Source: WENN

Last week, we told you that Queen of Hip Hop Soul, Mary J. Blige had found herself in quite a bind when financial institution, Bank of America filed a $511,000 lawsuit against her with the Manhattan Supreme Court. Court documents allege that she defaulted on a $500k loan that she took out with the bank back in 2005. Although the Grammy Award-winnng singer is not confirming or denying these claims, she did comment on her name being negatively strewn across media headlines.

“There’s really nothing you can say about the negative things that are in the media about you. All you can do is keep pushing, keep your head up and just let people be people. [Let] haters hate and just do what you do. Use all of that to fuel you to do something better,” the Betty and Coretta star told Hip Hollywood as she strolled the red carpet at the Vibe Impact Awards, where she was being honored.

The “Real Love” singer, who appears to be taking it all in stride, went on to express how honored she was to be recognized by Vibe for her achievements throughout the years.

“I think it’s great to be honored with the Impact Award tonight because I believe I’ve made an impact on so many people’s lives and it feels good,” the 9-time Grammy Award-winner expressed.

There’s no arguing with that. Mary has an amazing story that can serve as an inspiration to many. We hope that she is able to work out any financial issues that she may be facing and get back to putting out great music.

 Check out footage of Mary’s full interview on the next page. What do you think of her response? 

Source: WENN

It seems as if it’s every other day that we hear about celebrities finding themselves in the midst of icky court battles with financial institutions over large sums of unpaid money. Unfortunately, the latest poster child for mismanaged funds is our girl Mary J. Blige, reports the New York Post.

It is being alleged that the 41-year-old Queen of Hip Hop Soul defaulted on a $500,000 Bank of America loan. According to the Manhattan Supreme Court, the “Mr. Wrong” singer took out the loan back in 2005 and had faithfully made payments all the way up until June of 2011. That’s a huge problem, considering it’s February 2013.

As as result of her failure to pay off the rest of her loan, the nine-time Grammy Award winning singer now owes the financial institution $511,000, which includes a $497,000 unpaid principle in addition to interest. So far, no representatives from Blige’s camp have returned any phone calls or released any statements regarding the matter.

Hopefully, this is all some sort of misunderstanding and Mary can pay off her debt, clearing her name. But, the proof appears to be in the pudding, espcially since this isn’t the first time the New York native has defaulted on a hefty loan.

I’m always curious as to how regular people with modest salaries understand and recognize what happens when you don’t pay your bills, but  celebrities living lavish lifestyles don’t get it. When things like this happen is the actual celebrity to blame or their financial advisor or accountant? Do they forget they owe money or do they just flat out not care? I wish someone would do a one-time television special on the subject. Inquiring minds want to know. Possibly, it could replace the vacant slot where Shawty Lo’s All My Babies’ Mamas would’ve aired…

What do you make of Mary’s latest financial woes?

Jazmine Denise is a news writer for Madame Noire. Follow her on Twitter @jazminedenise

AP Photo/Eric Risberg

Bank of America has agreed to pay Fannie Mae $10 billion to settle claims that the bank’s Countrywide Financial business issued home loans that contributed to the housing crash and economic recession in 2008.

“Both Fannie and Freddie [Mac], which have suffered billions of dollars in losses in recent years, have argued that Countrywide misrepresented the quality of home loans that it sold to the two entities at the height of the mortgage bubble,” The New York Times reports. “Bank of America assumed those troubles when it bought Countrywide in 2008.” The bank will pay $3.6 billion to Fannie Mae and buy back $6.75 billion in mortgages.

Bank of America is trying to get out of the mortgage business all together, but as the Times reports, they’ve run into problems with other outstanding lawsuits, including one from the Justice Department that could take $1 billion to settle. Last week, The Wall Street Journal reported that that settlement, which is meant “to compensate minority borrowers for alleged discrimination,” has been delayed with homeowners still being contacted and the possibility that checks won’t go out for another two years.

“The department said Countrywide charged black and Hispanic borrowers higher mortgage-lending fees or steered them into costly subprime loans even though their credit histories qualified them for a mortgage with more favorable terms,” the WSJ says. In its response, BofA tries to distance itself from Countrywide’s pre-acquisition business practices. Recipients will get between $200 and more than $15,000.

Bank of America is also participating in an $8.5 billion settlement (along with other financial institutions like JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, and Citibank) to settle bad loan claims. Only $3.3 billion will go directly to borrowers (3.8 million customers total). The rest will be used for loan modifications and other adjustments, according to Forbes.

iStockphoto

As the holidays approach, some consumers will receive refunds and restitution from credit card companies, a penalty for misleading consumers with deceptive credit card practices.

Earlier this year, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a consumer finance watchdog organization that was launched in 2011 in the wake of the economic meltdown, ordered American Express, Discover, and Capital One to payout more than $425 million in refunds.

