We reviewed Seneca Mortgage’s servicing of Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-insured mortgages and its implementation of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Loss Mitigation program.  We selected Seneca Mortgage based on the results of our single-family risk assessment.  The objective of the audit was to determine whether Seneca Mortgage complied with HUD’s Loss Mitigation program requirements and…

We completed a review of First Niagara Bank’s servicing of Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-insured mortgages and its implementation of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Loss Mitigation program.  We selected First Niagara Bank based on an Office of Inspector General risk assessment of single-family lenders.  The objective of the audit was to determine whether First Niagara Bank properly…

We completed an audit of All American Home Mortgage Corp., a nonsupervised lender located in Brooklyn, NY. Our audit objectives were to determine whether All American officials (1) approved Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-insured loans in accordance with the requirements of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)-FHA, and (2) implemented a quality control plan in accordance with HUD-FHA requirements. All…

We completed an audit of Ameritrust Mortgage Bankers, Inc., a nonsupervised lender* located in Lake Success. Our audit objectives were to determine whether Ameritrust officials (1) approved FHA-insured loans in accordance with the requirements of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)-FHA, and (2) implemented a quality control plan in accordance with HUD-FHA requirements. Ameritrust officials did not always…

We conducted a review of Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans underwritten by Sterling National Mortgage Company, Inc. (Sterling), an FHA direct endorsement lender. The review was conducted as part of the Office of Inspector General’s (OIG) Operation Watchdog initiative to review the underwriting of 15 direct endorsement lenders at the suggestion of the FHA Commissioner. The Commissioner expressed concern regarding the…

We audited Somerset Investors Corporation (Somerset), dba Somerset Mortgage Bankers, a Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-approved direct endorsement lender located in Melville, NY. The audit objectives were to determine whether Somerset (1) originated FHA-insured refinanced loans in accordance with the requirements of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)/FHA and (2) conducted quality control reviews that…

We completed an audit of the City of Rochester's (City) asset control area (ACA) program as part of a nationwide audit of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) monitoring of ACA participants. The objective of the audit was to determine whether the City administered its ACA program in compliance with program requirements to increase homeownership for low and moderate income borrowers and contribute to…

We completed an audit of Wells Fargo Bank NA, Rochester, New York, Branch Office (Wells Fargo), a national bank and supervised lender. The audit objectives were to determine whether Wells Fargo (1) approved insured loans in accordance with U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)/Federal Housing Administration (FHA) requirements, which include following prudent lending practices, and (2) developed and implemented a…