The Federal Savings Bank Of Chicago
Calk’s banking career began in Kansas, where, with his brother John focused on issuing mortgages on single-family homes to veterans. He moved his bank’s headquarters to Chicago in 2014 after the city offered him tax breaks. After it, Calk has served as an advisor to the Governor of the State of Illinois, the Commissioner of Banks and Real Estate and the Office of Professional Regulation for the State of Illinois on matters of Mortgage Banking and Real Estate finance.
In 2011, Stephen and John Calk announced that with the approval of the Office of Thrift Supervision they have closed the deal and purchased the more than 100-year charter and assets of Generations Bank from Armed Forces Bank. Before, in 1995 Stephen established and served as CEO of Chicago Bancorp, which has grown to be one of Illinois largest privately held retail mortgage banks.
In 2014, the Federal Savings Bank of Chicago signed an agreement to cooperate with the New York City real estate firm Douglas Elliman, and in exchange, either Douglas Elliman or its parent company, the Vector Group, invested in Calk’s bank, according to a 2015 deposition by Howard Lorber, the Vector Group’s CEO. Lorber, a longtime friend, and ally of Trump’s, later served with Calk on the Trump campaign’s economic council.
In 2019, Calk resigned as chairman and CEO from the Federal Savings Bank of Chicago.
Two Companies One Address
Stephen and John Calk had long been the co-owners of a nonbank mortgage lender called Chicago Bancorp, which was headquartered in a six-story brick building in Chicagos West Loop neighborhood.
In the spring of 2011, the Calks used a holding company they had recently formed to purchase a tiny bank in Overland Park, Kan. Generations Bank, which had just $44 million of assets, had not been profitable since 2007. Within a few months, the new owners changed its name to The Federal Savings Bank.
Stephen Calk later attributed his decision to get into the banking business to changes in the market and the regulatory environment for nonbank mortgage lenders. During a 2015 deposition, after being asked why purchasing the Kansas-based bank appealed to him, he lamented various costs associated with running Chicago Bancorp.
The company had to be licensed in each individual state, which was very, very expensive and burdensome, Calk said, and then each one of the individual loan officers had to be individually licensed in each one of those individual states.
Furthermore, every loan officer had to have continuing education not only in what they did as their primary function, but they also had to take individual state licensing exams.
Around the time of the bank acquisition, Stephen Calk told American Banker that the operations of the Kansas-based bank and the Illinois-based nonbank mortgage lender would be kept separate.
The Federal Savings Bank
Review Highlights
I was gravely mistaken until I met Patty Dalkos from Federal Savings Bank .in 3 reviews
I highly reeommend Brian and his team at The Federal Savings Bank for all of your mortgage needs!in 3 reviews
Every home purchase has its challenges along the way, and even with a team of realtors and lawyers, etc.in 5 reviews
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What we offer: Non Warrantable Condos, Jumbo Home Loans, Construction Loans, USDA Loans, FHA Loans, Multi-Family Loans, VA Home Loans , Commercial Loans, Conventional Loans, Foreign Nationals, Asset Based Lending, Confirming Bridge Loans, Adjustable Rate Mortgages , Home Equity Conversion Mortgage , Personal Loans
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Would They Move To Another Desk

On the morning of June 28, 2012, Calk and Emanuel announced their agreement at a joint press conference.
Calk said that Federal Savings had decided to locate in Chicago after looking at sites across the country. He pointed his thumb at the mayor and said, Its probably no surprise to any of you here that this gentleman can be a very, very convincing guy.”
When it was Emanuels turn to speak, he suggested that the citys agreement with Federal Savings would expand Chicagos workforce.
It is banks, CEOs like Steve, who create jobs, the mayor said. It is our responsibility as a city and a state to be a partner by creating the atmosphere and the environment for companies to create jobs.”
What went unmentioned during the press conference was that throughout 2012, Stephen and John Calk were taking steps to shut down their other mortgage lender.
As of Jan. 1, 2012, Chicago Bancorp had 223 employees, according to court records. By June 30, the head count had fallen to 50. By Sept. 16, Stephen and John Calk were the only two employees remaining. On Jan. 4, 2013, the firm was formally dissolved.
An expert hired by CitiMortgage, which later sued the Calk brothers, calculated that 197 of Chicago Bancorps 223 employees at the start of 2012 were subsequently hired by The Federal Savings Bank.
According to data from Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., Federal Savings had just 38 employees on Dec. 31, 2011. Six months later, it had nearly 300, and by Sept. 30 it had close to 500.
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Eight Tellers Training For 250 Of Them
On April 23, 2012, Stephen Calk said in an email to a city official that Federal Savings Banks board of directors had approved plans to establish a national home loan center in Chicago, subject to receiving a training allowance of $10,000 per employee.
As discussed, we will endeavor to hire as many qualified Chicago residents as possible, Calk wrote. We are excited to be part of the Mayors plan to make Chicago an example for the rest of country.
Under the deal, Chicagos financial commitment was to come from a portion of the citys TIF program that is dedicated to job training.
Between early 2012 and March 28, 2013, the city of Chicago awarded two TIFWorks contracts totaling $2.1 million to Federal Savings and its holding company, according to city records. The city awarded another $1.5 million to the holding company in October 2015, bringing the total to $3.6 million.
Federal Savings also had the opportunity to receive an income tax credit from the state of Illinois, potentially worth as much as $9.5 million, but that benefit never materialized. State officials determined that the bank fell well short of its goal of creating 300 jobs by the end of 2012.
Several weeks after Calk received the $10,000 per employee offer from the City of Chicago, Federal Savings filed a formal application that included details about how the bank planned to use the funds.
