For weeks I have been talking to people who have worked inside the mortgage industry about what went on during the boom years. It is clear that many of the giant bailed-out banks actively pushed consumers toward unaffordable loans, and there is much more to be uncovered in this area.
For now I wanted to tell the story of one unlucky consumer who was duped into a balloon mortgage by her mortgage broker.
Please let me know if you have information about how lenders turned a blind eye towards mortgage fraud or outright pushed unaffordable mortgages to consumers and mortgage brokers. You can email me at lagansebert@gmail.com
Economists, politicians, and pundits refer to "toxic assets" as if they are some unspeakable stew bubbling in a barrel behind an old warehouse. But "toxic assets" are actually mortgages and, by extension, houses and the people who live in them. Sandra Berrios is one of millions facing the prospect of ballooning loan payments forcing her and her family from their home. The bank that lent her the money is getting hundreds of millions in TARP money, but the federal dollars flowing to the bank show no sign of trickling down to Sandra's level.