FDIC still insures 100K of deposits. The only folks who are going to get hurt is private equity who won’t have the leverage to justify their evaluations or do deals.

The other posts are right on about regulation. At the end of the day did all the regulation on Wall Street help the average investor? The answer, obviously is NO. The average investor doesn’t make money in the stock market and pay’s a hefty 1.5 to 3% in management fees, mortality costs (401K group annuity) and transaction costs. All regulation did is ensure that the big brokerage wire houses such as Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley have a lock or monopoly power on the little guy who has no choice.

as someone in the mortgage field
can we just agree that no one wants to field any blame, from banks to borrowers, realtors, appraisers, officers, etc.? attacking one group or another via new regulation ends up hurting the borrowers ultimately. there needs to be better legislation, control, and oversight, that is true. bailing anyone out (borrowers or countrywide itself) is a horrible idea. it’s called the workings of the free market with these tanking lenders. and for borrowers, it’s called natural selection.

Obviously this is not just a Countrywide problem. This is a system wide breakdown. The recent decission by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to only start accepting truly independent appraisals is one step in the right direction. The home builders should not be allowed to have in house mortgage lenders. I can tell you from experience that they put undo pressure on getting loans closed at any cost, including manipulating loans and appraisals to their advantage. They need to prohibit these arrangements and marketing agreements. It’s one of the main reasons I chose to stay away from captured accounts, despite the draw of more money. Just my 2 cents.

In the comment below, the timeframe indicated should have said in the late 1980’s real estate market for Massachusetts.

Countrywide is a huge access window to origination profits, with thousands of locations and resellers nationwide. Bank Of America will probably take it over, even if it ends up being a reduced price. In the late 90’s, real estate values plummeted, and many people walked away from condo’s in MA that were 90 - 120K. Today, those same condos sell for 200 - 250K easy. Don’t make the same mistake twice! Most loans are not ARMS. Also, if you actually read the stories, and crunch the numbers, most people only miss payments by $300 - $400/month. If you combine cable TV, Internet and cell phone bills and/or any part time job, you can get to that number. They will find the dollars, if they really like the house and understand what will happen to their credit ratings. Rates are going their way, too. I wouldn’t put significant dollars into Countrywide, but there is a huge upside in what secured inflation protected hard asset lending. The stock is at a 13 year low. Is all of the real estate in the US at a 13 year low? Think about it.

C.W. really helped me ouy.They took past due money owed (97% of it intreast)and put it back on the principal.Also froze my rate at the original intrest for five years 10%.So goodbye equity and thanks for nothing…

It’s been their advertising slogan: Nobody can do what Countrywide can. It is still true today. Today Countrywide is closing loans that no other lending institution in the country can and I don’t understand why. During the last few years Realtors and Loan Officers all could tell you that “Countrywide said they can do that deal” when it made absolutely no sense. The wholesale division for mortgage brokers was loose, but the retail division (consumer direct) could get exceptions from the corporate office to do most anything to please the realtors & borrowers. Even today Landsafe, Countrywide’s division for appraisals, is taking appraisers off their approved list who will not bring in the value they want, not indicating declining market in the appropriate neighborhoods, or trying to be honest about the condition of individual properties. **I think they are almost the ONLY lender still doing stated income/stated asset loans. Is the government just going to give them a free ride? In any other business they would have to close their doors. Wait until those negative amortization arm loans start resetting later this year…it will be worse. Bank of America has never done this type of lending. I’m sure they want the servicing portfolio and the assets in Countrywide Bank, but it does not seem like a good fit.

If Bank of America does follow through with the deal I will be amazed. The worst is yet to come for Countrywide. Wait until all the option arms taht they sold start foreclosing. Those are big dollar mortgages. Most of those mortgages are “upside down” but the people are hanging on by a thread. Another 6 months to a year will see more of these option arms going into foreclosure. My advice to Bank of America… run while you still can. I am just a mortgage broker and real estate agent, but even I see the future of those loans.

