At the beginning of April, The Seattle Times ran the first of what was to become a series of articles on Clayton Homes, the United States' biggest homebuilder, which is controlled by Warren Buffett. The article contained some scathing accusations. It accused Clayton of predatory lending practices, trapping home buyers in high-interest loans and rapidly depreciating homes.
The Seattle Times' first article, "The mobile-home trap: How a Warren Buffett empire preys on the poor," attracted plenty of attention, but when Buffett was quizzed on the accusations against Clayton Homes at Berkshire Hathaway's annual meeting, Buffett unapologetically defended the practices of Berkshire Hathaway's lending unit.
Buffett told CNBC:
"We are not forcing loans on anybody. If they had a loan with us they didn't like, they can pass...
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