Federal Trade Commission Requests Loan Servicing Records from Ocwen

The ""Federal Trade Commission"":http://www.ftc.gov (FTC) has requested documents and information from ""Ocwen Financial"":http://www.ocwen.com related to its loan servicing activities as part of a civil investigation, the company said in its annual regulatory filing with the ""Securities and Exchange Commission"":http://www.sec.gov (SEC).
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The Florida-based specialty loan servicer, which focuses on bringing highly distressed loans back to performing status, is the latest mark in a number of investigations by government agencies targeting the mortgage servicing industry.

The company noted in the SEC filing, ""A number of our competitors and others in the industry have paid significant sums to resolve investigations initiated by the

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FTC and/or settle lawsuits brought against them that raised claims similar to those raised in the lawsuits brought against us and our affiliates.""

Ocwen said it is cooperating with the FTC request and stressed that it has ""received no notification of alleged wrongdoing"" from either the FTC or the coalition of state attorneys general conducting an industry-wide investigation of foreclosure processing and practices.

The company also disclosed in the regulatory filing that the company and certain affiliates ""have been named as defendants in a number of purported class action lawsuits challenging our residential loan servicing practices.""

Ocwen stated, ""[W]e believe that we have meritorious legal and factual defenses to the lawsuits,"" but the company added, ""we can provide no assurances with regard to ultimate outcomes with respect to these matters.""

The company went on to say, “Recent inquiries into servicer foreclosure processes could result in actions by state or federal governmental bodies, regulators, or the courts that could result in temporary moratoria on mortgage foreclosures or an extension of foreclosure timelines, which may be applicable generally to the servicing industry or to us in particular…. In addition, governmental bodies may impose regulatory fines or penalties as a result of our foreclosure processes.”