Bank of America Home Loans, formerly Countrywide Financial Corp., is one of the largest residential mortgage lenders in the U.S. The Calabasas, Calif., company offers residential real estate loans, refinancing, home equity loans and reverse mortgages. It also provides lender-placed auto and homeowners insurance products through its subsidiary Balboa Insurance Group Inc. The company is a subsidiary of Bank of America Corp., which acquired Countrywide in 2008 for $2.5 billion.
Once recognized as a leader in residential mortgage lending, Countrywide is now known as a symbol of loose lending practices, aggressive salesmanship and risky mortgages following the housing market collapse and subprime mortgage debacle. As the market imploded, many of Countrywide’s loans soured, and the lender struggled to find new sources of capital. BofA has agreed to settlements with several states to resolve allegations that Countrywide put borrowers in risky subprime loans. The division is continuing to struggle through the fallout from the mortgage crisis.
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