Wells Fargo Launches Multi-Faceted Homebuyers Program to Assist Diverse Segments

Nation's Leading Retail Mortgage Lender Joins with Real Estate Professionals
to Help Consumers through Pre- and Post-Closing Education and Guaranteed
Closings

DES MOINES, Iowa, April 17 /PRNewswire/ -- Wells Fargo Home Mortgage held
a live simulcast today for thousands of real estate professionals to launch
the company's 2008 outreach efforts to all consumers and focused its first
forum on serving the needs of first-time homebuyers, low- to moderate- income
and multi-cultural consumers. The company also announced further improvements
in its credit education and closing guarantee programs.
Wells Fargo beamed the free simulcast -- "Meeting the Market Challenge in
2008: Helping Homebuyers Make Informed Decisions" -- to 50 multiplex theaters
across the nation. The National Association of Hispanic Real Estate
Professionals (NAHREP), National Association of Real Estate Brokers
(REALTISTS), and the Asian Real Estate Association of America (AREAA) joined
the effort.
"Our company has a long history of being there for our customers by
responsibly making homeownership possible in any market cycle," said Cara
Heiden, co-president of Wells Fargo Home Mortgage. "The current market
requires that we further boost our efforts and that includes a focus on
outreach to the diverse segments of our customer base."
"AREAA is proud to team up with Wells Fargo and our real estate partners
to expand homeownership opportunities for all those who seek the American
Dream," said Jim Park, AREAA president and CEO. "In this time of uncertainty
and turmoil in the mortgage market, we believe it is more important than ever
to demonstrate this type of leadership and lending innovation."
"NAREB welcomes Wells Fargo's leadership in its efforts to equip real
estate professionals with information that better prepares them to help
achieve sustainable homeownership for all consumers. We are particularly proud
to join with Wells Fargo to ensure that the African American homebuyer is
being serviced at the highest of ethical and credible levels," said Maria
Kong, NAREB's president.
"Wells Fargo recognizes that Latinos are the largest ethnic segment in the
U.S., and has responded by providing bilingual and culturally-specific
materials to consumers, as well as important informational programs such as
today's forum," said Rebecca Gallardo-Serrano, NAHREP's chairman.
At the forum, Wells Fargo spoke with real estate professionals about the
state of the current market and how customers can best be helped. The company
also announced its groundbreaking Wells Fargo Closing Guarantee(SM) and Steps
to Success(SM) programs would be expanded to be more inclusive.
The Wells Fargo Closing Guarantee(SM) -- formerly offered to customers
financing the purchase of existing real estate using standard products, has
been expanded to include all qualified purchase products including those for
new construction. The guarantee states that Wells Fargo will close a
customer's loan on or before the closing date stated in the original purchase
contract or will refund the borrower an amount equal to the first month's
principal and interest payment. In the current environment, it is important
for buyers, sellers, and their real estate agents to know that the loan will
close and will close on time.
Steps To Success(SM) -- is a free, bilingual credit management program
that will be expanded in early summer to include all first-time homebuyers and
FHA customers. The program provides financial education, access to automatic
mortgage payment options, and information about banking products that can help
make money management routine and effective. For all program participants, our
goal is to be proactive in helping them improve or maintain their own
financial situation.
Wells Fargo Home Mortgage is the nation's No. 1 retail mortgage lender and
servicer of home mortgages. As a division of Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., it has a
local presence in more than 2,300 mortgage stores and banking stores, and
serves customers nationwide through its call centers, Internet presence and
wholesale lending operations. Wells Fargo Home Mortgage services loans for 7.9
million customers.
SOURCE Wells Fargo Home Mortgage

Liz Lauber, +1-636-594-2243, liz.lauber@wellsfargo.com, or Jason Menke,
+1-515-213-4183, jason.d.menke@wellsfargo.com, both of Wells Fargo Home
Mortgage