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Mortgage Industry News Headlines
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Last Updated Thursday, September 02, 2010 03:49 PM CST
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New FHA Premiums Released
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has released the new mortgage insurance premium structure for loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration.
On traditional mortgages, the up-front premium has lowered, HUD said.
But the annual premium was increased.
Fannie, Freddie Goals Released
A final rule from the Federal Housing Finance Agency outlines 2010-2011 housing goals for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
On purchase transactions, the minimum goal for low-income loans is 27 percent.
In addition, 8 percent of Fannie's and Freddie's acquisitions must be for "very low-income family" homes.
Record Rates Rising
Freddie Mac reported this week that the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage fell to 4.32 percent.
It was the lowest level recorded since Freddie began tracking the 30-year nearly four decades ago.
But a 7-basis-point jump in the 10-year Treasury yield suggests mortgage rates will be higher in next week's reports.
Credit Agencies Sued Over Bankrupt Account Reporting
A lawsuit was filed Virginia on behalf of 47 Virginia plaintiffs who said their credit reports contain inaccurate information.
All of the plaintiffs have filed for bankruptcy.
But their credit reports contain records of debt that still appear active even though it has been discharged.
Over 1,000 Layoffs as Servicer Offices Close
The acquisition of HomeEq Servicing by Ocwen Financial Services has completed.
Ocwen said that it plans to close a facility in Raleigh, N.C., and eliminate 242 jobs.
Around 900 California employees are being laid off later this year as the company's facility in that state closes.
Bank Performance Improves
On overall bank loan assets, delinquency of at least 90 days fell 4.8 percent, according to the Quarterly Banking Profile from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.
It was the first quarterly decline since the beginning of 2006.
Quarterly earnings for the sector were $21.6 billion.
Banks lost $4.4 billion in the same period last year.
Activity Eases as Fixed Rates Fall
More downward movement in mortgage rates -- which were already at record lows -- wasn't enough to lift the Mortech-Mortgage Daily Mortgage Market Index higher.
For the week ended Wednesday, the index was 348, easing from 355 last week.
The decline in activity came despite that the conventional 30-year rate edged down to 4.317 percent from 4.320 percent last week.
Behind-the-Scenes Look at Collapse of Wachovia, WaMu
A Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. official testified before the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission about how the FDIC handled the insolvency of Washington Mutual Bank and Wachovia.
"In the case of WaMu, the FDIC had adequate time to develop strategies and understand the risks associated with those strategies," he said in prepared testimony.
"In the case of Wachovia, the FDIC wasn't informed until the weekend of its collapse and as a result, had very limited information that could be used to understand the market implications ... or to develop a resolution strategy."
Agency Issuance Rises 5th Straight Month
Fixed-rate issuance of mortgage-backed securities guaranteed by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae during August increased 5 percent from a month earlier, according to data released by eMBS.
A decline in activity at Ginnie was more than offset by increases at Fannie and Freddie.
Issuance volume has increased each month since March.
Employees Await Fate as Subprime Servicer Acquired
Ocwen Loan Servicing has closed on its acquistion of HomEq.
Inside accounts from employees at HomEq raised the possibility of several hundred layoffs in coming days and weeks.
But Ocwen didn't respond today to repeated requests for comment.
Lender's NFL Tickets Auctioned by IRS
Six prime Dallas Cowboys season tickets were auctioned to a Dallas-based ticket broker for $241,000.
The package was sold by the Internal Revenue Service to help address tax debt owed by Lending.com.
The ticket package fell to the IRS after attempts to settle the debt failed, an IRS spokesman said.
ARM Indices Abate
The 11th District index cost of funds index was 5 basis points lower in July than in June.
The Monthly Treasury Average declined 2 BPS to the lowest level on record.
The yield on the one-year Treasury closed out July 3 BPS beter than June.
Improvement in Delinquency Driven by Mods
Serious delinquency on subprime residential mortgage-backed securities issued from 2005 to 2007 was down around 2.5 percent during the first half, Moody's Investors Service reported.
But for GMAC Mortgage, the improvement was great as a result of its aggressiveness with loan modifications.
"We believe that the level of modification activity is the key driver for the performance differences among servicers and product types," Moody's stated.
Lenders Litigate Title Claims
JPMorgan Chase & Co. lost an appeal on a lawsuit filed by First American Title Insurance Corp., according to a copy to the decision.
The Supreme Court of Indiana ruled that U.S. BANK, N.A., can move forward with a tort claim against Integrity Land Title Corp.
A title search by Integrity at the time the loan was made did not reveal a 1998 foreclosure judgment on the property.
