Pulte Urges Ag Bondi To Investigate Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook

President Donald Trump is pressuring Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook to resign following allegations tied to her mortgage transactions, specifically, that Cook potentially committed mortgage fraud by allegedly misrepresented occupancy requirements on loans for properties in Michigan and Georgia.

The call for Cook to resign comes shortly after FHFA Director Bill Pulte urged Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate Cook, alleging she may have committed mortgage fraud by signing two primary-residence agreements within weeks of each other in 2021.

Pulte wrote a letter, seen first by Bloomberg News, to Bondi and DOJ official Ed Martin on Aug. 15, alleging that Cook “falsified bank documents and property records to acquire more favorable loan terms, potentially committing mortgage fraud under the criminal statute.”

Pulte also posted the official referral letter on social media platform, X, along with several other posts calling for Cook’s resignation.

The letter claims that on June 18, 2021, Cook obtained a $203,000, 15-year mortgage from the University of Michigan Credit Union for a property in Ann Arbor. The loan required her to occupy the home as her primary residence for at least one year.

Less than two weeks later, on July 2, 2021, she closed on a $540,000, 30-year mortgage in Georgia, which carried a similar one-year, primary-residence clause.

The letter contains copies of mortgage documents signed by Cook, along with what appears to be a 2022 rental listing for the Georgia property, posted a little over a year after she purchased it.

Pulte alleges Cook later listed the Georgia property for rent, raising questions about whether the loans were used under false pretenses. The referral also claims she may have received more favorable loan terms by certifying both homes as owner-occupied.

No charges have been filed, and it’s unclear whether Bondi will pursue an investigation. The Federal Reserve and DOJ declined to comment. Cook did not respond to HousingWire’s requests for comment at the time of publication.

If Cook were to resign, Trump would gain another opportunity to appoint a Fed governor — a move that could influence monetary policy at a time when he’s urging the central bank to aggressively cut interest rates.

The Trump administration has previously raised mortgage fraud allegations against other prominent Democrats, including California Sen. Adam Schiff and New York Attorney General Letitia James, both of whom are political adversaries.