Royal Bank of Scotland will pay a $4.9 billion fine to settle allegations it misrepresented the types of mortgages it sold to investors during the housing bubble that ultimately led to the 2008 financial crisis. The Justice Department said in a statement Tuesday that the penalty is the largest it has imposed for financial crisis-era misconduct at a single company. The DOJ has issued billions of dollars in fines against Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs and other big banks in the years following the crisis to settle similar allegations. The government accused Royal Bank of Scotland and many other big banks of understating the risk and quality of the mortgages they sold to investors at the height of the housing bubble, in RBS' case between 2005 and 2008. These investors bought up tens of billions of dollars in mortgages from RBS and other banks, and experienced massive losses when borrowers failed to repay and housing prices collapsed nationwide. "This settlement holds RBS … [Read more...] about Royal Bank of Scotland fined $4.9 billion for housing bubble role
The housing bubble
Wells Fargo to pay $2.1B for role in housing bubble
Wells Fargo agreed Wednesday to pay a $2.1 billion fine to settle allegations it misrepresented the types of mortgages it sold to investors during the housing bubble that ultimately led to the 2008 financial crisis. The amount is relatively smaller than the fines paid by Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs and other big banks in the years following the financial crisis to settle similar allegations. Wells Fargo is one of the last remaining big banks to settle charges related to its role in the subprime mortgage crisis. The fine is unrelated to the more recent scandals that have plagued Wells in the last three years, such as the opening of millions of fake accounts for customers without their authorization in order to meet unrealistic sales quotas, or the bundling of auto insurance policies on to auto loans when customers did not need them. The government accused Wells and many other big banks of understating the risk and quality of the mortgages they sold to investors at the … [Read more...] about Wells Fargo to pay $2.1B for role in housing bubble
Wells Fargo to pay $2.1 billion for role in housing bubble
NEW YORK — Wells Fargo is agreeing to pay a $2.1 billion fine to settle allegations it misrepresented the types of mortgages it sold to investors during the housing bubble and subsequent financial crisis. The amount is smaller than fines paid by Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs and other big banks in the years following the financial crisis to settle similar allegations. Wells Fargo is one of the last remaining big banks to settle charges related to its role in the subprime mortgage crisis. The fine is unrelated to the more recent scandals that have plagued Wells, such as the opening of millions of fake accounts for customers without their authorization in order to meet unrealistic sales quotas. … [Read more...] about Wells Fargo to pay $2.1 billion for role in housing bubble
The 10 N.J. towns faring the worst since the housing crash
Posted July 15, 2018 at 06:00 AM | Updated July 15, 2018 at 06:05 AM By Stephen Stirling | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com When the housing bubble burst, every town in New Jersey suffered. Most places in the nation did. Much of the state has recovered considerably in recent years, but not everyone. An analysis of real estate data from Zillow shows a handful of towns have a median home value of less than half of what it was 12 years ago, when the market peaked. A slow statewide recovery Few winners While some areas have fared better than most, there are actually only two towns in New Jersey with higher median home values than at the peak of the market: Hoboken and Weehawken. Outside of that, every other community remains down at least 4 percent. In general, towns closer to New York or Philadelphia with direct access to mass transit have fared best, while rural areas and the more far-flung suburbs have suffered. The … [Read more...] about The 10 N.J. towns faring the worst since the housing crash
Only these 2 N.J. towns have fully recovered since the housing crash
It's been more than a decade since housing prices in New Jersey began a seven-year slide highlighted by the Great Recession. As of today, only two have made it back to where they began: Hoboken and Weehawken. That's according to an NJ Advance Media analysis of Zillow market value data, which has tracked home prices for 500 of the state's 565 municipalities dating to 2006. Other than the two Hudson County neighbors mentioned above, all remain below the peak where they began. As a whole, New Jersey has seen housing prices rise over the past two years as housing inventories in many markets have tightened considerably. But when historical prices are adjusted for inflation, the state median home value of $317,000 remains 30 percent lower than it was in 2006. While other towns, like Millburn and Jersey City, have earned back most of the losses, Hoboken and Weehawken are the only two towns that have posted positive … [Read more...] about Only these 2 N.J. towns have fully recovered since the housing crash