Allonhill LLC, a Denver-based due-diligence firm that served both Wall Street and primary market lenders, recently filed for bankruptcy protection, just days after losing a civil case where it was found liable for breach of contract and fraud, and ordered to pay its former client, Aurora Bank FSB, more than $25 million in damages. Last year, Allonhill’s owners – including principal Sue Allon – sold most of the firm’s assets to Stewart Title. From a legal standpoint, it was not a “franchise” deal, which means Stewart should not be on the hook for any actions of the corporate entity. However, the case may be...
The Securities and Exchange Commission late last week gave the securities industry another month to file comments on a proposed rule that most participants already know they don’t like. Comments were originally due March 28 on the SEC’s latest proposal to require asset-backed securities issuers to make loan-level details about pending issues available to investors on their own websites, rather than the agency’s Electronic Data-Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval system. On the day the comment period ended, the SEC extended it to April 28. Many issuers and large banks think...
In the pre-crash days, newly created MSRs were selling at 6 and even 7 times the servicing fee. “I even saw prices of eight,” said Chuck Klein, managing partner for Mortgage Banking Solution.
In its heyday, S&P used to rate more than 90 percent of new issuance of non-agency MBS, but in 2013 it accounted for just 40.0 percent of the market by dollar volume.
A group called The 60 Plus Association has released TV and radio ads in seven states targeting Senate Banking Committee Members who are sponsoring GSE reform legislation. The group claims the bills “allow the government to take over the mortgage industry in an action 'disturbingly similar' to Obamacare.”
Although some jumbo market participants have called for a reduction to GSE loan limits, most of the mortgage industry – and members of Congress – prefer the current levels.
RSS