Home prices in the U.S. are continuing to rebound – in some cases, nearing their peak before the housing market’s collapse, and in other cases, exceeding their peak. The trending data are stoking anxiety among some market observers that the American housing and mortgage markets are either already in, or dangerously close to, bubble territory. For example, the latest Home Price Index from Black Knight Financial Services now stands at an average of $256,000, up 32.6 percent from the market’s bottom and just 1.1 percent away from a new national peak, based on June 2016 residential real estate transactions. That figure is up 5.3 percent from year-ago levels. Further, home prices in six of the nation’s 20 largest states in mortgage activity reached...

JPM, though, relies heavily on correspondent loan purchases to gather loans while Quicken bills itself as a direct-to-consumer/retail lender.

Kingstown is known as a value-oriented hedge fund, with roughly $1.5 billion of assets under management.

Only two of the top 10 banks as ranked by “servicing for others” have been in growth mode: PNC Bank and SunTrust.

Price is paramount to buyers purchasing a mortgage company, but equally important is bringing over the salesforce – namely loan officers – and making sure they stay happy under the new owners. That’s one of many insights contained in a new “In-Focus” report from The Stratmor Group, a consulting firm that plies its trade in the M&A circuit as well as other sectors of the industry. “While the numbers and related analysis are fundamental to the negotiating process, there is an ...

The GSE buyback total was down 20.6 percent from the first quarter…

HUD has been criticized by consumer advocates who feel the agency's NPL auctions have unfairly benefitted private equity firms and hedge funds at the expense of troubled borrowers.

Lender buybacks of mortgages sold to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac may never completely disappear, but they are shrinking fast – especially when compared to soaring new business volume at the two government-sponsored enterprises. A new Inside Mortgage Trends analysis reveals that lenders repurchased, or made other indemnification, some $250.1 million of loans during the second quarter of 2016. That was the lowest quarterly ... [Includes two data charts]

Commercial banks and savings institutions are continuing their years-long flight from the volatile business of holding mortgage-servicing rights on their balance sheets, according to a new Inside Mortgage Trends analysis of call report data. At the end of June, banks and thrifts serviced $3.916 trillion of single-family mortgages for other investors, usually mortgage-backed securities trusts. That was down 2.1 percent from the previous quarter and ... [Includes one data chart]

It’s no secret that PHH Corp. is losing money and hopes for a buyout offer that will net stockholders something closer to its book value of $24 a share compared to its current price of $15. But the big question remains: Can PHH pull off a deal before more bad news swamps the company?In a recent 10-Q filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the nation’s ninth largest servicer of home mortgages noted that it’s continuing its “strategic review process,” including a ...