The Federal Savings Bank Review 2021
Published January 2021by Brian Beers
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The Federal Savings Bank is a good bank for consumers looking for a mortgage, especially if they are active-duty military or veterans. Its also good for savers looking for competitive rates who prefer to do their banking online, as TFSB only has two traditional retail branches for customers.
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Member FDIC
Bankrate Savings Score: 3.4/5 stars
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Bankrate Savings Score: 4.4/5 stars
Bankrate MMA Score: 4.3/5 stars
$100
Bankrate CD Score: 4.5/5 stars
Bankrate CD Score: 4.7/5 stars
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The listings that appear on this page are from companies from which this website receives compensation, which may impact how, where and in what order products appear. This table does not include all companies or all available products. Bankrate does not endorse or recommend any companies.
Member FDIC
Bankrate Savings Score: 3.4/5 stars
$2,500
Bankrate Savings Score: 4.4/5 stars
Bankrate MMA Score: 4.3/5 stars
$100
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What Is The Adverse Market Refi Fee
In August 2020, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac announced a surprise Adverse Market Refi Fee that some estimate could tack on an unexpected $1,500 fee to the average borrowers refi for a $300,000 loan. The mortgage industry pushed back on the two large mortgage purchase giants and secured an extension until December 1st before this fee went into effect. This fee is also known as a Loan-Level Price Adjustment. They are one and the same.
The fee is designed to be a one-time 0.5% fee imposed on any home refinance. With this new fee, for example, refinancing a loan of $300,000 after December 1st would cost an extra $1,500. Given the historically low mortgage rates, the fee is inconvenient but not a deal-killer for most people refinancing. However, Federal Savings Bank took a very nefarious twist on this fee. Rather than impose a one-time fee, instead the bank used the fee as an excuse to raise a homeowners interest rate from 2.3% to 2.8%.
Four New Defendants Added To Federal Indictment Alleging Multi
CHICAGO An ongoing federal criminal investigation into the failure of Washington Federal Bank for Savings has resulted in charges against four new defendants, three of whom are alleged to have embezzled a total of more than $23 million from the Chicago bank.
Washington Federal was shut down in December 2017 after the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency determined that the bank was insolvent and had at least $66 million in nonperforming loans. Four former Washington Federal employees, including the banks Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer, were indicted last year for allegedly conspiring with an Illinois attorney ROBERT M. KOWALSKI, of Chicago and others to embezzle money from the bank in the years preceding the closure. On Thursday, a federal grand jury in Chicago returned a superseding indictment that added four more defendants, including the banks former Vice President, bringing the total number of charged defendants to ten.
The new charges further allege that, of the $14.3 million that Kasprowicz embezzled, at least $1.6 million was used by Kasprowicz for the benefit of the banks former President, who has since died and is not charged in the indictment. Kasprowicz allegedly paid credit card accounts in the name of the bank President or an entity associated with him, and also made payments to another bank for a loan on the purchase of a $450,000 Sea Ray powerboat called Expelliarmus.
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The Federal Savings Bank Salary Faqs
The average The Federal Savings Bank salary ranges from approximately $39,629 per year for a Junior Closer to $426,462 per year for a Mortgage Banker. The Federal Savings Bank employees rate the overall compensation and benefits package 3.6/5 stars.
The highest-paying job at The Federal Savings Bank is a Mortgage Banker with a salary of $426,462 per year.
The lowest-paying job at The Federal Savings Bank is a Junior Closer with a salary of $39,629 per year.
The Federal Savings Bank employees attributed a compensation and benefits rating of 3.6/5 stars to their company. Read what they think about their salaries on our Compensation FAQ page for .
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Lots Of Money But Little Accountability
Emanuel, the former chief of staff to President Barack Obama, was first elected mayor of Chicago in 2011. He was keen on building a reputation as a job creator, and he quickly set out to eliminate a city tax that required businesses with more than 50 employees to pay $4 per employee each year.From now on, Chicago will no longer be a city that punishes job creation we will promote it, the mayor said in an October 2012 speech
Emanuel often ticked off the names of corporations that had moved their headquarters to the Windy City. Such relocations gave him an opportunity to tout the creation of new jobs and receive positive media coverage.
Some of the deals relied on tax increment financing, a mechanism that involves setting aside property tax revenue from a designated geographic area that can be used for economic development purposes.
In the nations third-largest city, the sums of money set aside are quite large. In 2016, Chicago reported $561.3 million in revenue from tax increment financing. Once collected, the money sits in a pot that can be used to subsidize private development.
Prior to Emanuels tenure, critics accused former Mayor Richard M. Daley of using TIF funds as a slush fund to reward his political allies.
It does open up a lot of potential and actual misuse of the funds, said Amisha Patel, executive director of Grassroots Collaborative, a local nonprofit organization. There is no accountability.
Early Life And Career

Calk was born in Detroit, Michigan, and was raised in Florida, Illinois, and London. He attended the United States Military Academy Preparatory School, and is a 1988 graduate of the University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign.
In 1982, he enlisted in the United States Army and was honorably discharged as a Private First Class before he was early commissioned as an Army Officer. He is a graduate of the United States ArmyAviation School and served in both active and reserve status as a combat helicopter pilot and commander for over 16 years.
In 1998, Calk received a Master of Business Administration degree from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. Calk is also a graduate of the nine-year Presidents Program in Leadership at Harvard Business School.
Calk’s banking career began in 1995 when he founded Chicago Bancorp, which has been described as “one of the largest privately-held retail mortgage banks in the country and served as its president until it was later absorbed into The Federal Savings Bank, where, with his brother John, he focused on issuing mortgage loans on single-family homes to veterans.
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