Our office assisted the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of New York, in conducting an investigation of Bank of America’s origination of mortgage loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) from May 1, 2009, through March 31, 2012.   On August 20, 2014, Bank of America entered into a settlement agreement to pay $16.65 billion, of which $9.65 billion resolved pending and potential legal claims.  Of the $9.65 billion, Bank of America agreed to pay $800 million to settle its submission of claims through December 31, 2013, for FHA loans it originated on or after May 1, 2009.  Of the $800 million attributable to FHA’s direct endorsement lender program, the FHA insurance fund was to receive $437.6 million, with the remaining $362.4 million going to other Federal agencies.  Further, as a term of the agreement to remediate harms resulting from its alleged unlawful conduct, Bank of America agreed to provide $7 billion in consumer relief. 

We recommended that HUD’s Office of General Counsel, Office of Program Enforcement, allow us to post $437,646,483 to HUD’s Audit Resolution and Corrective Actions Tracking System as ineligible costs.