Pulte OKs settlement in Arizona loan probe

One of Arizona's largest homebuilders, Pulte Home Corp., has agreed to pay $1.18 million to settle a state investigation into how it marketed mortgages to homebuyers. The state Attorney General's Office claimed the builder had misled potential buyers and sometimes inappropriately kept their deposits, among other practices. Part of the settlement will reimburse consumers who lost money. The announcement marks the first time a state prosecutor has penalized a homebuilder over lending practices and could be part of a larger crackdown on the way mortgages were marketed and drawn up during 2004-07, metro Phoenix's housing boom. The Arizona attorney general's yearlong investigation into Pulte began after the office received complaints from consumers who said they had been misled about buying homes or applying for mortgages during that time.

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