ATLANTA -- (May 25) -- According to the
latest figures released by the Mortgage Asset Research Institute,
Inc., (“MARI”) in their April 2007 report, mortgage
fraud in Georgia continues to decline. In fact, according
to the MARI report, Georgia showed the greatest improvement
from prior years’ rankings of states in terms of the
amount of mortgage fraud.
The report indicates that Georgia’s 2006 Mortgage
Fraud Index (MFI) values, which indicates the amount of
mortgage fraud reported in each state, are far below previous
levels for all loans and for subprime, in particular. The
report also indicates that the actual number of fraud reports
on Georgia’s 2006 loans has fallen by 32% from the
prior year. The report attributes this decline to the aggressive
legislation, consumer awareness campaigns and enforcement
Georgia and federal officials put in place in recent years.
"We are very pleased that the number of reported incidents
of mortgage fraud in Georgia continues to decline - and
decline significantly. It is gratifying to know that the
hard work and concerted efforts of all the parties combating
mortgage fraud in Georgia are paying dividends," stated
Commissioner Rob Braswell.
“While this MARI report is very encouraging regarding
Georgia's progress, we are definitely not satisfied and
will continue to work diligently with our partners in 2007
to reduce Georgia's mortgage fraud index even further.”
To read the report, go to the following link on MARI’s
website:
http://www.mari-inc.com/pdfs/mba/
MBA9thCaseRpt.pdf. Page 8 of the report begins a discussion
regarding Georgia’s turnaround and efforts that have
been taken by various agencies and the industry to stop
mortgage fraud.
The Department (
http://dbf.georgia.gov/)
currently supervises approximately 3,300 non-depository
mortgage lenders, brokers, and processors. Since the implementation
of a risk-based mortgage examination program in 2003, the
volume of administrative actions and referrals to law enforcement
agencies have increased greatly. During 2006, the Department
issued 108 Cease and Desist Orders and 17 Intent to Revoke
Orders and made referrals totaling almost $16 million to
other law enforcement agencies as a result of our examinations
and
investigations.
SOURCE: Georgia Department of Banking and Finance
