The foreclosure robosigning mess has stalled foreclosure auctions and sales, leaving many homes in limbo. The Post reports, "Lawyers in New York must make sure that real people sign documents and thoroughly check homeowners’ financial situations before they try to take away people’s homes," making the Empire State the first state to do so. Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman said, “We cannot allow courts in New York to stand by idly and be party to what we now know is a deeply flawed process, especially when that process involves basic needs - such as a family home - during this period of economic crisis." more ›

Last week, the NY Times had an article about homeowners who stopped paying mortgages, mentioning Florida couple Alex Pemberton and Susan Reboyras, "Foreclosure has allowed them to stabilize the family business. Go to Outback occasionally for a steak. Take their gas-guzzling airboat out for the weekend. Visit the Hard Rock Casino." But Pemberton now tells the St. Petersburg Times they've used their "old yellow airboat exactly twice in the past 2 1/2 years" and he "mentioned Outback and Hard Rock — where he sometimes plays the penny slots — only when the reporter pressed him for examples of what they might do for entertainment." But he sorta understands the hate mail, "If I didn't know it was me, I would have been the one digging out the pitchforks and torches and knocking on my door." [Via Pat's Papers] more ›

The Wall Street Journal reports that the Justice Department is in the preliminary stage of an investigation into whether Morgan Stanley "misled investors about mortgage-derivatives deals it helped design and sometimes bet against." Instead Abacus, the collateralized-debt obligations that Goldman Sachs is under fire for, in this case, there are the "Dead Presidents" deals, named after Presidents James Buchanan and Andrew Jackson. more ›

Everyone's favorite target these days is now under criminal investigation. Federal prosecutors are now looking to whether Goldman Sachs' employees in mortgage trading operation committed securities fraud. The investigation apparently stems from the SEC's civil fraud lawsuit against Goldman regarding mortgage trading. The Wall Street Journal reports it's unclear whether charges will be brought, adding, "Many criminal investigations are launched that never result in any charges." more ›

The Senate investigations subcommittee will hear from Goldman Sachs executives today, including CEO Lloyd Blankfein and executive director Fabrice "Fab" Tourrre. Tourre was singled out in the SEC's fraud charges against the firm, but the 31-year-old will "categorically" deny the SEC's claims, adding that the deal he drafted was "not designed to fail." (The SEC claims Tourre created a mortgage securities product that would allow hedge fund dealer John Paulson to make a killing by betting against them.) Tourre infamously emailed a friend in 2007, "Only potential survivor, the fabulous Fab[rice Tourre] ... standing in the middle of all these complex, highly leveraged, exotic trades he created without necessarily understanding all of the implication of those monstruosities [sic]" Watch the testimony here. more ›

Ahead of Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein's visit to the Congress next week, the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations released emails (PDF) that suggest the firm was making money while the mortgage markets collapsed, which would then contradict the firm's claims it lost money during that period. A November 2007 email from Blankfein said, "Of course we didn’t dodge the mortgage mess. We lost money, then made more than we lost because of shorts." more ›

In an attempt to close the budget gap, lawmakers are considering two new plans to raise fees on New Yorkers. The plan proposes raising the fees on buying cars and taking out a mortgage. "These two proposals are being seriously considered by us," Senate Transportation Committee Chairman Martin Dilan told the Daily News. more ›

After the SEC accused it of securities fraud related to subprime mortgages, Goldman Sachs promised to "contest them and defend the firm and its reputation," saying the charges were "unfounded in law and fact." The SEC claims that Goldman, as the Wall Street Journal puts it, "deceiv[ed] clients by selling them mortgage securities secretly designed by a hedge-fund firm run by John Paulson, who made a killing betting on the housing market's collapse." more ›

In a State of the City address crafted for a recession era, Mayor Bloomberg said he will reduce government spending, streamline city agencies, and assist debt-ridden New Yorkers by establishing a $10 million fund to help refinance mortgages, and starting a new banking program that will offer accounts with no minimum balances or hidden fees. "The city can't manage anyone's personal finances but we can make it easier for New Yorkers to manage their own — and we will," he said. more ›

The subprime mortgage meltdown and the wave of foreclosures that swept across the city and the nation continue to put New Yorkers at risk of losing their homes — despite a federal policy drafted to protect them. The Times reports that in the ten months since President Obama debuted his $75 billion plan to keep as many as four million Americans from being forced out of their homes due to foreclosure, only 31,000 homeowners have been able to negotiate permanent new mortgages. And in the city, where 20,000 homeowners faced foreclosure this year, lenders have offered new or trial mortgages to just 3 percent of homeowners who sought help. more ›

