Can I get access to all the details of the Settlement Agreement?
Yes. You can review the text of the Settlement Agreement by clicking the links below.
Settlement Agreement
Annex 1 — Statement of Facts
Annex 2 — Consumer Relief
Annex 3 — RMBS Covered by the Settlement
How long does Credit Suisse have to provide the required consumer relief?
Under the settlement, Credit Suisse agreed to provide the required consumer relief by December 31, 2021. However, Credit Suisse has indicated that it does not expect to meet that deadline, and anticipates that its loan modification relief efforts pursuant to the Settlement Agreement will likely continue for at least five more years.
What is the Settlement Agreement about?
The Settlement Agreement is the deal reached between the U.S. Department of Justice and Credit Suisse in January of 2017 to resolve claims related to Credit Suisse’s creation and sale of residential mortgage-backed securities.
If you’d like to read the Department of Justice’s announcement of the agreement, click here.
What does the agreement require Credit Suisse to do?
Credit Suisse must provide $2.8 billion in consumer relief, in addition to the civil penalty of $2.48 billion it has already paid. Unlike the civil penalty that Credit Suisse simply pays out, Credit Suisse need not spend $2.8 billion to meet its consumer relief obligation. Under the settlement, Credit Suisse earns “credit” toward its $2.8 billion obligation by providing the types of consumer relief listed in the settlement. Credit Suisse can earn more “credit” for some types of consumer relief than others. As a result, Credit Suisse will ultimately be able to meet its $2.8 billion obligation by spending less than $2.8 billion.
Under the settlement, Credit Suisse may provide the following types of consumer relief:
Loan modifications for homeowners having trouble making their mortgage payments
Loan extinguishments for borrowers with second or more junior mortgages
Funding for affordable housing developments
Who is the Monitor?
The Monitor for the Settlement Agreement is Neil M. Barofsky. He is a partner at the law firm
Jenner & Block LLP. He previously served as a federal prosecutor and as the Presidentially-appointed first special inspector general of the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program.
What is the Monitor’s job?
The Monitor’s role is to oversee Credit Suisse’s obligation to provide $2.8 billion in consumer relief. His job is to write public reports on Credit Suisse’s consumer relief effort, validate the credits earned by Credit Suisse, and ultimately certify whether Credit Suisse has fulfilled its end of the Settlement Agreement.
The Monitor does not represent any of the parties to the Settlement Agreement. Neither Credit Suisse nor the Department of Justice may control or direct the Monitor’s work.
The Monitor does not have the authority to intervene in individual cases and cannot provide legal or tax advice to individual homeowners or organizations.
You can contact the Monitor by emailing creditsuisse.monitor@rmbsmonitor.com.
To view the press release on the Monitor’s first report, click here.
What types of consumer relief will Credit Suisse provide to homeowners under the Settlement Agreement?
Credit Suisse has agreed to modify residential mortgage loans through principal and balance forgiveness (meaning that the borrower does not have to pay back the full amount of the loan), as well as principal forbearance (meaning that a portion of the amount the borrower has to pay back is delayed until the end of the loan). Credit Suisse may also erase second lien residential mortgage loans and unsecured mortgage debt.
How do I know if I am entitled to relief, and how much?
If you are a homeowner with a loan serviced by SPS, you may be eligible for relief. However, just because your loan is serviced by SPS doesn’t necessarily mean that you are, in fact, entitled to relief — Credit Suisse will make individual determinations about eligibility and the amount of relief. If you meet the criteria for consumer relief, you may be contacted by SPS.
You can also call SPS at 1-888-818-6032. Use this number if you’re a homeowner with a loan serviced by SPS who would like to go over loan modifications or other mortgage assistance options that may be available to you.
If your loan is not serviced by SPS, you should know that other mortgage servicers may be offering similar forms of relief. Contact your servicer to find out what options are available to you. For more information and helpful links, visit the Monitor’s Resources page.
How do I know whether SPS is my mortgage servicer?
If you’re getting your monthly mortgage statement from SPS, then SPS is your mortgage servicer.
How can I contact SPS?
You can call SPS at 1-888-818-6032. Use this number if you’re a homeowner with a loan serviced by SPS who would like to go over loan modifications or other mortgage assistance options that may be available to you.
For any other inquiries, SPS may be reached by phone at 1-800-258-8602, by fax at 1-801-293-3936, or by mail addressed to:
Select Portfolio Servicing, Inc.
P.O. Box 65250
Salt Lake City, UT 84165-0250
Please, make sure you include your loan account number on each page of any piece of mail you send to SPS.
Can I meet with SPS in person?
SPS hosts three borrower outreach events each year in various locations throughout the U.S. At these events, homeowners whose loans are serviced by SPS and who are in default or at risk of default on their loans can meet one-on-one with SPS’s mortgage assistance counselors to discuss possible mortgage assistance options. Homeowners can submit the documentation necessary to complete mortgage assistance applications on-site and, when possible, SPS will give same-day decisions to homeowners informing them of whether they are eligible for mortgage assistance.
Homeowners may call SPS at 1-800-258-8602 to obtain the locations and dates of upcoming outreach events. Approximately thirty days in advance of each outreach event, SPS will reach out to local homeowners whose loans are serviced by SPS and who may be eligible for mortgage assistance, and encourage them to attend. The Monitor will also post information about outreach events that will be held in the next thirty days here.
My loan is in one of the RMBS trusts listed in Annex 3 of the Settlement Agreement. Does this mean that I’m entitled to claim relief?
Loans included in the RMBS listed in Annex 3 may be, but are not necessarily, eligible for relief.
Homeowners whose loans are serviced by SPS and who wish to find out if they are eligible for relief should contact SPS by phone at 1-888-818-6032.
Other mortgage servicers may offer similar forms of relief. Homeowners whose loans are not serviced by SPS may wish to contact their servicers to find out what options are available to them. They may also consult the information and links on the Monitor’s Resources page.
What are the tax consequences associated with the consumer relief?
Homeowners who are offered loan modifications or other forms of relief under the Settlement Agreement may wish to consult a lawyer or tax advisor to discuss their finances and the potential impact of the relief.
For loan modifications that include debt forgiveness, homeowners may have to pay income tax on the amount of debt forgiven. This is because the amount of debt forgiven is generally considered income to the homeowner in the year forgiven, unless the homeowner qualifies for a tax exclusion. Importantly, federal laws regarding the taxation of debt forgiveness changed under the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007, which exempted certain homeowners from paying income tax on debt forgiveness for certain tax years. That Act has been modified and extended several times since its passage, and currently extends through the 2025 tax year.
The Monitor’s Resources page includes links and other information that may assist homeowners who would like the assistance of a lawyer or tax advisor but who do not know where to obtain it or who cannot afford it.
The Monitor cannot represent or provide legal or tax advice to individual homeowners.
What if I have additional questions? How can I find out more?
If you still have questions about the Settlement Agreement, please feel free to contact the Monitor by emailing creditsuisse.monitor@rmbsmonitor.com.
