Although some of the pressure of repurchase demands and mortgage insurance rescissions seems to be easing, industry experts caution that lenders will be grappling with these issues for years to come. The industry isn't done yet with purchases stemming from the 2006-08 vintages, said Arthur Prieston, chairman of...

Updated guidelines for the servicing of delinquent mortgages owned or guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will expedite borrower outreach, align loan modification terms and establish a “consistent schedule of performance-based incentive payments and penalties,” according to...

Although community banks appeared to have fewer foreclosure processing problems and lower overall mortgage default rates, they should look at recent consent orders signed by 14 large servicers for best practices, according to a new Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. report. “Community banks fared far better than...

The Department of Justice and the Department of Housing and Urban Development this week announced a civil lawsuit against Deutsche Bank and its mortgage unit for allegedly fraudulent mortgage practices that cost the FHA millions of dollars in insurance claims and related costs. Filed in U.S. District Court for...

House Republicans pushed ahead this week with legislation to bring the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a potential nemesis, under more control and oversight, although prospects in the Senate do not look strong. The House Financial Services Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit this week approved...

A court ruling made late last month in a Michigan Court of Appeals decision further muddies the ability of Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems to initiate a foreclosure. In a split decision, the judges ruled 2-1 in favor of borrowers whose homes were foreclosed on. MERS, as mortgagee, held an interest in...

Ocwen Financial Corp. is poised to significantly expand its mortgage servicing business with the acquisition of Litton Loan Servicing from Goldman Sachs Group for approximately $264 million. The sale price does not reflect certain assets that Goldman will retain, the investment bank said in a June 6 statement announcing the deal. The bank did not specify which assets would be excluded from the transaction. The planned sale will end...

Short sales, the bane of the home-purchase market for the past several years, have suddenly emerged as the fastest growing sector of the housing market in early 2011. According to new numbers released this week by the Campbell/Inside Mortgage Finance HousingPulse Tracking Survey, short sales accounted for...

The interagency review of servicers’ foreclosure policies and practices found that although some process flaws were discovered, the foreclosure proceedings weren’t improper and didn’t cause undue borrower injury, despite the consent decrees’ more sinister portrayal of the findings, according to...

Industry groups continue to emphasize that servicer accountability and legitimate help for borrowers are key to addressing loan modification concerns that continue to plague the market. The crux of concern with modification programs is conflicting fiduciary duties, including financial incentives for banks not to...