Countrywide fined $108 million by FTC

The New York Times reports that Countrywide (now a part of Bank of America) has agreed to pay a $108 million dollar to the Federal Trade Commission for fraudulent practices by its mortgage servicing unit. The charges against Countrywide revolve around the company's practice of charging exorbitant and unreasonable fees for services performed during loan workouts with customers who were already in deep financial distress. Countrywide would routinely boost up bills for things such as lawn mowing, bills that were submitted not only to the borrowers but to bankruptcy courts that were administering the borrowers' estates. This $108 million will be used to reimburse those who were targets of the fraudulent charges. Just more evidence that no matter how quickly real estate recovers, we'll be dealing with the wreckage left by the questionable practices of the real estate business for years to come.