AmeriQuest and Fairbanks
Sub prime financing was created with very humane and wholesome aim: to help people who have financial difficulties to get back on track. The interest rates were high but they gave the trust – the thing which was needed the most. But gradually sub prime financing has reached crisis point because mortgage companies tried to get the last penny out of their customers. But they have paid in full or surely would pay for this. Among these companies are Ameriquest Mortgage and Fairbanks Capital.
AmeriQuest Mortgage. It is a national mortgage lender. This company is the largest subprime lender in terms of given loans. Ameriquest Mortgage provides wholesale loans through mortgage brokers. The customer base of the company is considered to be the most risky and questionable one: people with poor credit and no credit at all. In 2006 the company has already settled a class action lawsuit and paid $ 325 million for predatory lending practices. Generally this whole subprime lending system is regarded as being predatory because it keeps people within very stringent bounds and just make their financial situation worse. Their business practices were absolutely unacceptable that is why this class action lawsuit was signed by people form 49 states. And after this the Ameriquest Mortgage offices were closed, accepting of loan application was stopped and most of staff was fired.
Fairbanks Capital. This company’s business tactics are very close to usury and bait-and-switch practices of Ameriquest. Created primarily to help people to get back on their feet, Fairbanks just tries to devastate them more. The main aim of this predatory organization is to make its customers to lose their homes and they do everything to get the goal: delay the posting of the payments, charge their customers additional late fees, and mix up all the things as hard as they can. And they would never help to solve the problem because they have entrapped the customer themselves. It is amazing how Fairbanks is still in business instead of being broke like Ameriquest.