the wasserblawg

updated - Feb. 6, 2008 We all know that the mortgage industry is in turmoil and that local, national and global economies are all reeling as a result. The losses announced by lenders are surreal. For the most part, the numbers are too staggeringly large to comprehend. There is plenty of finger pointing going on, some of which has been detailed on this site. Certainly, some borrowers got in over their heads; others never understood what they were getting into in the first place; institutional investors demanded more “product” from loan originators who in turn utilized relaxed guidelines (loan approval standards) and gimmick loans to encourage more money lending. None acted alone or in a vacuum. Each parties “fault” is inter-twined with the others. There is shared culpability, more than enough for everyone. As with most things in our society, clever, nefarious individuals and collectives find ways to take full advantage of these situations. Mortgage scammers took millions of mortgage dol