Iconix Brand Group Inc., the licensing company that owns such brands as London Fog and Umbro, is facing a tough road ahead as it grapples with a heavy debt load, declining stock price and a search for a new chief executive, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. The company, which licenses many of its brands through major retailers, has faced issues similar to those of its licensees as the retailing environment grows increasingly difficult. However, Iconix management said in a recent earnings call that it is working to address its debt load early on, retaining advisory firm Guggenheim Partners to help it pay down its $789 million debt load and an upcoming 2020 maturity. Interim Chief Executive Peter Cuneo, who took the helm in June, said a steering committee has been formed, consisting of members of the board and management, to “undertake a further operational review” of its business. The company is also beginning talks with investors, Cuneo said. The New York company owns nearly 30 brands and more than 1,000 licenses with leading retailers and manufacturers globally, according to its website. Since the end of 2017 Iconix has paid down $38 million of its debt and plans, with Guggenheim’s guidance, to focus on continuing that trend, along with cutting expenses.

Lax and fraudulent lending on single-family homes played a role in inflating and popping the housing bubble a decade ago. The 2010 Dodd-Frank financial overhaul required home borrowers to document their income, and home lenders to verify it, but the rule doesn’t apply to multifamily housing, the Wall Street Journal reported. Lenders in that market review data submitted by borrowers to ensure the properties earn enough to repay loans, but they generally don’t examine every lease to check income. Neither do Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the government-sponsored mortgage giants that buy and securitize loans. Credit-rating firms that grade the securities for investors also generally don’t review loans for fraud. Owners of an apartment complex near Pittsburgh, who wanted to take out a mortgage on the buildings, allegedly made vacant units look occupied by turning on radios, placing shoes and mats outside doors and in one instance having a woman tell inspectors her boyfriend was asleep inside. The owners obtained a $45.8 million loan, which was wrapped into mortgage securities and sold to investors. Practices such as these — which were alleged in a federal search-warrant application — have sparked one of the largest mortgage-fraud investigations since the financial crisis. It focuses on whether income from commercial properties was falsified, a move that would enable owners to get larger mortgages and take out cash or expand their businesses faster. Still in its early stages, the investigation has so far yielded a fraud-conspiracy indictment against four real-estate executives in upstate New York. Loans that some or all of them were involved with totaled about $170 million, the indictment alleges.