Greed has cought up with the US. Countrywide took advantage of a great opportunity. They, along with many other lenders are to blame…as well as our fiscal policies. The average homeowner is not suffering due to their mortgage. The average homeowner is suffering because of their spending. Our entire economy is based on spending borrowed money…When people asked me what I did for a living when I was in sub-prime mortgage sales I always told them ” I was a shovel salesman…I help people did deeper holes”. I cannot tell you how many cars or nice dinners are financed for the next 30 to 40 years. PS. Mortgage companies are very misleading. Many, NOT ALL, subprime borrowers are careless spenders. It was a perfect combination.

Everyone in the entire process is to blame. I’m a loan officer myself with COuntrywide and I have potential borrowers CALLING ME wanting to do a stated income loan so that they can qualify for a loan. If the loan officer accepts this knowing the income to be stated incorrectly then both parties, loan officer AND borrower, are to blame. If I know someone is lying about their income on my application I inform them that they do not qualify. Not all loan officers are the same, they want their paychecks higher….I personally value my job too much for that (yes they will fire you if you knowingly submit a false application). But the problem is that customers have been “trained” over the past few years in the art of the stated income loan. Lenders are trying to do away with them but the borrowers come looking for them.

This is not the fault of one person or entity…it is the fault of everyone involved…lender, borrower, WHOLESALE BROKER (where there is no accountability), investors, etc. Until the mindsets of everyone change this will not improve.

1 out of 5 loans in the United States is with Countrywide who is the largest lender in the country. Seeing that the company has been around 40-years and only does mortgage lending, of course they are going to be in trouble. But you do not hear any good of what they are doing. Of course this is not good but 19 other companies are being investigated. Why do you not hear their names? Any company in the mortgage business is not profiting. But everyone will still need a home and the company will land back on their feet. Plus homeowners have to be responsible too. The mortgage companies did not force people to buy Interest Only Adjustable Rate Mortgages with no money down. Plus only 2% of mortgages are in default. So 98% of people are still affording there homes. Why are we only hearing the negative? We understand the bad…lets come up with a resolution to move past this.

I work for the Department of FInanaicla Institutions for a given state. I spent the better part of April through October of 2007 at Countrywide’s Californai location going through some of “Your” loan files and believe it or not there is enough blame to go around, but as a regulator of the financial industry CFC holds the majority of the responsibility. They are the largest Mortgagge lender in the world therefore, they are the industry leader and should have set examples in their lending practices. What you see in the news today is nothing wait a few months when fines come out of ‘Several” state and Federal investigations that have been on going for the last 2 years. Then we’ll all have a lot more to comment about.

This is all interesting.

It comes down to a number of things. Loan officers need to do their job and take complete loan applications and have an genuine interest in the client’s well-being. Lenders need to not provide programs that promotes dishonesty. Our way of thinking needs to change as a US citizen…

Countrywide is toast. It is my understanding from reports that they forged documents and knowingly approved loans their underwriters knew was not correct. In fact they were a fraud. If these charges can stick I expect indictments to be handed down. I don’t know if the CEO was involved but I wonder?

I thought countrywide was in financial trouble,big time problems, deep dodo, you know FBI investigations, bad stuff, in short “no mo doe”.I sware I saw the grinnin feller last night on my samsung tube beggin for some poor lost broke warm body out there to loan some green backs to. Cute little man any man would love to have a son-in-law like. How can you refuse a class act like that. Good times are commin.

I do not believe Countrywide is to blame. CFC was just one of many participants on the stage set in motion by the Fed’s ill-conceived monetary policies in reaction to “9/11.”

This is not just about companies making bad judgements, it is about the change in thinking of the citizens of this country.

Moral bankruptcy is rampant in the US. From the so-called financial whiz kids who concocted thie junk, to the individual mortgage holder who didn’t bother, or coudn’t understand, what they signed for.

