Thursday, June 06, 2013

wells fargo: Wells Fargo settles allegations over foreclosed homes - chicagotribune.com

wells fargo: Wells Fargo settles allegations over foreclosed homes - chicagotribune.com: The National Fair Housing Alliance and 13 of its members, including two suburban Chicago groups, will receive $27 million from Wells Fargo to resolve a 14-month-old federal housing discrimination complaint that alleged the bank took better care of its bank-owned foreclosures in white neighborhoods than those in African-American and Latino communities.

In the Chicago area, HOPE Fair Housing Center, based in West Chicago, and Homewood-based South Suburban Housing Center, will share $2.8 million in funds and offer grants for down payment assistance to homebuyers in neighborhoods hard hit by foreclosure that are targeted for revitalization.

Altogether, the $27 million will be used to improve homeownership and neighborhood stabilization efforts in 19 cities, under an agreement announced Thursday.

The Washington, D.C.-based alliance, a consortium of private, nonprofit fair housing groups, initially filed a complaint against Wells Fargo, as well as U.S. Bancorp, with HUD in April 2012. Chicago was named in the U.S. Bancorp complaint but not included in the Wells Fargo complaint.