Banks find way to benefit from robo-signing scandal

Big banks are finding a way to benefit from what was supposed to be their punishment in the robo-signing scandal. In Florida, they have spent 75 percent of $7.7 billion in settlement outlays approving short sales and forgiving home-equity loans, earning credit for debts they were unlikely to collect or sales that would have happened anyway, a monitor's report released Thursday shows. Only about 15 percent of the money has gone toward principal reductions or refinancings that would keep Floridians in their homes, the report states.