Tag Archives: Bank of America

New Jersey federal court documents filed earlier this week revealed that Prudential Insurance Co. has moved to settle its ongoing lawsuits with Bank of America NA, Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc., First Franklin Financial Group, and a number of lenders in the mortgage industry. The suits, which were first filed in March 2013, alleged Bank of America and others knowingly sold Prudential $2.1 billion in low-quality mortgage-backed securities—and made false statements about them.

The U.S. Department of Justice sued Bank of America in August 2013, accusing the bank's Countrywide division of misrepresenting the mortgage-backed securities it sold to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in the years leading up to the financial crisis through a program known as the High Speed Swim Lane (HSSL, commonly known as "Hustle").

For San Francisco-based Wells Fargo in Q1, revenues increased by 3 percent year-over-year up to $21.3 billion. Although net income slightly declined from the same quarter a year ago from $5.9 billion to $5.8 billion, noninterest income for the bank jumped by $29 million up to $10.3 billion. The bank received higher income in Q1 from trading activities, debt security gains, mortgage origination gains, and insurance, but the higher income was offset by lower income in mortgage servicing, which was at $108 million for Q1 compared to $235 million for Q4 2014. Wells Fargo posted mortgage banking noninterest income of $1.5 billion for Q1.

The decline can be attributed to a reduction of $757 in equity investment income and $211 million related to additional market-related adjustments on the bank's debt securities portfolio, due to long-term lower interest rates' impact.

Deutsche Bank‘s and BNP Paribas‘s mortgage units were investors in notes issued by Taylor Bean’s Ocala Funding unit, a mortgage conduit. The two banks sued Bank of America, which acted as middleman between the investors and Ocala, for $1.75 billion in 2009 over their losses on the notes.

Customers can search a database of more than 1,300 down payment and closing cost assistance programs when they visit the Bank of America Down Payment Resource Center. Customers can also learn how to use down payment and closing cost programs in combination with first mortgage loans to make homebuying more affordable when they visit the center. They can also get information to help them prepare for purchasing a home and speak with Bank of America mortgage specialist to explore other possible options.

Bank of America began installing automated teller machines with video screens two years ago and began testing screens in some of its branches three years ago. The bank’s use of video to interact with customers is in contrast to some of its big-bank peers, who are taking a wait-and-see approach to the technology.

Houston is the most overvalued housing market according to Bank of America’s measurements, which compare home prices with income growth. The fracking boom helped to drive the region’s economy, but a more than 50 percent drop in oil prices since last summer has clouded the outlook.

U.S. District Judge Katherine Forrest approved the settlement, which resolves allegations from investors that the banks failed in their role as trustees for mortgage-backed securities trusts containing sloppy loans that were issued by Washington Mutual Inc. before the 2008 financial crisis.

In the decision, Justice David Saxe wrote for a five-judge panel that the Bank of New York Mellon did not abuse discretion in arranging the settlement, but the court also said Barbara Kapnick, the state judge who approved the accord in January, erred in excluding claims by investors regarding loan modifications on the ground that the trustee didn’t properly investigate their strength, according to Reuters.