The news continues to get worse for mortgage lender Countrywide. The latest mortgage news is that the FBI is probing Countrywide in an effort to determine whether the mortgage lender engaged in fraudulent lending practices. According to CNN Money, the FBI probe into Countrywide, the nation’s largest mortgage lender, will consider the underwriting and loan origination practices of the company, as well as whether Countrywide misstated its losses from subprime loans.

The New York Times reports on efforts by the FBI to step up investigation of mortgage fraud in general over the past few years:

For years, the F.B.I. has been warning that mortgage fraud is a
significant and growing problem. In the 2006 fiscal year, it documented
35,600 reports of suspected mortgage fraud, up from 22,000 the year
before and 7,000 in 2003.