Subprime Lending Stories From Around The Country

The following are links to stories from around the country of homeowners getting in over their heads financially in transactions involving predatory subprime loans that reportedly involved questionable tactics by mortgage lenders and loan originators that made the loans. In each case, the homeowners appear to have relied on the "professionalism" with which the mortgage company employees held themselves out, only to find out that these particular people weren't reputable professionals at all, but merely agressive (and possibly unscrupulous) salespeople looking to sell a commodity that would yield themselves the most income.

To those reputable professionals in the mortgage lending industry, I'm sure you realize that the bad actors are ruining it for everyone. Industry credibility is hurting (see, for example, 2 In 3 Say Mortgage Ads Are Full Of Baloney, Says Poll). You better get your state regulators and professional organizations to do something about it quickly before the Federal government steps in and does it for you.

(Maybe one day the lending laws will change to (a) require uniform licensing requirements throughout the country and (b) create fiduciary responsibility on the part of the loan originators to the consumer - at least it will make it that much easier to keep some of the unscrupulous bad actors out of the industry, and it will also make it easier to go after those that do get in and hammer them and the companies employing them in a court of law.)

New Hampshire - Subprime mortgage saga: Home gone, inheritance lost.

California - Anatomy of a foreclosure (Creative financing, questionable loans leave woman mired in debt).

California - Lenders taking advantage of elderly.

Minnesota - 'I got burned. It's outright fraud.'

Brooklyn, NY - Subprime Woes Hit B'klyn (Local Couple Face Mortgage Hard$hip).

Oregon - Trapped by a house (Predatory lending ravages a family).