Wachovia's hidden 'Watch Market Area' Guidelines

In a document obtained by the Mortgage Lender Implode-O-Meter dated April 29, 2008, Wachovia produced a matrix increasing minimum credit scores and dropping LTV's, most down to 65%. An example: Owner Occupied, Rate & Term Refi, Quick Qualify, minimum score 700, Max LTV/CLTV would be 65%. The matrix includes 8 little notes that further detail specific restrictions.

Unfortunately the document is for Wachovia internal use only, and the outside reps and AE's have not been told. We made numerous calls and were told this document does not exist, if it did exist it is wrong, and regardless of the first two points, it's not for release by email or any other method. Starting to get the picture?

We learned Wachovia comes up with their own distressed market data and areas. We were told it is developed by their Appraisal Dept. and not available for publication (another 'internal' document apparently). To find out if your loan is red-lined, you're supposed to input a zip code in their system, and it tells you if that county is considered a "Watch Market Area."

One AE when asked for a comment (knowing they were in a "Watch" area), said business as they knew it would just be "gone... time to start looking for a job." So here we present to you the 'real' guidelines, that great lengths had been attempted to keep it encrypted and private, and in our eyes, unfairly withheld from both AE's and Brokers. If your deal gets turned down, or the review appraisal drops the value suddenly, maybe the answer is in this document.

Click any of the links for the format of your choice: Adobe Acrobat 5.0 and later; Adobe Acrobat 4.0 and later; a Microsoft WORD file; a gif image file.