States seek new foreclosure rules

WASHINGTON – Attorneys general in up to 40 states want to force mortgage companies to revamp the way they handle foreclosures, pay financial penalties for violations and expand help to homeowners on the verge of foreclosure.

The attorneys general are discussing the outlines of a settlement that would seek to correct the problems with foreclosure documents that have surfaced in recent weeks, said Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller, who will lead a joint investigation. The inquiry is scheduled to be announced this morning.

“We want the companies to put in a system such that this will not happen again,” Miller said in an interview with the Associated Press.