HUD Gets Involved In Mortgage Crisis

While the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is certainly no stranger to the mortgage lending crisis, they have begun taking on new tasks in effort to help bring a sense of closure. HUD has been involved in investigations of wrongdoing and increased regulation practices in recent months.

Taking Action

HUD investigators are reporting that some of the nation’s top banks were not only involved in unlawful foreclosures, but many even impeded federal inquiries into their actions. According a report that was released earlier this week, many banks are now accused of delaying the investigation process by not cooperating with investigators and dragging their feet on complying with requests. Many of the accused banks are said to have provided investigators with incomplete or inaccurate documentation and refused to provide evidence of their foreclosure practices.

The inquiry, which lead to the $25 billion mortgage settlement, is further supported by HUD by way of increased policing actions. HUD is taking measures to ensure that lenders cannot use any of the credits offered by the federal mortgage modification program to use as a source for their mortgage settlement payout. The incentives offered under the Home Affordable Modification program, along with any other government subsidies, will be off limits to lenders that are required to pay homeowners restitution for unlawful foreclosures.