It always seems hindsight in 20/20 when it comes to just about every area of our short lives. Although when it comes to finances prudence and self discipline are most often the most careful ways of ensuring stability. It seems however that greed can sometimes overshadow even the most responsible of persons.

I still remember my first day at Countrywide all those years ago. It was a new and exciting time for me as it was my first step into the mortgage lending arena. As I stepped onto the floor and made my way towards my new desk I had a feeling of excitement as I sat down into this new world. Many of the things I learned in those first few weeks molded me into a good salesperson. Countrywide did an excellent job of teaching me how to sell and deal with all kinds of rebuttals and to work hard at it. However in no more than just a few days I learned what drove this large companies subprime's division.

Greed.

Now don't get me wrong. Countrywide is not the only culprit, and certainly isn't all bad in every facet of their business. But what I saw early on was their subprime side had greed that knew no limits. It wasn't uncommon to hear people being proud of selling "The Five Point Special". They would quote clients rates based on 5% in fees (discount) of the loan amount. What was even more sad to me was that clients would often take it and never complain. It seemed they trusted the "Big Lender" because of a name and would rarely turn down the loan.

It certainly wasn't a majority of the people, but it was the culture that was created there. There was no training on what one "Ought to Do" for a client. On the contrary it seemed that the only real measure was how many units you funded every month. Customer service seemed only important when it was required because a client had called to complain.

So it doesn't surprise me when I hear that Countrywide is trading at $15.06 (1:20pm EST), or is in danger of bankruptcy. It is sad because there are a lot of good people that work in that company. A lot of good loan officers and good management that pour their every waking hour into that company being successful. There are and will continue to be people who come and go out of that company without anyone batting an eye. It is sad that such a giant in the lending world could have done so much to prevent what is happening right now.

It's possible that even with continual problems that Countrywide finds an out because of their close relationship with the Federal Reserve, and I truly hope that for the employees sake and for the sake of their customers they don't go bankrupt. My hope is that at the end of all of this mess they truly learn a lesson and their fiduciary responsibility. Of course we have seen this before with other companies that the world was sure would never fall.

In the end what matters most is customer service and doing the right thing for your clients. I truly hope for the sake of their customers that Countrywide starts putting their priorities back on the client and responsible lending.

Link To Bloomberg Article