Comment Period for Single Family Handbook Extended. The FHA has extended from July 29 to Aug. 15, 2014 the deadline for submitting feedback on certain sections within the draft Single Family Handbook. Comments are being sought on sections “Doing Business with FHA – FHA Lenders and Mortgagees” and “Quality Control, Oversight and compliance." Both sections’ contents, as well as supporting information, are posted for review and feedback on the SF Drafting Table in the FHA website. Each section’s web page also contains highlights of changes, frequently asked questions (FAQs) and a feedback response worksheet. Julian Castro as New HUD Secretary. Julian Castro was sworn in as the 16th Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development on July 28. He replaces Shaun Donovan, who is now director of the ...

Among the nation’s top five servicers, all suffered a decline in their MSR portfolios. Among the top 30, 20 firms saw a reduction in housing receivables.

The unspoken factor affecting Ocwen's immediate future is Benjamin Lawsky and the New York Department of Financial Services.

Ocwen watchers have wondered when – or if – New York state will ever bring any formal charges against the company.

One joke making the rounds in Washington this week: Congress is going on its August vacation. How will we know the difference?

In recent weeks, speculators have been pressing their bets that certain publicly-traded mortgage companies could be in for a world of hurt because origination volumes are likely to remain subdued this year and there is little chance of growth through servicing acquisitions. According to figures compiled by Compass Point Research & Trading and public websites, the two most-shorted mortgage stocks are Nationstar Mortgage and PHH Corp. Measured by the percentage of shares publicly available (known as “float”), Nationstar has...

Non-depository institutions aren’t letting a relatively stagnant mortgage servicing business stop them from continuing to build market share, according to a new Inside Mortgage Finance analysis and ranking of mortgage servicers at the midway point in 2014. Nonbanks that ranked among the top 30 servicers as of the end of the second quarter serviced an estimated $1.792 trillion of home mortgages, an increase of 12.4 percent over the past year. Depository institutions serviced considerably more – $5.142 trillion – but their aggregate portfolio was down 7.8 percent from the midway point in 2013. The shift to nonbank servicing from the first quarter was...[Includes two data charts]

Not only is Nationstar Mortgage one of the most shorted stocks in the sector, but it seems to be having quite a bit of turnover in the executive suite.

The CEO also noted that the Great Neck, NY-based company has a $7 million warehouse line of credit with Sterling Bank. “That’s an achievement,” he said.

“I don’t see how New York can’t ultimately approve Wells’ sale of servicing to Ocwen,” said one analyst. “I think it’s more a matter of when.”