It Shouldn't Hurt This Much to Get a Mortgage - Barry Ritholtz

So-called stated-income and no-doc loans enabled just about anyone to get a mortgage in the 2000s. This was regardless of income, debt ratio, credit history or appraised value of the property. In the past, I referred to this as "Loan Origination Fraud." The solution is obvious: Go back to verifying income, checking credit scores and requiring a down payment. What lenders do now goes beyond absurd. They don't need to see every check written during the past 24 months. ''