Despite billions of dollars in fines and numerous new regulations, the mortgage industry has still been breaking the law. A new report by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau details how the industry has continued abusing consumers, and why we need an agency tasked with protecting our rights. According to this report, mortgage servicing companies have been forging paperwork, illegally foreclosing on homes, and even forcing borrowers to sign away their legal rights just to get a loan modification.

These companies are essentially the middle men between banks and borrowers, handling everything from mortgage payments to the foreclosure process, but they haven't been doing their jobs. The CFPB report found that several servicing companies were flat-out incompetent, and others were just ignoring the law. Because of these findings, the CFPB banned these companies from participating in federal mortgage modification programs, and collected millions of dollars for wronged consumers in the second half of last year.

The CFPB's report shows that companies like this cannot be trusted, and that government regulation and enforcement are necessary to protect consumers. Billions in fines, bad press, and even an economic collapse were not enough to stop these companies from preying on Americans, but thankfully the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is sticking up for us.