Arizona Real Estate Notebook

Should loan officers and mortgage brokers be responsible for letting a client choose a bad loan?

The following letter is a composite of many I have received recently from borrowers who took out option ARMs (OAs) in 2005 and 2006:

“I took this loan because the monthly payment was much lower than any of the alternatives … The interest rate was only 1 percent because I qualified for a special program … I was led to believe that it would last for five years … I realize now that it didn’t and that my loan balance has been going up every month … I am afraid that next year my payment is going to increase so much I won’t be able to afford it … How do I get out of this mess? Do I have recourse against the loan officer (broker) who talked me into it?”