“We think this is definitely a case of enforcement getting better,” Bill Hardekopf, CEO of credit card comparison site LowCards.com, told the Sacramento Bee. He said the CFPB “is establishing the fact that they mean business. Their ‘calling’ is to look after consumers and they are trying to show that they will do just that.”

Of the three credit card companies, American Express subsidiaries were ordered to pay $85 million to around 250,000 cardholders for a variety of illegal practices going all the way back to 2003. Capital One is sending $140 million to two million customers who purchased Capital One financial products after August 2010 and who may have been deceived or didn’t understand the products or items they were buying.

Lastly, Discover will pay $200 million for deceptive telemarketing tactics, including implying that certain paid features were free benefits and not explaining various fees and payments. More than 3.5 million customers will receive funds.

Bank of America, not part of the $425 million CPFB crackdown, is also refunding customers after some deceptive debit card practices that caused millions of customers to receive unfair overdraft fees. Bank of America is refunding $410 million to customers.

So keep an eye on your credit card accounts and mailboxes in the coming weeks if you think you are eligible for these refunds. You can learn more online.

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Banks are showing a little heart — finally. In wake of Hurricane Sandy several have announced that they are waiving bank fees.

JP Morgan Chase, which is the biggest bank in America, said they are do away with various fees until November 1, reports The Huffington Post. These fees include overdraft protection transfer and extended overdraft as well as late fees on credit cards, business and consumer loans, including mortgages, home-equity, auto and student loans.

Citibank, meanwhile, will not charge customers out-of-network ATM surcharges.

Wells Fargo, too, is offering relief from late fees through November 1 and waiving out-of-network ATM fees for customers in affected areas.

Bank of America said that if you incurred late fees because of the storm, contact the bank to have these fees dropped. This includes out-of-network ATM surcharges.

TD Bank customers can ask to have late-payment and out-of-network ATM fees waived.

And Barclays is waiving late fees as well through November 1.

So pay attention to your ATM receipts and online bank accounts to make sure you’re not incurring these charges.

AP Photo/Chuck Burton

Bank of America is getting slapped over and over again with lawsuits and legal complaints. About a month ago, the National Fair Housing Alliance filed a lawsuit after its research showed that the bank failed to maintain homes in minority neighborhoods, which led to vagrancy and crime in those communities and drove down housing prices in those areas.

Yesterday, the National Fair Housing Alliance (NFHA), the HOPE Fair Housing Center, the South Suburban Housing Center, the Metropolitan Milwaukee Fair Housing Council and the Fair Housing Center of Central Indiana filed a new complaint with the US Department of Housing and Urban Development alleging the same thing across black and Latino neighborhoods in Chicago, Indianapolis and Milwaukee. The new complaint is now part of an amended complaint including the previous lawsuit. Shanna L. Smith, president and CEO of the NFHA said in a statement:

  “Bank of America is not a good neighbor in communities of color.  Instead, one of the nation’s largest holders of foreclosed homes is busy making excuses and passing the buck when it comes to taking responsibility for the homes it owns or services.  In many White neighborhoods, Bank of America’s foreclosed properties fit in with most other homes for sale on the block, with manicured lawns and “for sale” signs.  African-American and Latino neighborhoods deserve equal treatment.”

Seventy-one percent of the BofA real estate owned properties (REOs) in Indianapolis were found to have “substantial amounts of trash.” In addition, the properties lack “For Sale” signs, have broken windows or broken locks.

In addition, BofA has been sued by the Manhattan US Attorney for a billion dollars for alleged mortgage fraud it engaged in against Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. According to Business Insider, “It all centers around something called ‘the Hustle,’ or (HSSL- High Speed Swim Lane) a strategy started in August of 2007 the D.A.’s office says Countrywide implemented in order to speed up the mortgage origination process.”

“Poor quality loans” resulted. And lots of them. The story says employees were given bonuses based on the number of loans they originated.

The government has filed such a large suit in the hopes of recovering the cost of the Fannie and Freddie bail outs.

“Countrywide and Bank of America systematically removed every check in favor of its own balance—they cast aside underwriters, eliminated quality controls, incentivized unqualified personnel to cut corners, and concealed the resulting defects,” US Attorney Preet Bharara told The Wall Street Journal. This is the second such lawsuit that he has brought against a big bank. Two weeks ago, he filed suit against Wells Fargo.

BofA paid billions on behalf of Merrill Lynch last month after claims that financial institution misled investors, among the tons of cash it has paid to settle legal troubles.

“Decisions to buy mortgage lender Countrywide and Merrill have forced Bank of America, run since 2010 by Chief Executive Brian Moynihan, to shoulder some $42 billion in litigation expenses, payouts and reserves, according to company figures,” writes the WSJ.

