Lending to veterans and members of the U.S. military is expected to trend up in the second half of 2015 as the economy improves further, wages rise and unemployment declines, predicts the country’s top VA lender. “We’re seeing increased activity in housing while house values have gone up modestly, which I expect will continue in the next couple of years,” said Stan Middleman, president and chief executive of Freedom Mortgage. It is a great time for veterans to purchase a home, Middleman said, and he would he like to see more vets become homeowners. However, despite the low interest rates, crisp and clear underwriting and no downpayment required, many veterans are still not taking advantage of the VA program as they should, he noted. Middleman feels he should advertise and market the VA product more. In the past seven months, Freedom Mortgage has added ...

Industry experts are sharply divided on whether the FHA’s financial condition is actually getting better or worse. Potomac Partners, a business consultancy group, is optimistic that the FHA’s Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund has finally turned a corner with great signs of improvement in the first quarter of 2015. Changes and adjustments made by the Department of Housing and Urban Development since last year have placed the MMI Fund on a positive trajectory to reach its required 2.0 percent capital ratio in 2016. Last year, the fund’s capital ratio improved from a negative 0.11 percent to a positive 0.41 percent and its economic value appears to be improving. Potomac Partners’ analysis looked at FHA risk, loan performance, delinquency rates, debt-to-income ratios, loan-to-value ratios, originations and claims, loss rates as well the effect of the ...

An FHA multifamily lender will face the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Mortgagee Review Board for violations that caused more than $10 million in losses to the FHA Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund. HUD’s inspector general recommended that Prudential Huntoon Paige Associates be brought before the board to explain how it underwrote a $19.9 million loan to develop a multifamily project for seniors in Lewisville, TX. Prudential is a Multifamily Accelerated Processing (MAP) approved lender authorized to prepare, process, review and submit loan applications for FHA multifamily mortgage insurance. The 151-unit “Amaranth at 544” project caught the IG’s eye because of early default, assignment and the significant dollar amount involved. The IG identified several underwriting deficiencies, including inadequate cash reserves at loan closing, unsupported ...

The Department of Veterans Affairs has announced measures lenders may employ to provide relief to VA borrowers whose lives and homes were upended by recent severe storms, tornados and flooding in Texas, Oklahoma and Guam. VA mortgage relief would be available to the families of borrowers who died during these natural catastrophes and to borrowers whose homes were badly damaged or destroyed. Relief is also available to those whose work environments were destroyed or severely damaged. Other people have been indirectly affected as well, and the impact may continue to ripple throughout the country, as evacuees travel nationwide to seek support and shelter from family members in unaffected areas, according to the VA. VA encourages holders of guaranteed loans to extend forbearance to distressed borrowers and to provide counseling to them. Lenders are also authorized under VA regulations to reapply prepayments to ...

Thanks to the recent uptick in interest rates, sellers of mortgage servicing rights are seeing strong bids on new production, but the market is being described by advisors as “sustainable,” compared to some of the frothy peaks of last year. June was actually a slow month for servicing sales, dealmakers told Inside Mortgage Finance, but that was to be expected, given all the contracts inked in April and May that needed time to close. With the second quarter having just ended, several large flow and bulk MSR transactions are...

The worst news: Prime jumbo MBS issuance fell 32.5 percent from the first quarter to the second.

It was the biggest quarter in GSE private MI activity since the third quarter of 2013...

Wells Fargo, the nation's largest originator, reported that while 72 percent believe now is a good time to buy, many consumers are faced with misconceptions about credit scores and other topics.

The jobs that seem to be the least in demand include technology support (4 percent) and secondary marketing positions.

In a new research note, Sterne Agee analyst Henry Coffey also voices anxiety about the fact that almost 55 percent of Walter’s stock is controlled by three investor groups.