Andy Neidus, branch manager of American Midwest Mortgage in Mayfield Heights, Ohio, recounted to The Plain Dealer his experience watching lending standards rapidly unravel in the runup to the housing meltdown, as lenders introduced increasingly exotic loans and loan officers with “questionable ethics” proliferated.
“The most unbelievable moment for me was the day that we were introduced to the ‘option ARM loan,’ ” Neidus said. “… I remember laughing about this loan with my fellow loan officers, after the guy from Countrywide left, as there was no logical way that we could disclose the APR to our customers.”