The NAACP, which contends that several major mortgage lenders forced African Americans into bad loans that have sparked an epidemic in foreclosures, filed a class-action suit Friday in a Los Angeles court. Among the culprits, says the nation’s largest and oldest civil rights organization, are Wells Fargo and HSBC, which steered Blacks into sub-prime mortgages, even in cases when their credit qualifications – such parameters as credit scores, incomes and down payments – were better or identical to those of White borrowers. Read more.

FBI cites increase in mortgage scams. America’s money trouble and damaged housing industry has led to an “exponential rise” in mortgage scams, says the FBI. The bureau reports more than 1,800 ongoing investigations into mortgage fraud, double the number from 2006. There are also a reported 530 ongoing corporate fraud investigations. “The increasing mortgage, corporate fraud and financial institution failure case inventory is straining the FBI’s limited white-collar crime resources,” Deputy Director John Pistole recently told a Washington Senate hearing. The Black community has been particularly susceptible to home foreclosures and fallout from the financial impact on housing. The FBI has re-assigned some investigators of terrorist crimes to its financial crime cases.

Mortgage Brokers Jerked Minority Borrowers Two major mortgage brokerage companies, which consistently zapped Black and Hispanic borrowers with substantially higher interest rates than Whites, must pay $665,000 in restitution. Under the terms of the agreement between HCI Mortgage, Consumer One Mortgage and the New York Attorney General’s Office, the companies must compensate 445 minority clients. New York filed suit following an investigation of GreenPoint Mortgage Funding, a division of Capital One Financial, found discriminatory lending practices.  HCI, Consumer One and U.S. Capital Funding did “substantial business” with GreenPoint, said Attorney General Andrew Cuomo. In March 2007, Capital One agreed to pay $1 million in compensation. The U.S. Capital Funding suit has yet to be resolved. The settlements will “ensure mortgage brokers comply with the law and offer fair and legitimate rates to all New Yorkers,” Cuomo said. The Black and Hispanic borrowers who used HCI Mortgage paid about 50 percent, or about $2,500, more than White clients.
Car-jacking Suspects Arrested in Atlanta. Police arrested two men Tuesday who allegedly jacked a Jaguar in downtown Atlanta after their car slammed into other vehicles, injuring two other people, including a 12-year-old boy. Both suspects were also injured and taken to Grady Memorial Hospital.

Bush snatches back a pardon. With the potential of a scandal to mark one of his last official acts as commander in chief, President Bush has yanked back a pardon he awarded to a man accused of steering poor and minority people toward overpriced mortgages and loans with hidden costs. Isaac Toussie, one of 19 people that Bush pardoned on Tuesday, had been convicted of mail fraud and making false statements to the Housing and Urban Development Department. In the rare presidential revocation of a pardon, White House press secretary Dana Perino said that Bush made his decision “based on information that has subsequently come to light.” Turns out that Toussie’s father donated $28,500 to the Republican Party, just before his son petitioned the White House for the pardon. Read the rest here.

Michael Vick’s savings no longer support mom’s mortgage.  Just weeks after reports surfaced of an ex-NFL star spending $18 million in less than two years, his mother will leave her home due to mortgage challenges. Even as former Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick admitted his immaturity and apologized for sponsoring illegal dog fights, he reportedly ran through hundreds of thousands in cash in the days leading to his imprisonment. Recent bankruptcy filings show that Vick spent millions as he faced bank lawsuits and cancelled endorsement deals when he was charged with felonies. His mom’s $4,700 monthly house note is out of reach barely a year after Vick’s federal guilty plea. The former pro recently pleaded guilty a second time to charges of dog-fighting in Virginia. He has been indefinitely suspended from the NFL, but could return as early as 2009 after his expected release from prison.

Belafonte is to sell civil rights leader’s papers.  Three important documents written by or related to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., including notes for King’s last, undelivered speech, are slated for auction Thursday in New York, reports The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Entertainer and civil rights activist Harry Belafonte, who had a close relationship with the Rev. King and King’s wife, Coretta, put up for auction the papers, which experts at Sotheby’s auction house have estimated in value at between $720,000 and $1.14 million. Read more here.

Charges against Rangel put Dems in a pickle. With Rep. Charles B. Rangel of New York the subject of an investigation by a House ethics panel over his ownership of several rent-controlled apartments in New York, his failure to pay taxes on an offshore rental property, and his use of office letterhead to solicit donations for a public-policy school that would bear his name, he could be in trouble with the Democratic Leadership that was critical of Republicans who behaved badly. Read the rest here.Fannie and Freddie were warned against the mortgage crash. Documents show that top executives at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were warned years ago that the firms were offering mortgages that could pose a long-term danger to the nation’s largest mortgage brokers, borrowers and the industry, The Washington Post reported on Tuesday. In documents obtained by the newspaper, Fannie and Freddie pushed into new, risky markets despite debates within the companies about whether the moves were the best way to go.

NAACP names voting outreach director. The nation’s oldest and largest civil rights organization, which has made voter registration a key component of its outreach during its century-long history, is taking its voter-empowerment efforts to a new level. “In addition to protecting the right to vote, we will reach out to displaced and recently purged voters who need our assistance in getting their voting rights restored,” said NAACP Interim President & CEO Dennis Courtland Hayes. The NAACP has appointed Kirk Clay to head its Civic Engagement Department, which is designed to remove roadblocks and disincentives to voting. This includes ensuring voter empowerment, protecting voters’ constitutional rights, monitoring redistricting and census statistics and promoting ballot initiatives to address social justice issues. “I am proud to represent the NAACP during this historic moment in time,” said Clay. “One of my priorities will be to ensure that every eligible American who wants to vote can, and that every vote is counted.” Clay worked as the Director of Outreach for major gifts at Common Cause where he also developed a diverse national coalition of strategic partners to promote election reform, ethics in government and government accountability. He worked at the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation as deputy director and is the former co-chair of that organization’s Black Youth Vote program.

Donald Trump recently bailed TV legend Ed McMahon out of home foreclosure, so maybe he can help Damon Dash, too. The co-founder of Roc-a-Fella Records hasn’t made a payment on his $78,504.20-per-month mortgage since January, according to The New York Post. Dash and his wife, Rachel Roy, are in jeopardy of losing their New York residence after taking out a $7.3 million loan on two Tribeca properties. The former hip-hop heavyweight reportedly owed $2 million in back taxes last year and has been fighting back debtors, despite an estimated $50 million net worth.