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 underlying collateral is located in all 50 states, but Texas accounts for the largest count of loans at 1,220.

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.

We’re told a sale contract could be signed any day now, but as far as a public announcement is concerned, it may not happen right away…

The nation’s subservicers increased their contracts to a record high $1.350 trillion at March 31 as tougher regulations continued to play a key role in the shifting of processing chores away from depositories to nonbanks. On a sequential basis, contracts increased by 7.1 percent in the first quarter and 14.4 percent compared to March 31, 2014, according to a new Inside Mortgage Finance ranking. Only four banks – Flagstar, Cenlar, Wells Fargo and Bank of America – were among the top 20 subservicers. Overall, at March 31, subservicers were...[Includes one data table]

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...

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]

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

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.

The most recent regulatory foray has come from the Conference of State Bank Supervisors, which formed the Mortgage Servicing Rights Task Force to develop standards for nonbank servicers...