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Law and legal issues

Zillow violated RESPA in agent, mortgage businesses: Lawsuit

Law and legal issues, Zillow /

A new class action lawsuit accuses Zillow of a massive kickback scheme in steering thousands of borrowers to its allegedly more expensive in-house financing business.  Araba Armstrong, an Alaska homebuyer who used Zillow’s services, is accusing the real estate giant of violating the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act. Her complaint filed in a Washington federal […]

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Judge awards UWM in ‘All-In’ lawsuit against small brokerage

Law and legal issues /

A federal judge awarded United Wholesale Mortgage a $325,000 final judgment against a small California brokerage the wholesale giant sued for breaking its “All-In” agreement.  U.S. District Judge Laurie J. Michelson filed the consent judgment Friday against Kevron Investments, after also ruling against the shop in March. The wholesale leader accused Kevron of violating their

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Effort to halt CFPB’s new PACE rules hits roadblock

CFPB News & Analysis, Law and legal issues, Politics and policy, Regulation and compliance /

A loan program allowing homeowners to pay for clean energy upgrades through property tax bills will still be subject to tighter lending rules next year, a federal judge ordered.  The Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program allows borrowers to pay for home improvements, from storm hardening to solar panels, via future property tax assessments. The

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Newrez faces another zombie-seconds class action filing

Industry News, Law and legal issues, Regulation and compliance, Servicing /

Newrez subsidiary Shellpoint Servicing finds itself at the center of another class action lawsuit surrounding the attempted collection of a second “zombie” mortgage originated prior to the Great Financial Crisis.  In documents filed in a Virginia federal court in late October, attorneys for former homeowner and plaintiff Mariel Castellon claimed the company made attempts this

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Flagstar agrees to $31.5 million data breach settlement

Cyber security, Flagstar Bank, Fraud, Law and legal issues /

Flagstar Bank has agreed to a $31.5 million settlement to resolve two class action lawsuits stemming from data breaches which impacted over 2 million consumers. The agreement, pending a Michigan federal judge’s approval, will create the fund for approximately 2,187,170 class members, according to case filings in October. The bank suffered two distinct cyberattacks in

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Mortgage groups sue California over zombie seconds law

Law and legal issues, Regulation and compliance, Servicing /

A coalition of lenders, servicers and lienholders are challenging a new state law on zombie seconds, arguing it will increase the cost of financing and limit homeowners’ access to equity.  The California Mortgage Association and 11 other plaintiffs sued California Attorney General Rob Bonta in September, asking a federal judge to halt enforcement of the

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Fannie Mae lodges lawsuit against home warranty providers

Fannie Mae, Industry News, Law and legal issues, MARKETING TO BORROWERS /

Fannie Mae is suing four home warranty providers, accusing them of “willful misuse” of its trademarked name for their own marketing in ways that intentionally deceived consumers. In documents filed in federal court of the Northern District of Ohio, attorneys representing the government-sponsored enterprise named Warranty Global Group, based in Addison, Texas, along with three

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NY Attorney General James pleads not guilty to US charges

Fraud, Law and legal issues, Trump administration /

New York Attorney General Letitia James pleaded not guilty on Friday to criminal charges that she committed bank fraud and made false statements to a lender when she bought a house in Norfolk, Virginia, five years ago. James is contesting charges brought earlier this month by a prosecutor whom President Donald Trump abruptly installed after her predecessor

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California broker fined for unlicensed activity

Law and legal issues, Mortgage brokers, Originations, Regulation and compliance /

A Southern California mortgage brokerage has reached a settlement with four states over claims of wrongdoing that included several allegations of unlicensed lending activity.  E Mortgage Capital, based in Irvine, California, agreed to settle with banking supervisors of Hawaii, Idaho, Oregon and Texas in late September following a multistate investigation that began in late 2023. 

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Ex-LO sentenced in Chicago-area reverse mortgage scheme

Law and legal issues, Reverse mortgages /

Another ex-loan originator in a reverse mortgage scheme that cost elderly African-American Chicago-area homeowners millions of dollars is going to prison. Gary Bohn, 59, was sentenced Wednesday to 1-and-a-half years in prison for his role in the wider fraud, according to Law360 which reported the sentencing. The former Illinois-based LO with American Fidelity Financial Services

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