A fraud suspect might not be easy to pick out of a crowd—or from a rap sheet. The average fraud perpetrator has no prior fraud charges or convictions, according to new research by the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE), a provider of anti-fraud training and education. The offender is commonly between the age of 31-45, and somewhat more likely to be male than female.Read more

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has released its 16th Annual Survey of Credit Underwriting Practices and reported that the trend of tightening underwriting standards has continued for the last three years. However, the OCC is beginning to see some easing of standards in response to competition, and a slight improvement in credit market liquidity. “Credit performance remains a concern despite several years of tightening,” said Deputy Comptroller for Credit and Market Risk Dave Wilson.Read more

Donna Demello has pleaded guilty in federal court in Oakland to conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud for her role in a mortgage fraud scheme, United States Attorney Melinda Haag announced. At the time of the offense, Demello worked as an escrow officer at Stewart Title in Milpitas, Calif. Demello, currently of San Jose, Calif., was indicted by a federal grand jury on May 13, 2010. She and five others, including James Delbert McConville, were charged with conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1349.Read more

National Mortgage Forensic Loan Auditors (NMFLA) , a firm that specializes in residential and commercial loan audit services, has recently opened its doors to homeowners and consumers allowing the public to obtain these services directly from the firm via educational products. NMFLA wants to expand and concentrate their efforts on helping the general population more effectively, obtain loan modifications and ensure enforceable loans.Read more

Credit Plus Inc., a leader in the credit information industry since 1928, has announced that it is offering a suite of products to help lenders comply with the more stringent selling requirements that Freddie Mac announced in its Aug. 16 Bulletin 2010-19. “Making the mortgage process easier for lenders is our focus at Credit Plus. New requirements and rules are constantly being introduced, which is why we are so vigilant about developing tools that keep lenders compliant.Read more

Horizon Consulting, a provider of financial support outsourcing services, has announced a “Back to Basics” initiative to advance the cause of risk mitigation and fraud prevention in the mortgage loan industry through intensified quality control. Statistics show that misrepresentation and fraud continue to escalate in the mortgage industry, despite (or, in part, because of) advances in technology. Automation of mortgage loan underwriting has, in one respect, created a false safety net for loan evaluation and approval. It is also easier than ever to forge documents.Read more

OpenClose Mortgage Software, developers of Web-based, loan origination software (LOS), has released the enhanced editing version that improves the accuracy of information flow in the new Good Faith Estimate (GFE). The GFE lockdown "significantly improves" accuracy of loan documents allowing for those lenders to gain better control of 2010.Read more

eLynx, a portfolio company of American Capital, has announced that it has released its new eHUD service, a component of the Electronic Closing Network (eCN), that makes it easy for lenders and closing agents to comply with Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) regulations governing Good Faith Estimates (GFE) and the HUD-1.Read more

Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, has announced that Ravi Persaud, a real estate attorney, and George Esso, a former loan officer, were found guilty of participating in a multi-million-dollar mortgage fraud scheme through GuyAmerican Funding Corporation, a mortgage brokerage located in Queens, N.Y. The scheme involved the use of numerous fraudulent loan applications designed to trick banks into lending money to unqualified borrowers for the purchase of residential properties in the New York City area.Read more

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott has charged Coppell, Texas-based American Home Mortgage Servicing Inc. (AHMS) with using illegal debt collection tactics and improperly misleading struggling homeowners. According to state investigators, AHMS collections agents used aggressive and unlawful tactics to collect payments from Texas homeowners who had difficulty meeting their payment obligations. The defendant also failed to credit homeowners who properly submitted their payments on time.Read more