Hopefully this is not a portent of the pain to come due to a bigger looming problem: US deficits.

For anybody to blame one company for the woes of the country is completely ridiculous. There are other companies who are also being investigated but whose names never appear in print. Everybody is looking to point the finger at someone and they are picking at the biggest company. If people bothered to read, this would not be a problem. Don’t sign documents without fully understanding what you are signing.

To Charmaine in Evergreen, CO - BINGO!! I think you made a GREAT point- as soon as that tax deduction was removed, people started using their home as an ATM, and banks and TV/online lenders were more than happy to encumber the property up to 125% of the already inflated value. I wholeheartedly agree - bring back the interest deductions on credit cards and consumer loans!!!

Hey, “John”, you must work for Countrywide or own a lot of their stock. It looks like I really hit a nerve with you. I didn’t miss the point of the discussion. I just never pass up a chance to bash Countrywide after the way I was treated by them. Great call with the mom bit. When you get out of high school, you will probably be able to come up with some more original material.

Wow, in reading some of these comments, it appears that we have some CEO material here. Monday morning quarterbacking to figure out why someone took out a loan they knew they couldn’t afford is beyond me.

I think that it is crazy that people on this thread are blaming countrywdie, and only CW for the meltdown of the mortgage and credit markets. First of all the term “Liar Loan” refers to any stated income loan. It refers to borrowers overstating there income to afford a property. If they can not afford this loan down the road, who is really to blame? They are the one’s that committed a federal crime by lying on an application to purchase property. they have no one to blame but themselves.

Hey “John”. You must work for Countrywide or own stock in them. I didn’t miss the point of the article. I just never miss a chance to bash Countrywide after their treatment of me. As far as moms go, I rnjoy talking to yours more.

Did you see the sponsers add at the bottom of this page, “no SSN required?” Let’s blame CW for that too!

crap, i still can’t afford a home in los angeles!!!!!! I am very angry.

Don’t forget the Gov’t. All the politicians wanted everyone to experience the “American Dream”. They put pressure on all these Lenders, to give out more and more loans to people who normally wouldn’t be able to afford a house. This was another Dot Com boom. You had a lot of cheap money and a lot of people gambling with it. How many of these forclosures are from “investors” or “flippers”? When you had 8 t.v. shows about how to get rich in Real Estate you knew the party was over! People bought the lie. “Don’t worry you can always refinance before your loan adjusts”. Well, if your house appraises! How about everyone buying a house maxed out? Using both incomes with no room for error. If either one lost their job they were screwed. Now we have the Gov’t comming back and blamming the Lenders? Now the Gov’t wants to bail all these people out and the Lenders? Who pays for all of this? YOU AND ME! People who go to work pay thier bills and do what is responsible get hosed in this Country!

Hey “John,” if Mac Daddy picks up a newspaper, he should use it to hit you over the head. Mac Daddy was talking about misrepresentation by Countrywide concerning whether he needed some insurance. Misrepresentation, by the way, is what the topic is about; it’s the reason the FBI is conducting a probe. The probe, concerning misrepresentation, is causing Countrywide stock to fall. “Misrepresented” is a hyperlink in red so that would be kind of difficult to miss unless you were a hayseed.

Hey, “Mac Daddy”, nice job completely missing the point of this discussion. Pick up a newspaper sometime, bud. Better yet, give your mom a call if you’d like to discuss something well off the topic. She’s home. I just spoke to her.

I would like to see the percentage of default loans for “b” and “c” paper compared to the “a” paper loans in default. I bet the numbers would surprise a lot of people. Everyone needs to realize that is you work for an hourly wage, you probably can’t afford a $500,000 home with no money down in a gated community with private security at the gates. GET REAL people. Blaming Countrywide for the whole credit/home market is like blaming Wal-Mart for the high prices Abercrombie & Fitch charge. Please!

