Goldman Sachs gets closer to fulfilling terms of mortgage settlement

Goldman Sachs put another $90 million toward consumer mortgage relief in the past two months, bringing the company closer to fulfilling the terms of its $1.8 billion Department of Justice settlement.

Goldman forgave $85 million in principal on 819 first-lien mortgages, and $4.2 million on 30 amounts due and previously deferred first-lien mortgages during the period that has passed since its last update on March 1. Its latest contribution puts it over three-quarters of the way to fulfilling the settlement's terms.

Goldman

"A little more than three years after the settlement agreements were signed, Goldman Sachs appears to be approximately 77% toward completing its consumer relief obligations," Eric Green, the independent monitor of the settlements, said in his report from May 1.

"While Goldman Sachs has not yet provided a submission specifically claiming that it has met any of the credit minimums under the global settlement agreement, the data suggest that Goldman Sachs has now exceeded the minimum amount of credit that must be earned in each of the three settling states of California, Illinois and New York."

The bank now has roughly $414 million remaining on its consumer relief obligation. Goldman settled its mortgage securitization allegations in April 2016 and incrementally chipped away at its settlement amount in the three years since. It has until Jan. 31, 2021 to finish paying.

The modified first-lien mortgages involved in the settlement span 45 states plus the District of Columbia, with 33% of the credit located in California, Illinois and New York. About 47% of the credit lies in areas defined by the Department of Housing and Urban Development as "hardest hit," referring to census tracts with large concentrations of distressed homes and foreclosure activity, according to the report.

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