A newly surfaced memo from banking giant JPMorgan Chase provides a rare glimpse into the mentality that fueled the mortgage crisis.
The memo's title says it all: "Zippy Cheats & Tricks."
It is a primer on how to get risky mortgage loans approved by Zippy, Chase's in-house automated loan underwriting system. The secret to approval? Inflate the borrowers' income or otherwise falsify their loan application.
The document, a copy of which was obtained by The Oregonian, bears a Chase corporate logo. But it's unclear how widely it was circulated or used within Chase.
Bank spokesman Tom Kelly confirmed that the "Cheats & Tricks" memo was e-mailed from Chase but added that it does not reflect Chase corporate policy.
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Chase, the nation's second-largest bank, originates mortgage loans itself but also operates a wholesale arm that underwrites and funds loans brought to them by a network of mortgage brokers. The "Cheats & Tricks" memo was instructing those brokers how to get difficult loans approved by Zippy.
"Never fear," the memo states. "Zippy can be adjusted (just ever so slightly.)"
The Chase memo deals specifically with so-called stated-income asset loans, one of the most dangerous of the mortgage industry's innovations of recent years. Known as "liar loans" in some circles because lenders made little effort to verify information in the borrowers' loan application, they have defaulted in large number since the housing bust began in 2007.
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The document recommends three "handy steps" to loan approval:
Do not break out a borrower's compensation by income, commissions, bonus and tips, as is typically done in a loan application. Instead, lump all compensation as the applicant's base income.
If your borrower is getting some or all of a down payment from someone else, don't disclose anything about it. "Remove any mention of gift funds," the document states, even though most mortgage applications specifically require borrowers to disclose such gifts.
If all else fails, the document states, simply inflate the applicant's income. "Inch it up $500 to see if you can get the findings you want," the document says. "Do the same for assets."
Chase's Kelly said the bank has never encouraged any of the suggestions in the memo.
Statistics: Posted by a1bion — Fri Mar 28, 2008 12:06 pm
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Statistics: Posted by radbag — Tue Mar 18, 2008 10:08 pm
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Statistics: Posted by MinGator — Tue Mar 18, 2008 7:55 pm
Statistics: Posted by TheTodd — Tue Mar 18, 2008 3:40 pm
Statistics: Posted by Welshgator — Tue Mar 18, 2008 3:34 pm
Statistics: Posted by Tipmoose — Tue Mar 18, 2008 2:59 pm
this is the point, TT...a lot of consumers have gotten used to the lower price of gas here, what is spent in other countries be damned. your point on the satellite TV, cell phone, massages, haircuts, etc..is precisely the point. All luxury items...gas prices rise, less money for luxury goods, less luxury goods bought, worse for the economy.
Statistics: Posted by TTBHG — Tue Mar 18, 2008 1:14 pm