When a lousy economy gave them lemons, "vulture" investment firms have found a way to make government backed lemonade:
Investment funds are buying billions of dollars’ worth of home loans, discounted from the loans’ original value. Then, in what might seem an act of charity, the funds are helping homeowners by reducing the size of the loans.
But as part of these deals, the mortgages are being refinanced through lenders that work with government agencies like the Federal Housing Administration. This enables the funds to pocket sizable profits by reselling new, government-insured loans to other federal agencies, which then bundle the mortgages into securities for sale to investors.
While homeowners save money, the arrangement shifts nearly all the risk for the loans to the federal government — and, ultimately, taxpayers — at a time when Americans are falling behind on their mortgage payments in record numbers.
So how does this work? Here’s one example:
Last December, the couple got a letter saying that a firm had purchased the mortgage on their home in Pico Rivera, Calif., from Chase Home Finance for less than its original value. “We want to share this discount with you,” the letter said.
“I couldn’t believe it,” said Mr. Alva, a 62-year-old janitor and father of three. “I kept thinking to myself, ‘Something is wrong, something is wrong. This sounds too good.’ ”
But it was true. The balance on the Alvas’ mortgage was ultimately reduced to $314,000 from $440,000.
The firm behind the reduction remains a mystery. The Alvas’ new loan, backed by the F.H.A., was made by Primary Residential Mortgage, a lender based in Utah. But the letter came from a company called MCM Capital Partners.
In the letter, MCM said the couple’s loan was owned by something called MCMCap Homeowners’ Advantage Trust III. But MCM’s co-founders said in an interview that MCM does not own any mortgages. They would not reveal the investor that owned the Alvas’ loan because they had agreed to keep that client’s identity confidential.
MCMCap is based out of Bethesda, MD. At MCMCap’s website, they describe their operations like this:
MCMCAP Partners LLC and MCMCAP Homeowners Advantage Trusts (together, ‘MCM’) is an independent, private investment trust that invests in residential mortgages. Specifically, we purchase mortgages from some of the largest banks and Wall Street firms and service the loans through our partner, Ocwen Financial Corporation (‘Ocwen’). Ocwen is responsible for billing, collection, and reporting borrower payments and loan balances. The credit crisis has allowed MCM to buy loans at a discount which in turn allows us to provide our customers with a unique opportunity: to forgive a portion of the loan balance when a qualified borrower refinances or pays off the loan for any reason. There is no fine print and there are no strings attached! MCM has to date provided principal reductions to thousands of mortgage customers across the country.
We offer debt reduction on every loan in our portfolio as long as borrowers remain current on their payments. For those borrowers who qualify for refinancing, we insist that the new loan offers tangible benefits, including lower interest rates, more stable loan programs, and limited or no closing costs. This unique program for our customers reduces mortgage payment burdens, protects credit histories, and helps stabilize property values; all of which are essential factors in the recovery of the U.S. economy.
There doesn’t seem to be a big question as to whether this is good for the borrower or the investors. What is the question is how much risk these loans have for the government, and ultimately the U.S. taxpayer.
