John Campbell on underwriting
From Mortgage Crisis in a Nutshell - Presented by John Campbell · · ErichVieth
“Ameriquest started doing what were called No doc or sometimes called Liars loans... they would make a loan where the income was never verified and in fact often the person making the loan would actually pretend Joe had more income than he did.”
On , John Campbell, Director of Investor Relations at Wells Fargo & Co, spoke about underwriting during Mortgage Crisis in a Nutshell - Presented by John Campbell on ErichVieth.
About John Campbell
In a 2012 video titled "Mortgage Crisis in a Nutshell," John Campbell, an attorney and director of investor relations at Wells Fargo, presented an overview of the U.S. mortgage crisis. Campbell described the role of non-traditional lenders like Ameriquest in issuing "no doc" or "liar loans" where income was not verified. He stated that these loans were often sold quickly as securities, a process he called "securitization," and that rating agencies rated them AAA based on summaries rather than individual loan reviews. Campbell also discussed the Mortgage Electronic Registry System (MERS), which he said held 60% of mortgages originated during that period, and described "dual track" foreclosure practices where banks would negotiate with homeowners while simultaneously proceeding with foreclosure. Campbell contrasted what he described as a transparent system that worked for 200 years with a "shadow system" in which he said banks profit regardless of loan performance. He attributed the collapse of the economy and the need for bailouts to the latter system, stating that "the only people who will continue to profit from it are the people who invented it and that's generally the banks and Wall Street."