Freedom has big expansion plans for the new year. Company CEO and founder Stan Middleman recently told IMFnews Daily that he plans to hire between 200 and 500 residential loan officers in 2014.

While banks have put an emphasis on originating jumbo mortgages for portfolio, the uptick in total mortgages outstanding was largely driven by originations of agency mortgages.

The new requirements become effective for FHA case numbers assigned on or after March 11, 2014. Comments are due by Feb. 10, 2014.

What's ahead for residential lenders and servicers in 2014? You might be surprised at some of our predictions. Hint: The servicing market looks good, at least.

Ginnie Mae chief Ted Tozer noted: “We want aggressive outreach to find out what the issues are. If they aren’t issuing, we want to know why."

“The recent decline in large-lender share of the primary market is temporary, and principally a result of cyclical factors that caused larger lenders to pull back from the market,” said Fannie Mae's Gerry Flood.

The GSEs’ common industry dataset that supports the CFPB’s new disclosure form is called the Uniform Closing Dataset, and is one component of the Uniform Mortgage Data Program, an ongoing effort being directed by the FHFA.

The mortgage insurance industry is anxiously waiting on new risk-to-capital rules being worked on by the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

Freedom Mortgage, which has aggressive hiring plans this year, has tapped two top production executives from PHH.

Let’s just hope that if Bernie Madoff and Lee Farkas are socializing together in prison they’re not plotting some type of massive mortgage scam.