Taylor, Bean & Whitaker Settles Case over 'Nontraditional' Loans

Taylor, Bean & Whitaker Mortgage Corp., Ocala, Fla., will pay $9 million to settle a dispute with 13 states and Washington, D.C., over how the wholesale lender handled certain nontraditional mortgages. Taylor, Bean, which is awaiting regulatory approval to buy Colonial BancGroup Inc. in Montgomery, Ala., also agreed to modify loans for certain customers and to hire an independent firm to review nontraditional mortgages originated in 2006 and 2007. The settlement resolves claims that Taylor, Bean altered applicants' incomes and assets to provide nontraditional mortgages. The mortgage lender did not admit wrongdoing as part of the settlement, which was reached with regulators in Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Jersey, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Vermont.