Merger Creates Top-10 Subprime Servicer
A news release indicated that Marix Servicing LLC is being acquired by Walter Investment Management Corp.
Marix is a "high-touch specialty mortgage servicer."
Walter Investment said that the Marix acquisition will make it one of the 10 biggest subprime mortgage servicers in the country.
The Mortgage Educator
A continuing education course released by Hondros Learning reportedly meets requirements of the Secure and Fair Enforcement for Mortgage Licensing Act.
AllRegs reported that one of its SAFE courses was approved by the Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System & Registry.
Edcomm Banker's Academy announced the expansion of its curriculum to include mortgage lending training.
M.I. Volume Falls, Default Rise
The number of mortgage insurance policies issued in July was down 7 percent from June, according to data provided by the Mortgage Insurance Companies of America.
Compared to a year earlier, volume fell 16 percent.
Meanwhile, primary insurance defaults rose for the second straight month.
Credit Union Growth Slows, Delinquency Mixed
Overall loan growth at credit unions was 0.1 percent between the first and second quarters, the National Credit Union Association reported.
Total assets finished June 0.7 percent higher than at the end of March.
Delinquency of at least 60 days on fixed-rate and five-year hybrid first-mortgages ended the second quarter 3 basis points higher, but the rate on adjustable-rate mortgages and hybrids with a fixed term of less than five years fell 6 BPS.
Furious Pace of Regulatory Actions Continue
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. reported that it processed 76 matters during July.
During July 2009, 64 matters were processed.
The FDIC announced it will hold a roundtable with government officials, industry executives, academics and investors.
American Home Sued Over Servicing Practices
A lawsuit filed by Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott accuses American Home Mortgage Servicing Inc. of multiple violations of the Texas Debt Collection Act.
The servicer also allegedly violated the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act.
Among other things, American Home allegedly was too aggressive and used "unlawful tactics" in its collection practices with borrowers who had trouble meeting their payment obligations.
Wholesale Conditions Better, But U/W Still Tough
"The renaissance of the wholesale channel is in full swing," the president of Comergence recently said.
A recent bulletin to mortgage brokers and wholesale correspondents from MetLife Home Loans indicated the immediate implementation of a temporary policy requiring a minimum 45-day lock.
Meanwhile, wholesale lender underwriting overlays are a troubling trend for third-party originators, with one insider noting the overlays make "things way, way more complicated and ultimately confusing."
Wholesaler Launching
A national wholesale platform is being developed by Fairway Independent Mortgage Corp., a news release said.
The lender said a "huge vacuum" was created when many wholesale lenders abandoned the market after the onset of the mortgage crisis in 2007.
Fairway's chief executive officer sees now as the right time for the company's foray into wholesale lending.
Credit Union Consolidation Ahead in SoCal?
The chief executive officer of Golden 1 Credit Union in Sacramento, Calif., is leaving to take the same job at a smaller credit union in San Diego.
Some inside the credit union industry suspect that the CEO is moving to lead a consolidation of trouble credit unions in Southern California.
There is strong talk in credit union circles that larger and healthier credit unions are being invited from out-of-state to merge with struggling ones in California, observed one insider.
Servicer Rating Lowered at Goldman Unit
Litton Loan Servicing was hit with a servicer rating downgrade by Moody's Investors Service.
The unit is a wholly owned subsidiary of Goldman Sachs Bank USA.
A revised assessment by Moody's was the primary driver of the downgrade.
Purchase Activity Drags Down FHA Volume
The Federal Housing Administration reported that it endorsed 6,397 fewer mortgage last month than in June.
The decline came despite a 1 percent rise in refinance endorsements and an 11 percent increase in home-equity conversion mortgage endorsements.
The reason: a 6 percent drop in endorsements for purchase-money mortgages.
Bank SAFE Deadline in Limbo
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency released a copy of a letter sent to the chief executive officers of all national banks as well as some of their executives and employees.
The OCC explained that a final rule issued last month requires loan originators at financial institutions to register with the Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System and Registry.
But modifications to the registry means banks won't be responsible for loan officer registration until at least January 2011, and possibly later.
Mixed Results at Fannie
July's new business acquisitions at Fannie Mae were down more than $6 billion from June.
Residential delinquency, however, improved for the fourth straight month and was 16 basis points lower in June.
But multifamily delinquency was 4 BPS higher.
More Improvement in Mortgage Market
Freddie Mac reported the average 30-year fell 6 basis points from last week.
The 15-year was down 4 BPS.
Mortgage activity edged up slightly from last week, based on the Mortgage Market Index -- which increased to 355 Wednesday from 350. The index was up for the fourth consecutive week.
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