Business & Finance
Wed, August 29, 2012 
DES MOINES, Iowa--([ BUSINESS WIRE ])--Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE:WFC) reported today that from March 1, 2012 through June 30, 2012 the company had helped more than 27,000 homeowners under the National Mortgage Settlement covering expanded modifications, other customer relief options and refinances. The company estimates that it fulfilled approximately 35 percent of its $4.3billion consumer relief and refinance commitment in the first four months of settlement activities and is on track to meet all its commitments in the timeframes prescribed in the settlement.
"We believe that implementing the servicing standards has been a productive process that enables Wells Fargo and the servicers that are party to the settlement to operate under a common set of rules and expectations, and enable the independent monitor to consistently evaluate servicer compliance and performance"
aWe are pleased with our progress in fulfilling our financial commitments under the National Mortgage Settlement, which builds on our previous consumer relief and refinance efforts,a said Michael DeVito, executive vice president for Default Mortgage Servicing at Wells Fargo Home Lending. aWells Fargo has given more than 780,000 families a second chance to stay in their homes through our entire modification effort since the beginning of 2009. Over that time, we have helped borrowers take advantage of historically low interest rates through more than 4million refinances.a
Preliminary results on the expanded modifications, other consumer relief options and refinances under the settlement were included in a voluntary interim report to the Office of Mortgage Settlement Oversight. The report to the monitor included national data, as well as a state-by-state breakdown of consumer relief and refinance activities.
The full press release and report released by the monitor can be viewed [ here ]. National program totals appear in the table below:
| Program | Customers Helped | Consumer Benefit1 | ||
| 1st and 2nd lien trial and completed modifications | 7,7152 | $745 million in principal forgiveness2 | ||
| Short sales and deeds-in-lieu of foreclosure | 7,516 | $733 million in write offs of indebtedness | ||
| Other consumer relief activity | 3,264 | $17 million in write offs of indebtedness | ||
| 1st lien refinances | 8,596 | $314 million in total interest savings ($4,560 in average annual interest savings for each customer refinanced)3 | ||
| TOTAL | 27,091 | |||
1 Dollar amounts include a portion of the gross consumer benefit provided and do not reflect the amount of credit toward Wells Fargoas financial commitment. The credit applied to the commitment will be determined by a formula that takes into account the amounts here as well as other factors. 2 Includes completed 1st lien modifications and completed 2nd lien modifications from interim report to the OMSO, plus active trial modifications in place as of June 30, 2012. Active trial modifications included are not directly comparable to trial modifications listed in the report to the OMSO. 3 Reflects $1.69 billion in UPB refinanced with an average note rate reduction of 2.32% resulting in total annual interest savings to customers of $39 million and $314 million in total interest savings to customers over the eight year anticipated average life of the refinanced loans. | ||||
The progress to date reflected in the report regarding the refinance program is consistent with what the company has previously disclosed in terms of the number of customers expected to be refinanced through the program and the financial impact. The results in the report also indicate Wells Fargo is on track to complete the number of refinances necessary to satisfy the entire credit in the first 12 months of offering the refinance program, and to meet its commitments on the modification and other consumer relief programs within the required timeframes, as the company had estimated in previous disclosures.
The geographic distribution of Wells Fargoas consumer relief and refinance activities was consistent with the distribution of its portfolio and also reflects the fact that the financial commitments under the settlement are focused on borrowers who are in a negative equity position.
aWhile Wells Fargo services a total of approximately 12 million home loans, our settlement-related consumer relief and refinance activities are focused on the nearly 3 million of those loans that also are owned by the company,a noted DeVito. aHowever, we work with all of our customersa"across all marketsa"who are looking to refinance their loans and those who are experiencing financial hardships to identify options based on their individual financial circumstances and investor requirements.a
The company also indicated that through June 2012 it had implemented approximately one third of the servicing standards required under the settlement and anticipates that all of the standards will be implemented on schedule by early October 2012.
aWe believe that implementing the servicing standards has been a productive process that enables Wells Fargo and the servicers that are party to the settlement to operate under a common set of rules and expectations, and enable the independent monitor to consistently evaluate servicer compliance and performance,a DeVito concluded.
About Wells Fargo
Wells Fargo Home Mortgage is the nationas leading mortgage lender and services one of every six mortgage loans in the nation. A division of Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., it has a national presence in mortgage stores and banking stores, and also serves the home financing needs of customers nationwide through its call centers, Internet presence and third-party production channels. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. is an equal housing lender.
Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) is a nationwide, diversified, community-based financial services company with $1.3 trillion in assets. Founded in 1852 and headquartered in San Francisco, Wells Fargo provides banking, insurance, investments, mortgage, and consumer and commercial finance through more than 9,000 stores, 12,000 ATMs, the Internet ([ wellsfargo.com ]), and has offices in more than 35 countries to support the bankas customers who conduct business in the global economy. With approximately 265,000 full-time equivalent team members, Wells Fargo serves one in three households in the United States. Wells Fargo & Company was ranked No. 26 on Fortuneas 2012 rankings of Americaas largest corporations. Wells Fargoas vision is to satisfy all our customersa financial needs and help them succeed financially.