Image: AP Photo/Chuck Burton, File

Speaking of Bank of America, it’s being sued by The National Fair Housing Alliance for alleged “significant racial disparities” in its maintenance of bank-owned homes in minority neighborhoods.

The Alliance said they looked at 373 pieces of property that are owned or managed by the bank, or are otherwise being serviced by it. The analysis, which spanned in eight cities, looked for things like broken windows and overgrown lawns. The group found a discrepancy in the level of upkeep in black and Latino neighborhoods when compared to foreclosed houses in white neighborhoods. It’s not just that the houses aren’t maintained. The lack of maintenance drives down the value of homes surrounding the vacant property, and leads to vagrancy and crime, writes Think Progress.

BofA is the second largest mortgage lender in the US and it has been on notice about its failure to look after these homes since 2009. Now it, along with US Bancorp, is facing a lawsuit filed with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Bank of America provides a list of homes that are real estate owned (REO) around the country. If you know of a bank-owned home that’s fallen into disrepair, we’ll suggest that you bring it to the attention of the Alliance. Here’s their website. Info about this lawsuit is on the homepage now.

Image: Photodisc

Data analysis by financial publisher Bankrate.com finds that just 39 percent of “non-interest checking accounts” are free, a decline from 45 percent last year and 76 percent the year before. So not only are there fees, but the increase in the number of accounts that have them has been sharp.

The AP reports: “Among other fees, the average monthly service fee on checking accounts is a record $5.48, up 25 percent from the Bankrate survey a year ago. Also, the average fee charged by an ATM operator to a non-customer rose 4 percent to a record $2.50, Bankrate said.”

Banks say they’re charging the fees because of government regulations that could cost them “billions.” In other words, they’re passing the cost along to customers.

Well, customers are not having it. Nearly three-quarters of people say they would change banks if any additional fees were tacked on to their account. And they’re not lying either. About a year ago, Bank of America tried to charge $5 per month for debit card purchases. But after a customer revolt, they decided not to. Wanting to avoid the PR disaster, other banks who had planned additional charges followed in BofA’s footsteps.

Interestingly, Bankrate.com found that houses making more than $75,000 per year were the ones most likely to switch banks if new fees were proposed. Which just shows why people with money have it; they look after every dollar. If your bank adds a charge for using another bank’s ATM, try not to do that. In some cases, you’re paying a fee for using an ATM at a bank that’s not yours, and then your bank will add another fee. One transaction can cost as much as $5. Do that twice in a week, and that’s the cost of lunch. It sounds silly, but walk an extra block at lunch to save on that fee. It’s good exercise.

Even with the fees, it’s important that households have, at the very least, a checking account at a reputable bank. You’ll recall our story from just a couple of weeks ago, saying that more than a fifth of black families don’t have a bank account. Instead they’re using cash and alternative financial services, like payday loans, to take care of bills and expenses. These alternatives have fees that far outweigh those that the banks are charging. If you have to pay, better to pay the lower price.

Source: mybanktracker.com

From BlackVoices.com

Two separate lawsuits alleging racial discrimination were filed in federal court in New York on Friday, against Bank of America and investment bank Cantor Fitzgerald.

Jack Mitchell, who is black and worked as a manager at Bank of America from February 2007 to July 2008, alleges the bank maintained an “apartheid” system of business allocation, believing white clients would not want to be served by African American employees.

Under this system, Mitchell alleges, employees such as himself were routinely assigned to branches in low-income black communities, negatively affecting his compensation. Mitchell claims he was fired in retaliation for complaining about “the bank’s racist practices.”

Bank of America spokesman Bill Halldin declined to comment on the suit but said that “diversity and inclusion are part of Bank of America’s culture and core values.”

Mitchell is seeking damages of not less than $10 million.

Read about the other racial discrimination lawsuit filed against Bank of America on BlackVoices.com.

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Source: accidentalsexiness.com

Checks must not be coming in like they used to for Chi-town rapper Common because he’s reportedly neglected to pay a very important debt—his mortgage.

According to legal documents obtained by TMZ:

Common (real name Lonnie Lynn) and his manager, Derek Dudley, got a mortgage for a condo back in 2008. But Bank of America claims … beginning in March, the duo stopped making the monthly, $2,285 mortgage payments.

So now BOA is getting tough, filing foreclosure docs. The Bank wants to sell the property, and recoup the amount of the mortgage, plus interest and penalties, which total $345,389 … and 52 cents.

I’m not trying to count the rapper/actor’s ends but between him and his manager they ought to have been able to come up with $2,200. Maybe the celeb is planning to file for bankruptcy and has been instructed not to pay any of his outstanding debts, although that’s not a good look for him either.

So far, his reps haven’t commented on the situation. Let’s just hope Common doesn’t pop up homeless.

Brande Victorian is the news and operations editor for madamenoire.com. Follow her on twitter @Be_Vic.

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