A new report is accusing the Trump administration of not practicing what it preaches regarding political figures with multiple mortgages that each claim to be for a primary residence.
An investigative article published by ProPublica has found Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin each have two mortgaged residences that are both identified as primary residences on their home loan applications.
In recent weeks, the administration has pushed the argument that having more than one mortgaged property identified as a primary residence is evidence of mortgage fraud. Under that argument, Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte has made criminal referrals of mortgage fraud against two longtime Trump foes, New York Attorney General Letitia James and California’s Sen. Adam Schiff. The mortgage fraud accusation has also been cited as cause for Trump’s attempt to remove Lisa Cook from the Federal Reserve Board of Governors.
However, the administration appears to be unconcerned over potential mortgage fraud by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Trump ally who was the subject of media reports that found he had mortgages on three residences that he identified as primary residences. Pulte angrily refused to talk about the Paxton case when pressed on the matter during a CNBC interview yesterday.
A White House spokesperson responded to the ProPublica report by stating, “This is just another hit piece from a left-wing dark money group that constantly attempts to smear President Trump’s incredible Cabinet members. Unlike Lisa ‘Corrupt’ Cook who blatantly and intentionally committed mortgage fraud, Secretary DeRemer, Secretary Duffy, and Administrator Zeldin own multiple residences, and they have followed the law and they are fully compliant with all ethical obligations.”
While the Department of Justice is reportedly conducting an investigation into the Cook case, the administration has not produced any evidence that Cook “intentionally committed mortgage fraud.”
There will not be anything close to a level playing field until this administration is gone.
YES, YES, YES
having said that there a few gov. organizations which have come to light which should be shut done and or FIXED.
This was always going to be a double-edged sword. What they should do is go thru the housing records and expose all government employees, politicians of any party and government appointed officials that have mortgaged a property as the primary residence and still has mortgage on another property as the primary residence. They will probably fill volumes of ledgers with the names. The other scam is flippers who mortgage a property they bought cheap, fixed up and mortgaged as a primary residence or just held it, lived there, mailing address, etc. for a year, then sell as their primary residence and avoid capital gains. Publish everything.
ANOTHER REAZON WHY CONGRESS SHOULD IMPEACH AND REMOVE TRUMP. HOPFULLY CONGRESS REALIZE THE MISTAKE MADE WHEN TRUMP WAS NOT REMOVED THE FIRST TIME HE WAS IMPEACHED. WAKE UP CONGRESS?? SLEEPINGH FOR TO LONG.
Huh, this comment section is strangely quiet as compared to many other WRE articles I’ve read lately…
You can have multiple mortgages that were taken out as your primary domicile on the application. The illegal issues arise if you take out two or more mortgages at the same time because you can only have one primary location. Some say that a short time period (30 days) between filing for financing is allowable, due to circumstances in your life. You need to relocate for work, a larger or smaller family, etc, but if you represent a State and the State’s rules say you must be a resident of that State, then sign under penalty of perjury, and file financial documents that you live in another state to save a quarter point on your loan, something is going to happen to you
explained perfectly. Buy a house in 2022 as a primary, turn it into a rental in 2025 with refinancing is 100% legal and then go buy another primary. You could do it every year and own 10+ all financed as primary residences. If you have an obligation for your job to live in a state and claim a primary residence outside of that state you are likely committing fraud. That said, they should look into all of them and then transparently tell the public what happened and crack down on the fraud. Fed governors should be held to a higher standard, especially when it comes to setting policy that sets and/or influences rates, as should the POTUS.
EXACTLY. I was confused on this article because unless you are buying investment property, and the intent of the next purchase is to be a primary residence…. that loan application and mortgage is going to have PRIMARY on it. If they purchased a home 3-5 years prior, indeed it will have PRIMARY on the mortgage. This story is written in a way to cause bait hate and pure ignorance to how the loan process works. Perhaps the author should know and understand and research more of the mortgage loan process before trying to throw people under the public bus unnecessarily. If this were something wrong, then everyone who has every purchased more than 1 home in their lifetime, would be called out. All their historical loans will have PRIMARY on their applications.
Of course Nathan is correct in his interpretation, and, as Marlow points out, this author, and all others, be they on the right or left, should do a little research, and then be honest in their portrail of each individual situation – guess that “the truth doesn’t sell many newapapers”, as the old satying goes…..
The MAGA crowd is awfully quiet now that the tables are turned. They want to lock up the democrats before a full investigation is conducted. Trump is calling it fake news but why wouldn’t he. If ANYONE committed mortgage fraud and it’s proven, they need to be prosecuted–democrat or republican, period! Pulte didn’t find these, he is only looking for democrats
I wish this was the worst thing he has done. This is petty compared to what he had Doge do to us all.
Is it considered mortgage fraud if I as a parent am on a mortgage with my Son and he DOES live in the home as his Primary Residence – and the Application states that….. but it’s not My primary… Sorry… that’s not fraud! So, this scenario could easily be the Lisa Cook or any of the other people listed as committing mortgage fraud. Facts do matter.
In Georgia the counties cooperate and if you file as a resident in more than one county they find out and make you choose which is correct. Shouldn’t the States do the same?
As a 40 year real estate and mortgage broker, I believe Richard correctly stated it depends on the timing. Its very common and absolutely legal to have applied for a owner occupied loan. Live in the property. Then buy another home with a owner occupied loan and move into it, and rent the 1st home. There is no legal limit as to how many times you can do it. It would look suspicious if it happened more than once or twice a year. Both loans were to be owner occupied at the time of application and no law was broken. It totally depends if you moved into the house you bought. If you bought the house and rented it without moving in or you flipped it for a profit without moving in that would be mortgage fraud. So before we start making any political assumptions against either side without all the information maybe we should know all the facts first.
I’m curious as to how people are learning what was on a loan app years ago. Are mortgage lenders and broker scouring their old files and publishing the dirt ? The place to look is at their property taxes, if any. When you are an owner occupant and meet certain State requirements, your State property tax’s may be reduced for owner occupancy. And given the “efficiency” of our various State agencies, you often see people who legitimately were owner occupants year ago but after a few years moved and turned the old place into a rental – but absentmindedly forgot to change the tax reporting to non-owner occupied. Oh well ! Such is human ? And what about the argument that my family home in out back USA is a main home, but my condo in DC where I work and which is my payroll tax home is also a “main home” ? Lots to chew here beyond casting political aspersions .
I was in mortgage lending for many years and owned several properties as well. When I purchased those properties, I lived in them and obtained an owner occupied rate and fees. Later almost all of them were converted to rentals. On each, there was a significant elapsed time between the change of occupancy. I always counseled my borrowers to truthfully represent their intention to occupy the property and not misrepresent it. Also the certification on the application was “intend to occupy”.
I wonder if President Trump will give them an 11-year blanket Pardon for anything they ever did or will do in the near future?
Perhaps that is reserved for Biden Family Members. The only time we have ever heard of such a thing was during the four years Doctor Jill served as President.
ACES!
I think this is FAKE NEWS
Timing is everything. If someone purchases a home as their primary residence and moves into the property, then months later takes a job in another area, keeps his/her property as a rental and then purchases another home as their primary residence – that’s legal. So, unless we know the exact timing of when mortgage applications and closings took place, we really can’t comment. Just to say someone purchased multiple homes and said they were their primary residence isn’t enough to accuse wrongdoing.
Everyone in the US who has two or more properties listed as primary residences on mortgage applications should be fired from their jobs today.
I’m thinking Sean Duffy didn’t list his mother as his wife on any of the documents, though.