Mortgage originators are foregoing lending to borrowers who are more likely to become delinquent to avoid strict and unrealistic FHA timelines and cost limits, according to an Urban Institute study. Results of the study, which was issued in December, were again highlighted during a recent Housing Finance Policy Center seminar on servicing at the Urban Institute in Washington, DC. Citing the study she wrote, Laurie Goodman, director of the HFPC, said regulatory uncertainty and a broken servicer-compensation model were partly responsible for tight credit. The high cost of servicing non-performing mortgages and regulatory uncertainty regarding the treatment of delinquent borrowers have made lenders apprehensive about making loans that have even a slight chance of defaulting, she said. Long foreclosure delays in judicial states, burdensome foreclosure guidelines and apparently ...

Ocwen announced the sale of the $45 billion early this spring, but never identified the buyer.

The three latest deals have a combined UPB of $820 million. Successful votes to terminate servicers of non-agency MBS are uncommon...

It’s no secret that pricing on lender-paid mortgage insurance policies has come down over the past several months and now it appears the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau may take a look at what’s going on behind the curtain. According to industry officials who claim to have knowledge of the situation, the powerful consumer regulator may focus on whether there is some kind of quid pro quo going on between lenders and mortgage insurers. In particular, the agency may look...

Since late February, Ocwen Financial has struck four different deals to sell $89.4 billion in Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac servicing rights. Although buyer interest in the high-quality receivables was strong, getting those transactions past the Federal Housing Finance Agency has been a different matter. Industry advisors note that in general Fannie and Freddie promise their seller/servicers they will approve MSR transfers within 60 days unless there’s a problem. Last summer, the approval time was increased from 30 days, a change that did not receive much publicity. The FHFA, on the other hand, offers...

In a recent 10-K filing Ocwen disclosed that on April 30, 2015 it announced agreements with the GSEs to sell portfolios of non-performing loan servicing rights.

Watt said GSE pay should be brought more in line with comparable private sector jobs, but no higher than what CEOs in the 25th percentile of the market make, which is roughly $7.26 million a year.

Financial consultant Paul Hindman, however, is concerned about such bonuses...

To date, CSS has yet to perform a beta test and has a “black budget” whose details are only known to Fannie, Freddie and their regulator.

A CFPB lending exam can take up to six months to complete and can be quite expensive over time...