Fed Governor Lisa Cook Declares Atlanta Property a ‘Vacation Home,’ According to Documents

Fed Governor Lisa: According to a document seen by Media, Lisa Cook, the Federal Reserve governor who was accused of mortgage fraud by the Trump administration, described the Atlanta house she bought to be a “vacation home” in the loan estimate.

Cook informed the lender that the Atlanta home would not be her main residence, according to the paperwork, which was provided to her by her credit union on May 28, 2021, only weeks before she finalized the purchase. According to two independent real estate specialists, the document seems to refute previous records that Cook’s detractors have used to bolster their allegations that she committed mortgage fraud by listing two separate residences as her principal address.

She also has a house in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and an investment property in Massachusetts, although she has always denied any impropriety with relation to her assets.
Using mortgage records from her homes in Atlanta and Michigan, administration officials, headed by Federal Housing Finance Agency director Bill Pulte, have accused Cook of using both as her “primary residence.” Pulte sent the case to the Department of Justice because of the suspected fraudulent assertions of residency, which might have improved mortgage and tax consequences for a homeowner. This prompted a federal inquiry and President Donald Trump’s decision to fire her.

Cook, who is still employed at the Federal Reserve, has filed a lawsuit against the president in an attempt to save her job. Whether Pulte or administration officials are aware of Cook’s Atlanta loan estimate was not accessible to Reuters. A request for response from representatives of Pulte’s agency, the FHFA, was not answered.

The typical federal mortgage documentation that Cook got for the Atlanta and Michigan residences requires that each loan be intended for a “primary residence,” according to the papers supplied by Pulte, opens a new tab. However, records Reuters examined for the Atlanta residence, submitted to a Fulton County court in Georgia, clearly state that the clause is in place “unless Lender otherwise agrees in writing.” “Property Use: Vacation Home” is included in the loan estimate, which was created by the credit union.
According to two real estate specialists who are not Cook’s attorneys, the document seems to support her position. This is because it shows that she informed the lender that she planned to use the property as a vacation house when she applied for the loan.

A request for response from the lender, Bank-Fund Staff Federal Credit Union, located in Washington, was not answered.
Another element that can support Cook’s argument is that, according to property records and a tax official from Fulton County, she never asked for a tax exemption for the Georgia house as a principal residence.

Cook also designated the Atlanta house as a “second home” in December 2021, according to a different document acquired by Reuters that relates to a government paperwork she filled out in order to get security clearance for her position at the government Reserve. The statement on the document, which is a supplement to SF-86, a national security form used by the U.S. government, is in line with the assertion on her Atlanta loan summary, even though it has nothing to do with the mortgage.
The allegations against Cook are surrounded by a dispute over Trump’s attempt to obtain greater authority over the Federal Reserve, the US central bank and an impartial organization designed to be free from political interference. Since returning to the White House earlier this year, Trump has often attacked Fed governors for their unwillingness to lower interest rates.

Rival politicians, the media, and others have questioned the personal financial matters of other government leaders and their families during the issue.
According to a Reuters story last week, Pulte’s own father and stepmother had listed two houses in two separate states as their principal residences. As a result, a Michigan municipality had to revoke the tax exemption for their property and impose back taxes on the pair. Requests for comment about the situation were not answered by Pulte or his parents.