But after the 2000 burst of the dot-com bubble and the World Trade Center attacks of 2001, Sheppard found that people were less open to innovative, quirky ideas and more concerned about money.

CNN: With autism, no longer invisible

The agreements center on home loans that Countrywide Financial sold to Fannie and Freddie at the height of the mortgage bubble.

FORBES: Fool Me Twice: Bank of America Plays Hide And Seek Using Fannie Mae