The NY Times looks at how House Republicans want Rep. Edolphus Towns (D-Brooklyn)-House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform chair—to subpoena details about Countrywide Mortgage's VIP program, which gives breaks prominent people, including (allegedly) Towns. Towns' spokeswoman calls it a smear campaign, "He went to his local mortgage guy and got a normal mortgage. The guy’s from Brooklyn and doesn’t have much money and wasn’t prominent enough to be considered a V.I.P. Whether it was later transferred through the V.I.P. program, I don’t know. But he didn’t receive any favors." more ›

This weekend, the NY Times real estate section looks at tales of would-be condo buyers who have their deposits (many in the six-figure range) with banks now suddenly worried about lending. In 2005, one couple put down a 10% deposit—and were approved for a mortgage—for a Toll Brothers two-bedroom in Hoboken; when they tried to close last fall, many banks told them to increase the deposit by 15-25% for a mortgage. Since the couple couldn't, "Toll Brothers declared them in default and kept their deposit" of $93,199. That couple is suing, as is another who forfeited their 10% deposit ($173,000) on a (non-Toll Brothers) Chelsea two-bedroom, because "mortgage brokers told them that 90 percent financing no longer existed." Some buyers buying smaller units or scraping up more money for deposits, but many contracts before last fall required buyers to be committed to the property "regardless of whether they could get financing." Jonathan J. Miller, of research and appraisal firm Miller Samuel, tells the Times, “It’s going to get worse before it gets better, because it will only start to ease when credit stabilizes.” more ›

The NY Times announced it raised $225 million in cash from the "sale-leaseback of part of its headquarters building, one in a series of moves to pay down its debts and increase its cash cushion during a drastic slump for the newspaper industry." more ›

Well, it's handy having a brand new trophy building: The NY Times reports, "The New York Times Company plans to borrow up to $225 million against its mid-Manhattan headquarters building, to ease a potential cash flow squeeze as the company grapples with tighter credit and shrinking profits." more ›

After the Daily News's recent stunt, in which reporters at the tabloid used fake documents to transfer ownership of the Empire State Building to a non-existent company, city prosecutors are calling for an overhaul on how the city register handles property transactions. As the News demonstrated, clerks in the office are not required to verify that the information on deeds and mortgages is correct, and some con artists exploit the loophole to claim ownership of properties, then cash in with illegitimate mortgages before disappearing. Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes tells the News today that there ought to be a law giving the register's office the time and power to check transactions before they're recorded. But Sam Miller, a bureaucrat at the city Finance Department, swears these fraudulent transfers "are few and far between." And more importantly, they usually don't end up on the cover the the Daily News. more ›

The Daily News has a clever little cover story today about how the tabloid "stole" the Empire State Building. Inspired by the Brooklyn DA's increasing number of deed fraud prosecutions, reporters decided to try the scam, which involves drawing up fake documents, making a bogus notary stamp and filing paperwork with the city to transfer the deed to the property. Grifters use the fraudulent deed to take out big mortgages, then disappear. more ›

Stock futures are up after the Federal Reserve announced two big plans in hopes of unfreezing consumer credit. One is a $600 billion program to buy mortgage-related debt, of which the Fed says, "This action is being taken to reduce the cost and increase the availability of credit for the purchase of houses, which in turn should support housing markets and foster improved conditions in financial markets more generally." The other is a $200 billion effort to back consumer loans, like student, auto, and credit card loans; the Fed says it stepped in because "Continued disruption of these markets could significantly limit the availability of credit to households and small businesses and thereby contribute to further weakening of U.S. economic activity." more ›

A source tells the Post that two con men who ran a mortgage scam bilking millions out of now-failed lenders like Countrywide and Washington Mutual blew obscene amounts of money on extravagant gambling trips to Atlantic City. Garri Zhigun and Aleksander Lipkin pleaded guilty earlier this month to running a 27-member gang that borrowed money to buy properties, then faked sales at inflated prices to borrow even more before defaulting on the loans. The two swindlers—who were backed by the Russian mob—made dozens of trips to Atlantic City between '05 and '06, where they were high rollers awarded with free hotel rooms and show tickets. And all this took place while Zhigun was on parole after serving two years in prison for his participation in an insurance scam involving staged car accidents. more ›

Don’t get too comfortable homeowners – the city’s foreclosure rate is skyrocketing, up a startling 66% in the first quarter of 2008 compared to last year, according to Crain’s and the housing research site Property Shark. Queens saw more foreclosures than the four other boroughs combined, with 508 in the first quarter, up 59% from the same period in 2007. more ›