Relief, but only if they can't sue us…

I’m sure most of you who follow the real estate/mortgage biz saw this headline earlier in the week, but for those who didn’t… Bank of America is looking at a deal with federal and state prosecutors – separate from the one they’re embroiled in over the robo-signing fiasco – that would offer expanded mortgage modifications or other relief to homeowners, including the possibility of principle reductions. In exchange, to quote Shahien Nasiripour of The Huffington Post, “Bank of America would receive an effective grant of immunity from government prosecution related to alleged mortgage and foreclosure wrongdoing.”

While Nasiripour reports that any deal is still in the very early stages, I’m curious to see where the discussion goes. From my experience, lenders are in the business of helping themselves, not their customers. If a deal is struck, no matter how much assistance is offered to homeowners – in whatever form – you can rest assured that it would still largely favor Bank of America…