Mortgage Informer

For the most part, the mortgage crisis we’ve been hearing about has related to individuals and their home mortgages. But it was inevitable that a flagging economy was going to be more readily apparent in the commercial sector sometime soon. The Associated Press reports that shopping malls are feeling the pain, with a few properties going into foreclosure and more to soon follow.

It’s not hard to envision how and why this is happening. Retailers have been struggling for most of the year, and the massive number of shoppers out on Black Friday probably won’t be enough to save several big names. As retailers go out of business or file bankruptcy, the shopping malls are losing revenue, putting their survival in question as well.

Bush administration ignored warnings of sketchy lending practices on home loans.

Only time will tell how the Bush administration will be remembered, but a new report by The Associated Press could leave a lingering black mark on the presidency.

The report details how the administration failed to act on warnings about sketchy lending practices by some financial institutions. Those practices — primarily granting mortgages with no downpayment, often to home buyers without jobs or any apparent ability to repay the loans — later played a key role in sending the economy into its current tailspin.

Sterlent Credit Union, a 13,000-member state-chartered credit union based in Pleasanton, will be liquidated.

Sterlent is the second East Bay credit union to fail in the wake of the subprime mortgage crisis. The liquidation comes just weeks after Patelco Credit Union of San Francisco absorbed the troubled Cal State 9 credit union.

The California Department of Financial Institutions and the National Credit Union Administration ordered the liquidation. The NCUA will act as the liquidating institution. The NCUA entered into an agreement with Patelco to sell certain assets and liabilities of Sterlent to Patelco.