I read a few of the comments and notice that no one has mentioned the borrower’s responsibility to provide accurate information when applying for a loan. I work in real estate. I have had a client receive funding in 36 hours for a $565,000 loan. The application package was complete, the applicant had a 700+ credit score, and the % loan to value was 70%. Go to Bank of America and get the same loan in two to three weeks. CFC efficiency surpassed the competition and gain market share. Underwriting mortgage loan criteria has evolved. Today one cannot get a signature unsecured loan for $100,000 or $500,000 based upon stated income. The old standards are gone (July new Fannie Mae underwriting), not the results of foreclosures, market values, and due to sub prime lending. You can knock CFC all you want but there is another responsible party to the transaction. It will be interesting to see if the FBI holds CFC or the Borrower responsible.

We got our mortgage through our local bank, and it was later purchased by Countrywide. It is not a subprime mortgage, and we have had no problems with making our payments. My problems have been with Countrywide’s customer service. I had to make numerous phone calls and spent hours on the phone on hold or being switched from one person to another for a situation in which they said my property required additional insurance. They said if I didn’t purchase that insurance they would force coverage on me and charge me for it. They were faxed a statement from my insurance agent, and they said they never received it. I was told by numerous Countrywide representatives that I did have to purchase the insurance when I knew I legally did not have to. My insurance agent finally was able to straighten the situation out with them. Countrywide’s agents were either very ignorant of mortgage and insurance rules and regulations or they thought they could get me to just give up and pay them for the insurance if they gave me the run around long enough. I wonder how many others have just given up and paid them the money.

I think it is stupid to name one group to blame for the “credit crunch” and the other mortgage related problems. Lenders were too busy trying to appease wall street by firing out loan after loan and then selling them off to make more loans. There are two people who contributed to the problem. Next are the people not doing their homework, signing off on loans they don’t understand. There is another group contributing to the problem. Saying that one group or another is the cause of the problem is just like signing a loan document without reading it. Back in school, one of my professors said “whenever I am looking at a deal, I always read it with my highlighter and ask the seemingly dumbest questions so I know I understand and I know the other parties understand.”

It’s the fault of both the consumer for attempting to “buy” a house they knew they could not afford (how many people can honestly say they make enough money to buy a half million dollar house - the avg. cost here in CA)and these loan companies who created these elaborate loans that they knew the consumer could never ever pay. Consumers and loan companies depended on the false equity built in their house to refinance their elaborate loans only to discover that these inflated housing costs could only sustain itself for so long and now they’re paying for it. I’m just waiting for the prices to continue to slide UNTIL I can afford it. Wow what a concept - buy what you can afford.

I worked at Wells Fargo - wholesale and I can tell you we made those same stated income/SISA and NINA loans. Those of us in underwriting new they were pretty much “liar loans” and that in the end they would go belly up. Those products were being approved and closed by all the major wholesalers. CW isn’t and wasn’t the only one making loans where all you needed was a library card as ID. I have been in the business for 20 years - a true niche product used to be a 10% down investment NOO!! These new products originate because Americans are out of control in debt and can’t get a loan without misrepping their income! Unfortunately, CW is getting all the bad press because they are the largest lender and largest servicer and if they go down the economy will be in real trouble. Trust me, every lender and their brother, made loans like these and all of them are finding out that they don’t perform.

I have to laugh after reading some of these comments. How anyone that can’t even spell mortgage (not morgage) or crook (not crock)can think they actually have an “educated” response to this topic, or any other for that matter, is hilarious to me!! Thanks for the entertainment!

Even if a loan officer “lied”, you have three days to review the loan documents or find a person who is smarter than a grapefruit (unlike yourself) to review them for you. The loan terms are OVER-disclosed and you are not obligated to sign them. The blame game has become the American way. It’s embarrassing. Let’s sue the evil corporation because of my ignorance and poor credit history (neither of which, I’m sure, are your fault). Take some accountability for not reading what you signed.

