Ex-Leaders of Countrywide Profit From Bad Loans

Ex-Leaders of Countrywide Profit From Bad Loans

By ERIC LIPTON

Executives from the company synonymous with the excesses that led to the housing bubble are now making money by buying up distressed properties.

CALABASAS, Calif. — Fairly or not, Countrywide Financial and its top executives would be on most lists of those who share blame for the nation’s economic crisis. After all, the banking behemoth made risky loans to tens of thousands of Americans, helping set off a chain of events that has the economy staggering.