FTC Returns $1.5 Million to Consumers from Mortgage Lender Charged With Illegally Discriminating Against Hispanic Borrowers

WASHINGTON, D.C. – April 26, 2011 – (RealEstateRama) — On April 22, 2011, an administrator working for the Federal Trade Commission mailed 3,162 refund checks to borrowers allegedly harmed by Golden Empire Mortgage, Inc. and Howard D. Kootstra. The refund checks stem from a lawsuit the FTC filed against Golden Empire and Kootstra, alleging that they illegally charged Hispanic consumers higher prices for mortgage loans than non-Hispanic white consumers – price disparities that could not be explained by the applicants’ credit characteristics or underwriting risk.