- In Search of America's ‘Hottest Forecasters’
- Dow vs. S&P 500: Which is a Better Investment?
- Mick Fleetwood on the MP3 ‘Dumbing Down’ of Music
- Avis on the Road to Strong Growth: Analyst
- Private Homebuilders: Dead Men Walking
- LinkedIn’s Growth Is Already Priced In: Analyst
- The Real Reason Behind Bank of America’s Rally
- 5 Hedge Funds’ Top Stocks Soar After 2011 Rout
- This Valentine’s Day Love Is Served on a Silver Platter
- Maine Caucuses a Chance to Right the Romney Ship
- Greek Debt Saga Back on Center Stage for Markets
- Greece Now Struggles to Overcome Mistrust
- Obama Budget Bets Other Concerns Will Trump the Deficit
- China President-in-Waiting to Sample Slices of America
- MF Global Trustee Sees Shortfall of $1.6 Billion
- Iran to Announce 'Very Important' Nuclear Progress
- Traveling Light in a Time of Digital Thievery
- UK Police Arrest Five at Murdoch's Sun Newspaper
MOST SHARED
- Amid Efforts to Rescue Greece, a Lack of Trust From Allies
- Greek Debt Saga Back on Center Stage for Markets
- Obama Budget Bets Other Concerns Will Trump the Deficit
- For China's Xi, Near-Summit Treatment and 'Iowa Nice'
- Obama Likely to Call for Cutting Top Corporate Tax Rate
- Greece Warns Bailout Rebels of Unknown, Dangerous Path
- When Love and the Fed Collide
- Mario Monti on Italy's Economic Future
Sub-Prime Lenders Hit by U.S. Housing Slump?
Text Size 
Senior Editor
The slump in the U.S. housing market is having a major impact on the risky sub-prime loan business--and on the big financial firms that invest in it. CNBC's Steve Liesman had the details on "Power Lunch." Liesman said that Fitch Ratings has placed the mortgage service business Ameriquest--the nation's biggest private mortgage company--on what Fitch calls "ratings watch evolving." The downgrade came a day after Ownit--a medium sized subprime lender-- shut its doors.
The company--formally known as AMC Mortgage Services--is said to be "experiencing financial pressures" as delinquencies rise in the sub-prime mortgage market.
Sub primes are loans with the lowest credit quality and often the highest risk. Ameriquest is the leader in the field with some $70 billion of originations.
Ameriquest has become well known for its advertisements touting its loans to the least qualified buyers. It was founded by California billionaire Roland E. Arnall--who was appointed last year as U.S. ambassador to the Netherlands by President George Bush.
Liesman says the company has been the subject of numerous class-actions suits--including those accusing it of predatory lending practices. The company paid $325 million to settle those claims in January--without admitting any wrong doing.
- Marketing clichés aside, sometimes diamonds are for investing.
- The ‘Fast Money’ traders weigh in on fashion related stocks from apparel to footwear.
- This list of the 10 most active cities for speed traps was compiled by Trapster.com. See if your town is there.
- This Valentine’s Day should prove a love fest for restaurants, as many couples will be dining out.
- Here’s a look at Westminster Kennel Club’s most successful breeds—and how much they cost.
- What kind of homes do celebrity couples share? Here’s our updated list. Take a look.
Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes
