Huron Consulting Group (NASDAQ: HURN), a leading provider of financial and operational consulting services, today released the “Top Ten Things You Need to Know to Investigate a Subprime Mortgage File.” The report, published after the closures and declarations of bankruptcy of more than 20 mortgage companies since 2006, is designed to help Board Members and CEOs in assessing credit risk and exposures related to the subprime mortgage market.
“The subprime mortgage world is under tremendous pressure,” said Ken Evola, managing director, Huron Consulting Group. “The recent news surrounding improperly managed subprime mortgages, which has in some cases forced bankruptcy, requires that companies carefully evaluate risk right now to determine an appropriate course of action. This report is a tool for Board Members and CEOs to help determine risk and instability in their subprime mortgage portfolios.”
On April 2, 2007, New Century Financial Corporation, the largest independent U.S. subprime mortgage lender, filed for Chapter 11. A few weeks prior, in early March, the Mortgage Bankers Association announced that 13 percent of subprime loans are currently delinquent and greater than two percent of subprime loans had foreclosure proceedings launched in the fourth quarter alone. This recent news signaled instability in the subprime mortgage industry and prompted the release of the Huron report.
”Our focus in the mortgage market is very specific. It is Huron’s belief that subprime lenders in particular, and many lenders in general, need to modify their lending strategy in this fast changing market to appropriately consider the risks of a borrower’s ability to repay the loan,” added Evola.
Huron has developed a list of ten key items that company Board Members and CEOs should ask when evaluating the risk of a subprime mortgage portfolio:
1. Did you have a reliable market based appraised value of the underlying collateral?
2. Were all parties that were involved with the loan origination process during the astounding growth period truly independent?
3. Were appraisals supporting your retained and sold portfolio based on inflated market comps?
4. How effective were your anti-fraud controls?
5. In today’s environment how would you assess the quality of your origination channel?
6. How effective were your loan processors at detecting and preventing misrepresentations within the loan files?
7. What processes were in place to evaluate the integrity of your mortgage brokers?
8. Do you know your repurchase exposure?
9. Is your borrower documentation accurate for prudent underwriting?
10. Are your financial statements reliable as a result of the previous nine items?
Copies of the complete “Top Ten Things You Need to Know to Investigate a Subprime Mortgage File” are available upon request or at www.huronconsultinggroup.com. Companies wishing to learn more about how Huron Consulting Group can help them should contact Ken Evola at 202-585-6860. Members of the media should contact Jennifer Frost Hennagir at 312-880-3260 or jfrost-hennagir@huronconsultinggroup.com.
About Huron Consulting Group
Huron Consulting Group helps clients effectively address complex challenges that arise in litigation, disputes, investigations, regulatory compliance, procurement, financial distress, and other sources of significant conflict or change. The Company also helps clients deliver superior customer and capital market performance through integrated strategic, operational, and organizational change. Huron provides services to a wide variety of both financially sound and distressed organizations, including Fortune 500 companies, medium-sized businesses, leading academic institutions, healthcare organizations, and the law firms that represent these various organizations. Learn more at www.huronconsultinggroup.com.
