Major Banks and Mortgage Companies Sued for Defrauding Veterans

Friday, October 07, 2011
Thirteen banks and mortgage companies are being sued for allegedly perpetrating a “massive fraud” on veterans by charging them hidden fees forbidden under federal law.
 
Two mortgage brokers brought the lawsuit after they were told by banks not to show attorney’s fees on their estimates—but instead add them to other fees. Under rules from the Department of Veterans Affairs, lenders are forbidden from charging attorney’s fees or settlement closing fees, so some institutions merely hid the expenses while refinancing home loans held by veterans.
 
“It was gut-wrenching to us, seeing the brazenness” of the lenders, broker Victor Bibby told The Washington Post.
 
The defendants include Wells Fargo, Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase and GMAC Mortgage. They are accused of bilking individual veterans anywhere from $300 to $1,000 by hiding the fees that never should have been levied in the first place, according to the suit.
 
Attorneys representing the plaintiffs assert that up to 90% of the 1.2 million veterans and their families who received refinanced loans in the past decade may be affected.
-Noel Brinkerhoff
 
United States v. Wells Fargo et al. (U.S. District Court, Northern Georgia, Atlanta) (pdf)

Comments

Ruth Mossing 11 years ago
I have a VA backed Loan, I am a Veteran, I have refinanced, but I was always charged a closing cost, it was added on to my Loan. The Bank is also charging me for a Lender Title Insurance, which I never Ok's. I am ready to refince again, and they charged me a closing cost which they said they would add onto the Loan amount. what should I do? My Home owner Insurance had gone way up also, But I just replaced it with a much lower Insurance, The mortgage company pays everything, out of my equity.

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