There is merit to a rule proposed this week by the Department of Housing and Urban Development to establish a maximum filing period for FHA claims, but the penalty for missing the new deadline may be excessive for the offense, according to industry participants. Under the proposed rule, the FHA insurance contract would be terminated if a lender fails to file a claim for a property acquired through foreclosure within three months from the date they obtain marketable title to the property or successfully sell the property to a third party. The requirement applies to both pre-foreclosure sale and deed-in-lieu-of-foreclosure. Although the proposal addresses problems caused by delayed multiple filings, lenders could still submit...

Home prices remain below their peak levels and mortgage interest rates are well below where they were prior to the financial crisis. However, mortgage originations since 2008 have been significantly below the levels seen in years prior as tight underwriting standards have limited production. “Home prices are still very affordable by historical standards, despite increases over the last three years,” the Urban Institute’s Housing Finance Policy Center noted in a recent report. “Even if interest rates rose to 6.00 percent, affordability would be at the long term historical average.” Black Knight Financial Services added...

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac completed 65,960 foreclosure-prevention actions during the first quarter of 2015, a slight increase from the previous period, according to a recently released report from the Federal Housing Finance Agency. Of that number, there was a 1.0 percent uptick in the number of loan modifications in the first quarter. The number of completed repayment and forbearance plans rose somewhat faster, by 7.2 percent and 8.2 percent, respectively. The FHFA said...[Includes one data table]

Potential homeowners may be talking themselves out of the American dream, according to several recent surveys that show consumers underestimate their ability to get a mortgage. A Genworth survey of more than 100 lending executives found that 66 percent said eligible borrowers mistakenly think they don’t qualify for a mortgage. In a similar survey on consumer’s views on homeownership, Wells Fargo reported...

HUD issued the language to remedy the problem of delayed filings: lenders holding back claims...

“The Greek crisis already has taken a toll on MBS and still poses a sizeable risk to performance,” according to a new report from Deutsche Bank Securities.

Mortgage repurchase volume fell 9.5 percent from the fourth quarter and it was down 12.3 percent from the first three months of last year.

Stonegate has grown from 400 employees in 2012 to about 1,300 currently.

Dave Stevens, president of the Mortgage Bankers Association, said he doesn’t know which way the FHFA will decide on the topic...

CSS identified the trade group advisors by organization, but not by their individual names.