Subprime giant Ameriquest Mortgage  has agreed to pay $325 million to settle claims with 49 states that the company engaged in abusive lending practices.  Ameriquest Mortgage is a so called Direct Lender! 

Ameriquest owes Utahns
Up to 3,000 eligible for refunds from lender
By Linda Fantin 
The Salt Lake Tribune
Ameriquest owes Utahns - The Salt Lake Tribune - Jan 24 10:43 PM 
Article Last Updated: 01/25/2006 02:54:42 AM 

Up to 3,000 Utahns may be eligible for refunds under a $325 million settlement with Ameriquest Mortgage Company, accused by borrowers nationwide of fraud and predatory lending practices. 

The deal is the second-largest mortgage settlement in U.S. history, and yet the repayments - pegged at about $600 per person - pale in comparison to what many consumers say they are owed by the California-based lender.

Under the deal announced Monday (website editor's note: Jan. 23, 2006), about 725,000 borrowers in 49 states and the District of Columbia could be entitled to some portion of the settlement, which awards $295 million to consumers and $30 million to help states cover their investigatory costs. Utah's share is $1.875 million for consumers and $125,000 for the state.   read more

Jefferson City, Mo. - infoZine - More than 10,000 Missouri consumers who borrowed money through Ameriquest Mortgage Co., the nation's largest sub-prime lender, will be eligible for restitution payments totaling approximately $3.2 million from the company.

The restitution is part of a $325 million nationwide agreement between Ameriquest and 49 states announced today by Attorney General Jay Nixon. Nixon says this is the second-largest state or federal consumer protection settlement in history, after the $484 million predatory lending agreement reached in 2002 between most states and Household Finance Corp.read more