Kate Berry has covered the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau for American Banker since 2016. She joined the publication in 2006 covering mortgage lending and the financial crisis. Berry also has covered big banks including Bank of America, J.P. Morgan Chase and Wells Fargo. She has won five awards from the Society of American Business Writers and Editors, and has worked at several news organizations including the Orange County Register, the Los Angeles Business Journal and the Associated Press. Berry began her career as a clerk at the New York Times.
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The National Fair Housing Alliance has accused big banks of discriminating against minorities in the upkeep of foreclosed properties and is seeking millions in settlements mostly for itself. Behind its demands are faulty data and grants overseen by a federal official with close ties to the group.
December 2 -
Simone Lagomarsino has helped turn around a lot of banks, but she'd never seen one in such bad shape. Yet in a phenomenally short amount of time, Lagomarsino has righted the ship at Heritage Oaks Bancorp.
November 21 -
Though bankers generally applauded the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's final rule on mortgage disclosures, they are raising concerns that some of the changes need to be fixed or they'll have no choice but to assess higher fees at the closing.
November 20 -
WASHINGTON, D.C. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released a much-anticipated final rule that merged mortgage disclosure forms in an effort to help consumers more clearly understand the total costs of a loan.
November 20 -
Banks may never be able to restore their reputations after the financial meltdown, the director of the "Wall Street" movies told a Commercial Finance Association gathering. Surely the association wasn't expecting a pep talk.
November 20 -
The CFPB is calling the two new mortgage forms "Know Before You Owe," an apt description since a hodge-podge of federal mortgage disclosures that the new forms will replace have long been considered duplicative and confusing.
November 20 -
Nationstar, Ocwen and Walter Investment picked a tough time to make an aggressive push into mortgage lending, but their efforts could pay off once new mortgage rules kick in.
November 14 -
Safeguard Properties on Tuesday filed a motion to dismiss a fraud complaint by Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan that seeks to bar the Cleveland property inspection company from doing business in Illinois because inspectors broke into occupied homes.
November 12 -
Concern is mounting that Nationstar, Ocwen Financial and Walter Investment are getting so big so quickly that they are becoming too difficult to manage and should consider tapping the brakes on acquisitions.
November 8 -
The Mortgage Bankers Association on Tuesday said it expects residential mortgage originations to drop 32% next year, to $1.2 trillion, due to a continued decline in refinancing activity.
October 29 -
Efforts to revive the private-label mortgage-backed securities market were dealt a blow Tuesday when Shellpoint Partners, the firm backed by the mortgage-bond pioneer Lewis Ranieri, said it would withdraw a proposed securitization and instead sell its jumbo loans to the highest bidder.
October 22 -
The cost to originate a home loan is skyrocketing as lenders try to comply with stricter rules to catch problem loans. Technology would better automate the loan process, but can small lenders justify the investment?
October 21 -
JPMorgan Chase's record $13 billion settlement has significant implications for the financial industry, but they may not be what casual observers expect. Following is a guide to the key takeaways from the deal.
October 20 -
Bank of America posted strong revenue growth in the same quarter its big rivals showed weakness on bread-and-butter banking. But concerns about its higher litigation expenses overshadowed the good news.
October 16 -
Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup and Wells Fargo got credit for providing $15.4 billion relief to roughly 420,000 underwater borrowers last year, according to the settlement monitor.
October 16 -
The Federal Housing Administration has joined Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in calling for mortgage lenders to temporarily postpone mortgage payments for furloughed government employees and contractors who have been affected by the shutdown.
October 11 -
Almost everyone has an opinion about how to reform Fannie and Freddie, but some housing experts say the status quo isn't so bad.
October 9 -
The Department of Housing and Urban Development is auctioning off roughly $5 billion of nonperforming Federal Housing Administration loans in what is believed to be one of the largest-ever sales of distressed residential real estate.
October 8 -
Consumer delinquency rates rose slightly in the second quarter but remain at historic lows, according to the American Bankers Association.
October 8 -
Bank of America, Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase and Citi insist that the Federal Housing Administration will compensate them for all foreclosure losses. But if the banks underwriting proves shoddy, they could be on the hook for billions of dollars.
October 7
