Ameriquest Settlement Sends Wake-Up Call To Subprime Mortgage Industry, States Say
January 26, 2006
The subprime market’s largest originator, Ameriquest Mortgage, has reached a settlement with state attorneys general in a high-profile predatory lending investigation that law enforcement officials say should put the industry on notice. The settlement, announced this week, requires Ameriquest to pay a hefty $325 million in borrower restitution and investigative costs and make changes to its business practices in order to put to rest allegations that the company’s loan officers used high-pressure sales tactics…