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Update on Sunday, Sept. 7: Reuters reported Friday that Mark and Julie Pulte, the father and stepmother of FHFA Director Bill Pulte, have claimed properties in Michigan and Florida as primary residences. Since 2020, the homestead exemptions they’ve claimed have made them eligible for discounted property taxes.
A tax assessor in Bloomfield Township, Michigan, told Reuters that the couple’s exemption in that state would be revoked “as of today.” Public records examined by the outlet revealed that the home was rented out by the Pultes this year, which violates rules of the exemption. “Revised tax bills will be issued to the Pultes, including all applicable penalty and interest,” the official said.
In an interview on Thursday with CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Bill Pulte addressed the “for cause” definition tied to the attempted firing of Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook while rejecting the notion that his crusade against mortgage occupancy fraud was “political weaponization.”
“I do believe there is a very strong cause,” Pulte said on air. “I defer to the president’s lawyers and the DOJ on that.”
Pulte would not disclose where the tip regarding Cook came from, nor why he postponed a press conference about the investigation that was supposed to take place on Thursday morning. Neither Pulte nor the FHFA immediately responded to HousingWire‘s request for comment.
Cook, who has denied committing mortgage fraud, has not provided explanations for the various mortgages that she has. She has sued President Donald Trump and the Fed’s Board of Governors to block her firing.
Pulte declined to say whether he is also scrutinizing Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican who has reportedly listed three properties as his primary residence, according to The Associated Press.
“If things are made public then, and, or, if we decide to make them public, then I will talk about it,” he said.
But Pulte did not rule out a probe.
“It doesn’t matter if you’re a Republican or a Democrat or a Fed Governor or someone who mans a convenience store,” Pulte said in the interview. “If you commit mortgage fraud, you need to be held accountable.”
In a separate report released Thursday, ProPublica suggested there is political weaponization at play in the Trump administration’s quest to eradicate mortgage fraud.
After reviewing financial disclosure forms, real estate records and publicly available mortgage data provided by Hunterbrook Media, ProPublica found that at least three of Trump’s Cabinet members have multiple homes listed as their primary residences on mortgages.
ProPublica reported that Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer holds two primary residence mortgages, including one on a vacation home in Arizona. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has two such mortgages in New Jersey and Washington, D.C., while Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin holds two primary mortgages in Long Island, New York, and Washington, D.C.
The Cabinet members have denied the allegations, ProPublica reported.
In a statement shared with the publication, a White House spokesperson said, “This is just another hit piece from a left-wing dark money group that constantly attempts to smear President Trump’s incredible Cabinet members.
“Unlike [Fed Gov.] Lisa ‘Corrupt’ Cook who blatantly and intentionally committed mortgage fraud, Secretary DeRemer, Secretary Duffy, and Administrator Zeldin own multiple residences, and they have followed the law and they are fully compliant with all ethical obligations.”
Mortgage fraud is rarely prosecuted and lawyers told ProPublica that determining ill intent would be a key to prosecuting.
ProPublica noted that the dual mortgages of Trump’s cabinet officials resemble those of California Sen. Adam Schiff, who was also accused in July of committing mortgage fraud. Trump wrote on Truth Social that Schiff reported his primary residence to be in Maryland rather than in California. Pulte referred Schiff to the Department of Justice (DOJ) as a result.
Schiff’s office called the claims “baseless” and a “smear … in order to distract from [Trump’s] Epstein files problems.” The statement also cited Schiff’s bicoastal work obligations and legal guidance.
Pulte also filed a referral to the DOJ against New York AG Letitia James over a Virginia home, which her lawyer said she purchased to help a family member. Both Schiff’s and James’s representatives have dismissed the allegations as being politically motivated.
