In an “extremely unusual” move, WaMU goes to bat for Rep. Richardson

This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.

Just when you thought you were safe from news about U.S. Rep. Laura Richardson, Democrat of Long Beach: The Daily Breeze reports that her lender, Washington Mutual, is trying to help her get her foreclosed house back (That’s the house at right, located in Sacramento).

The Breeze’s Gene Maddaus: ‘The real estate broker who bought Rep. Laura Richardson’s house at a foreclosure sale last month is accusing her of receiving preferential treatment because her lender has issued a notice to rescind the sale.

Neither Richardson nor WaMu would talk to Maddaus about the situation. Richardson has yet to answer L.A. Land’s questions, posed in writing on May 22, about the Sacramento mortgage, and the modification to the mortgage she says she received from WaMu.

Catching up: I must confess I failed to post a story about Richardson’s car troubles. Here’s how the Long Beach Press-Telegram told it: ‘In 2005, when she was still on the Long Beach City Council, she left one mechanic in a lurch with an unpaid bill, then later had her badly damaged BMW towed to an auto body shop but didn’t pay for any work and abandoned the car there, owners of the businesses said this week. The next day, Richardson began using a city-owned vehicle -- putting almost 31,000 miles on it in about a year -- and continued driving the car five days after she had left the council to serve in the state Assembly, city records show.’

In a terrific example of public service journalism, though, the Press-Telegram did manage to get some money for the mechanic. It reports that Richardson paid the 2-year-old, $735 bill after the newspaper called seeking an interview about the unpaid debt.

Your thoughts? Comments? E-mail story tips to peter.viles@latimes.com.

More: ‘James York, owner of Red Rock Mortgage, said he would file a lawsuit against Richardson and her lender, Washington Mutual, by the end of the week, and has every intention of keeping the house. ‘I’m just amazed they’ve done this,’ York said. ‘They never would have done this for anybody else.’ ‘

Maddaus seeks out analysis from foreclosure expert Leo Nordine, who opines that a bank going to bat for a former homeowner in a situation such as this is ‘extremely unusual.’ ‘Unless [the borrower] filed bankruptcy beforehand, they’d never do it.’