Bend Economy Bulletin Board

Attorney General John Kroger announced Wednesday that Oregon will join a multi-state agreement with five major financial institutions over wrongful foreclosure practices.

“The Oregon Department of Justice is deeply committed to protecting consumers," Kroger said. "In assessing any potential consumer protection settlement, I compare the benefits of the settlement with potential benefits that might accrue in the future if we chose to litigate rather than settle. I have made that assessment in this case, and I am confident that signing this agreement is in the best interest of Oregon consumers.

“This agreement penalizes banks that engaged in wrongful foreclosure practices and brings badly needed relief for distressed homeowners. Oregon is also very interested in pursuing multi-state and independent investigations of illegal mortgage securitization and other practices in the mortgage industry that led to the housing crisis. Because the release in this agreement is narrowly drafted, it will allow Oregon to pursue these matters aggressively. Simply put, I am not confident we could get a better agreement on this limited set of issues if we litigated for several more years.

I want to thank the Obama Administration and Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller for their excellent work on this agreement.”

Further details will be released next week when they are final, but highlights of the agreement include:

· An estimated $30 million to the state of Oregon.

· An estimated $100 million to $200 million in relief to distressed Oregon homeowners including “underwater” borrowers and homeowners facing foreclosure.

· Tough new servicing standards that protect all homeowners from unfair and unscrupulous servicing practices.

The agreement is not final. It must be submitted to a federal judge for final approval.