I worked for Countrywide for years, and it was a great company. When I worked for brokers who sold loans to Countrywide, I experienced a whole new level of fraud. The brokers are rarely honest, given the pressure to push through loans for their Realtors.

I think that the whole morgage scam is a shame. It makes all of America look stupid, and whats looks even more foolish is the Fed auctioning off more money to the banks to help the “credit crunch.” Who are the banks gonna lend the money to? Its not going to help anyone obtain a morgage. Countrywide, along with all the other morgage companies are all corrupt. But its a little to late for an investigation. The bottom line is that back in 2003-2006 everyone used the housing market to create a false economy. And here we are today. No more credit no more spending. The only place these morgage companies are headed now is down the tubes, along with the rest of the general population. I hope the enjoyed the ride while it lasted because the morgage industry and economy will never be the same again. And for all the idiots who say we are not in a recession, i agree. We were in a recession last year, now we are headed straight for a depression.

CFC holds COMPLETE blame for the mess they are in. CFC’s CEO and board of directors had a fiduciary duty to make sure the loans they made and or bought would perform for their investors. They did not do their duty, and deserve jail time for their breach.

CFC made liar loans, and loans to people for amounts well in excess of the value of the properties.

While people were getting loans from CFC that they could not afford, CFC had a legal obligation to investigate the loans being made to make sure the investors in CFC would get their money back. Obviously Mozilo did not do his duty while cashing out to the tune of more than 100 million. He should be jailed.

I wish people would wake up to the fact that the subprime market frenzy was created by investment bankers who packaged loans (to people who should never have received them) and got rating agencies to call them triple A. The desperate need for profit sucked in almost every mortgage lender including Countrywide,Wells Fargo and Washington Mutual. Greed is too hard for most to resist.

As a former loan officer, I can assure you that it was my job to explain the loan programs (no matter how silly they might appear to me) in a way that would not be misleading to my borrowers. THEY were the ones to make the final choice about which one they wanted, not me. Please, think before you sign loan documents. After all, noone holds a gun to your head and makes you sign them!!!!!

Corrupt executives, lax legislation, uninformed politicians… Except for maybe Enron, Hollywood could not concoct a better story of self-serving greed. Wallstreeters have long ago taken their fees and Washington-elites have accepted the contributions. These guys are already well on their way to creating the next scam. Since there is nothing that any of us can do about the situation, do what I do and sit back and enjoy it for the entertainment value.
“Brilliant” “Two Thumbs-up”

Thank You “Tim B” of Middletown, NY - you are right on. I’m sick and tired of the companies taking ALL the blame here. I work for a company that draws loan documents and I’ve read hundreds of thousands of forms, many of which are written in the most basic of simple to understand english - mostly in the form of disclosures. If a borrower even took a moment to actually READ their documents they could have walked away from the loan, no harm no foul. Problem is they all got caught up in the big fancy house they could buy and didn’t care about how they were getting there.

I worked for a company like Countrywide where you were told to fund loans that did not have loan packages to be underwritten. Favors were done for special people all the time. The Company went Bankrupt, the CEO of that company is now serving a federal prison sentence for fraud among other things.

The home equity spending started when congress removed the ability to write off interest on car loans and credit card debt. Everyone flew to their home equity and started to amortize their cars and vacations on a 30 year mortgage. If the government wanted to get a economic stimulas plan together, they would bring back those tax deductions on credit cards and car loans.

CFC is indeed to blame - they were not “just” helping someone get a home. They were feeding a frenzy of buying that pushed home prices higher, making homeownership much more difficult. If you want to help homeownership, push prices lower.

After reading all these comments, I guess people don’t realize that if you are being offered something, you have the right to turn it down. I know what people were doing. They were like wow, we have 800,000 available and we know we can’t afford this but let’s live in this house for 2 years or so until the loan resets and then we will sell and make a fortune. Tell me, why is this CHL, B of A or anyone else’s fault other than then people signing off on the loan documents?

