"We thought this would be dragged out at least another two years."
Good discussion yesterday on Bloomberg. FBR banking analyst Paul Miller on BofA's agreement to pay Fannie Mae $11.7 billion to resolve home-loan repurchase claims.
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BofA Settles Fraud With Fannie Mae For $12B, Moynihan Escapes Countrywide
Bloomberg
Bank of America will make a $3.6 billion cash payment, spend $6.75 billion to buy back residential loans sold to Fannie Mae, and pay $1.3 billion in fees for taking too long to assist or foreclose on overdue borrowers, according to separate statements. Even after these costs and an additional $2.5 billion for expenses that include litigation and a separate regulatory settlement, the Charlotte, North Carolina-based lender said the fourth quarter was “modestly” profitable.
It’s the latest effort by Chief Executive Officer Brian T. Moynihan to cap the damage caused by his predecessor’s takeover of Countrywide Financial Corp. and its defective subprime home loans. Before today, the bank committed more than $40 billion since 2007 to cover the costs of refunds and litigation tied to faulty mortgages and foreclosures. Much of that sum went to the government-sponsored entities of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
“This does put the GSE stuff behind it,” said Paul Miller, an FBR Capital Markets Corp. analyst who has a hold rating on Bank of America shares. “We thought this would be dragged out many years, or at least another two years.”