The Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. for the first time has disclosed the names of mortgage companies and individuals that it considers bad apples.
The agency this week released a list of 32 people and 12 firms that have demonstrated "a lack of business competence or integrity."
The disclosure was welcomed by mortgage industry leaders, who said the market needs to be alerted to unscrupulous operators. As big mortgage firms increasingly buy loans from smaller players, they gave become vulnerable to falsely documented loans and other fraudulent practices.
Praise from Industry Leader
"Freddie Mac is to be commended," said Warren Lasko, executive vice president of the Mortgage Bankers Association of America. "I think they've done a favor to the lending community."
Many major lenders keep private lists of shady companies but have hesitated to share them out of fear of attracting libel suits.
Freddie Mac, which expects to regularly update its list, proceeded carefully with the initial effort, observers said. At least one of the individuals cited is in prison, and most of the companies are not listed in phone directories. A Freddie Mac official said some of the companies may have already been closed. None could be reached for comment.
The companies, thought to be unaffiliated with banks or thrifts, are:
Atlantic Mutual Mortgage Corp., Plainview, N.Y.; Dolphinvest Ltd., Brighton, Mass.; First Bankers Mortgage Co., Oceanside, Calif.; First Jersey Federal Corp., Langhorne, Pa.; First Norther Mortgage Corp., Garden City, N.Y.; and Manchester Mortgage Co., South Pasadena, Calif.
Also, Maple Mortgage Inc., Plano, Tex.; N.A. Bancorp, Covina, Calif.; National Financial Corp., Philadelphia, Pa.; PFG Mortgage Inc., Mission Viejo, Calif.; Park Place Holdings, Northfield, N.J.; and Rate Line Inc., Pawtucket, R.I.
