Former Quicken Executive Launches New Firm A former executive of Quicken Loans Inc. -- whose altercation with the company's founder prompted a police investigation -- has launched his own company. Among its services are loan modifications. An announcement today indicated that Hall Financial was launched in Birmingham, Mich. Among the new company's offerings are Federal Housing Administration loans, reverse mortgages and Zero-Down Rural Development Loans, according to the statement. read full story

Lenders Issue SAFE Warning
Mortgage bankers claim the government is going too far by applying the Secure and Fair Enforcement for Mortgage Licensing Act to servicing employees who handle loan modifications. They are also concerned that federally insured institutions, which are not subject to the same requirements as state-licensed entities, will have an unfair advantage in attracting employees.

Modification Actions Drive Record Mortgage Litigation
Legal actions against mortgage modification firms continued to surge -- pushing overall mortgage litigation activity to the highest level yet.

Federal Funding to Help With 2nds
Some of the federal funding announced today by the White House will go toward second mortgages. One group quickly proposed allocating a portion of the funds for supplementing federal loan modifications but called on the government to rein in mortgage servicers and investors.

Wells Fargo Top HAMP Producer
Wells Fargo & Co. has completed more modifications under the government's program than any other servicer. But Citigroup Inc. has reached the biggest share of its borrowers who are eligible under the program. Over at Bank of America Corp., the company has staffed up to improve its modification performance.

Shadow Inventory Casts Shadow Over Recovery
A new report from one of the three major ratings agencies warns that the "the mortgage crisis may be far from over." The culprit: shadow inventories. One piece of good news, however, is that re-defaults on modified loans have recently eased.

Federal Ban on Up-Front Mod Fees Proposed
The Obama administration is proposing a ban on fees charged to a borrower before a modification firm obtains a loan modification.

Modification Statistics
As the focus shifts from the number of loan modification trial plans to the number of completed modifications, the country's servicers are touting their strong points. MortgageDaily.com has gathered up a number of modification statistics based on national results, activity at financial institutions and modifications by servicer. Also included are statistics on the government-sponsored enterprises.

BoA Leads HAMP II
Bank of America Home Loans has taken an early lead in the second part of the Home Affordable Modification Program.