A new report from the inspector general of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development shows that the management at large banks, not low-level employees, were responsible for the forging of foreclosure documents that sparked a nationwide investigation, culminating in the settlement filed yesterday. The report shows bank managers ignoring “widespread errors in the foreclosure process,” the New York Times reported.
The report indicates that at Wells Fargo, which is now the largest mortgage servicer in the nation, management assigned employees with no training, bogus titles, including “vice president of loan documentation.” Before becoming “vice president,” one employee worked at a pizza restaurant.
“I believe the [report] we just released will leave the reader asking one question — how could so many people have participated in this misconduct?” said David Montoya, the inspector general at HUD, according to the Times. “The answer — simple greed.” [NYT]