Hang on here. Don’t blame everyone at Countrywide for this. Most of these loans were made by other sources and bought by Countrywide in a bundle. How can CHL know how the mortgages were obtained. Everyone who gets a mortgage needs to read the information, be informed and take responsibility for their own actions and stop blaming everyone else. If you can’t afford something, DON’T BUY IT!

Lazy people are the blame here. Last time I checked a mortgage file it was 40 pages thick. Every person that bought a home signed documents (did they read them?) Can Americans even read or are they too busy with their personal lives, standing for 3 hours in front of a Best Buy on Black Friday. Wake up and smell the coffee, who created this mess? You did !!! Now leave me alone my MTV is on !!!

Citi and others played the same games and offered these phony products through brokers and retail. The Feds looked the other way and let “free markets” run wild. Most states did nothing proactive to regulate the realtors and appraisers who were in on the gig. Greed and speculation always happen in capitalism because of the herd mentality. The smart money always wins!

In the March 26, 2007 issue of Business Week, Maria Bartiromo had an interview with Angelo Mozilo in which he says, “In 2006 subprime loans were about 9% of our total business, now down to 7%.” And when asked if worried that the subprime fallout would bleed into the prime mortgage business he answered, “I don’t think it’s going to bleed substantially into prime.” He was misleading and misrepresenting the solidity of Countrywide. I think they will find that there was fraud and it came from the top down. Which CEO in this country is to believed anymore?

Not sure what else Countrywide does, but they definitely lie to you over the phone to try to make you do things like roll your closing costs into the loan and pay interest on them.

They also try to shove things like variable rate and balloon loans down your throat — if you tell them you don’t want one, they try to stick you with the next thing down the list. I had to refinance my second mortgage with another bank to get rid of it.

I work for BAC and the first moment I saw that we’d made a deal with CFC I thought WTF?

It’s funny how all of this is being blamed solely on Countrywide. Does anyone remember Ameriquest who started the whole mess? What about all of those minority special interest groups in 2003 who demanded that banks offer more loans to minorities who couldn’t afford to even rent?

Your article says “investors” are betting against the merger. Don’t you really mean the “Shorts” who are parasites and not investors at all.

If the FBI looks very close they will find as much dirt as they can handle. Appraisals pushed, loan applications that were out and out fraud, loan products that were pushed on borrowers that did not understand them (ie option arms and short term interest only ARMS), and pre-payment penalties that were potentially triggered into the system through a default mechanism. This was not like all the other lender banks, this was criminal.

Mozillo is the best card dealer I have ever seen. Picture what he could do as a house dealer for texas hold em…all ACES, all the time!!!!!!

My wife worked at Countrywide in Southern California in 2003-2004. Some of the things she told me that went on in that place were scary. You could get a $700,000 mortgage with only a library card as ID. They called some of the loans they originated ‘liar loans’, because it was EXPECTED that borrowers were going to lie on the 2 page document !!! The culture was absolutely crooked, but they used to justify it because they were helping people realize their dreams of ‘homeownership’. She quit as soon as she was able because her conscience was taking a beating. The company is a sham !!!

THEY’RE ALL JUST A BUNCH OF THIEVES…MOZILLO IS A CRIMINAL AND SHOULD BE FINED $100 MILLION AND PUT IN PRISON FOR 3 CENTURIES. THE ONLY GOOD THING ABOUT THIS WHOLE MESS…WHEN I LOSE $100, THEY LOSE MILLIONS.

Mozillo is not the one to blame. His company provicec the means for many to get into a home. His company did no different than the next, however, it is his company that is taking all the heat. America just wants someone to blame.

Mozillo is a crock and should be in jail for the rest of his life. There is no way Bank of America should acquire his worthless company.

you are being redundant here..Tell me something new…