The never-ending board game over mortgage foreclosure processing errors flailed through another week of meetings between state attorneys general, top lenders and federal officials that were so informal many didnt confirm that they were in attendance. A leaked copy of a new draft settlement indicates that the latest offer on the table includes $17 billion in principal reductions and a $5 billion reserve account for state and federal programs. According to the Associated Press, some of that account would pay for $1,800 checks to homeowners affected by banks deceptive practices. Another $3...
Its not just federal regulators and lawmakers that are complicating the business of mortgage servicing while the industry continues digging itself out of a housing market collapse of near-biblical proportions. States have become increasingly active and aggressive, and theres little sign thats about to end any time soon. Three years ago, servicers were just beginning to understand the extent to which state legislative efforts could complicate, extend and expand the cost of the foreclosure process, said Nanci Weissgold and Morey Barnes Yost, attorneys in the consumer financial services practice ...
The Democratic and Republican state attorneys general are scheduled to meet separately Monday, Jan. 23, to discuss the foreclosure practices settlement terms sent out last week, amidst varying criticism that the agreement will be either a shakedown for banks or an inadequate answer to homeowner woes. Mondays meetings come after Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan announced last week that the pending settlement was very close and would benefit about 1 million families through principal reduction for homeowners and, in some cases, direct compensation for people wrongfully ...
California. In Balderas v. Countrywide Bank, N.A., the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently ruled that the Truth In Lending Acts delivery obligation requires borrowers be permitted to keep written copies of the right-to-rescind notice. The court noted that to deliver the notice as per TILA requires a permanent physical transfer from one party to another, as opposed to momentary delivery. Illinois. Earlier this month, the Department of Financial and Professional Regulations published amendments to the states mortgage originator licensing requirements. One change ...
Principal reduction to ease negative equity situations may have a lot of positive effects for homeowners, but recent research suggests it may have little impact on worker mobility. A forthcoming working paper by Sam Schulhofer-Wohl, of the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, contends that research showing underwater borrowers are 33 percent less likely to move to better employment markets is flawed because it ignores key data. In an analysis of Census Bureau housing data, Schulhofer-Wohl reached the opposite conclusion, that underwater borrowers are more likely to move, suggesting that principal...
Analysts are divided regarding the outlook for Ocwen Financial as the special servicer has grown significantly in the past two years. Fitch Ratings and Moodys Investors Service recently downgraded Ocwen and Saxon Mortgage due to concerns about Ocwens growth strategy and financial standing while others have endorsed Ocwen and its practices. Ocwen handled a $106.1 billion portfolio at the end of the third quarter of 2011, including $74.9 billion in subprime mortgages. The total included some of the $38.6 billion in subprime loans the servicer acquired from Litton Loan Servicing. At the beginning of February, the company is set to close acquisitions of the Saxon platform and its $26.6 billion portfolio as well as $15.0 billion in non-prime mortgage servicing rights from ...
Nationstar Mortgages servicing portfolio has grown significantly in the past year due to acquisitions from banks, a trend the companys officials suggest will continue. There is significant room for market penetration as larger banks dispose of servicing assets, the nonbank servicer said in a recent presentation to investors. Nationstar is touting its growth prospects even after increasing its servicing portfolio to $102.7 billion at the end of the third quarter of 2011 from $12.7 billion at the end of 2007. The company owns 49.2 percent of the holdings, with the rest being subserviced for others ...
Carrington Holding Company this week announced a partnership with Oaktree Capital Management to purchase up to $450 million in real estate-owned properties and offer them as rentals. The plan is not specific to loans owned by the government-sponsored enterprises, according to Carrington officials. Whether this inventory comes from the GSEs, banks or directly from the [multiple listing service] isnt a primary concern at the moment, said Rick Sharga, an executive vice president at Carrington Mortgage. Well put together the portfolio based on properties that meet the criteria weve established to ensure a reasonable return for the investors. ...
Total FHA forward mortgage originations fell to $190.3 million in 2011, a 32.8 percent decline from 2010 even as mounting FHA delinquencies continue to raise concerns of a costly taxpayer bailout. Five lenders accounted for a fourth of total production with a combined $48.2 billion and an aggregate market share of 25.3 percent, according to Inside FHA Lendings 2011 ranking and analysis of top FHA lenders. The data do not include FHA reverse mortgages. However, the total output of the top five declined on a quarterly and yearly basis by 15.6 percent and a hefty 39.0 percent, respectively. Those five elite lenders included ... (includes one chart)
Two independent mortgage firms have made key changes to their operations to provide better subservicing solutions to FHA and VA lenders as well as reverse mortgage originators. Gateway Mortgage Group, a privately held mortgage bank based in Tulsa, OK, recently announced a new in-house subservicing unit dedicated solely to specialty and default servicing of FHA and VA loans. The decision to set up a subservicing shop became necessary due to the more stringent government loan requirements and increased oversight by regulators, according to Kevin Osuna, vice president of default services. Community bank servicers and smaller institutions were struggling ...