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...

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 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...

An historic downturn in mortgage production that’s expected to unfold through the better part of 2012 could segue into a long-term contraction in the industry as new mortgage rules kick into gear. Emerging new rules on “qualified residential mortgages” and “qualified mortgages” resulting from...

The sponsor of legislation that would make Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac subject to the Freedom of Information Act’s government transparency provisions told Inside The GSEs this week he is optimistic his bill has a “real fighting chance” of passage in the House.Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-UT, said his bill, H.R. 463, The Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Transparency Act of 2011, has “picked up momentum” following a hearing two weeks ago, and the headlines it produced, in which the GSEs’ regulator panned the bill as potentially harmful to Fannie and Freddie.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s home retention activity declined for the most part during the first quarter, according to the latest Federal Housing Finance Agency’s Foreclosure Prevention and Refinance Report.Total home retention efforts dropped to 143,977 during the first three months of the year, down 20 percent from the fourth quarter, while loan modifications in the period also declined to 86,201, down 28 percent.

In light of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s federal conservatorship status and the resulting control by the Treasury Department, the two GSEs are “effectively part of the government” and their operations should be reflected in the federal budget, according to the Congressional Budget Office.CBO has concluded that using a fair-value approach to estimate Fannie and Freddie’s subsidy costs is the best way to give Congress and taxpayers the most accurate accounting information.

In a move that might bring more certainty to the role of Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems in the foreclosure process, Fannie Mae is requiring lenders to more clearly identify MERS-registered mortgages. The government-sponsored enterprise already requires lenders to report the MERS Mortgage Identification Number for mortgages originated with MERS as the nominee for the mortgagee or assigned to MERS. Then two weeks ago, Fannie announced several updates to its selling guide having to do with MERS-registered mortgages, one of which is...

The Mortgage Bankers Association has asked the FHA to allow the use of electronic signatures on all FHA loan origination forms to help reduce fraud and other procedural issues in the home buying process. E-signatures are already acceptable under federal law and by the FHA under certain circumstances, the MBA noted in a letter to the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The use of e-signatures helps reduce the time required to close a mortgage loan, which may lead to...

Servicers must achieve “quality right-party contact” (QRPC) with borrowers as a means of determining a delinquent homeowner’s willingness and ability to pay his mortgage under new standards Fannie Mae has laid out regarding the management of loans in danger of default.Fannie’s issuance of servicing standards this week is in compliance with the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s Servicing Alignment Initiative announced in late April to establish consistent mortgage loan servicing and management requirements for servicers acting on behalf of Fannie and Freddie Mac.