Whistleblowers that bring a False Claim Act claim against an FHA lender based on previous publicly disclosed information have no standing, according to a recent federal district court ruling. Judge Jack Zouhary of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio dismissed an FCA lawsuit against U.S. Bank because the whistleblower had neither direct nor independent knowledge of the bank’s alleged false claims – two basic requirements for standing in a whistleblower suit. The Advocates for Basic Legal Equality (ABLE), an Ohio-based legal aid group, filed an FCA lawsuit against U.S. Bank for allegedly disregarding and violating FHA regulations. The group accused the bank of filing false claims and collecting payments without evaluating loss mitigation alternatives before foreclosing on properties. According to ABLE, it had consulted with “many people,” whose mortgage loans were ...
It stands to reason that by waiving the charge that Freddie might take in less revenue, but a GSE spokesman said as a financial matter, “it’s not material.”
The former analyst said Freddie has “an inferior security [MBS] necessitating the need for a lot of time and expense to create a common securitization platform…”
The real estate industry is excited about the potential use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) or drones in marketing residential and commercial properties. But stakeholders might have to wait a bit more until federal regulations for drone usage are clear and precise. Industry participants across the country are eager to use drones for aerial photography, videography, property inspection and appraisal and for other mortgage-related opportunities UAV technology might bring. Sometime in the not-so-distant future, Realtors will be able to legally fly unmanned drones over listed properties to give prospective buyers a total view of each listed property and its surroundings. For appraisers and catastrophic insurers, drones can reduce the time it takes to provide an appraisal for a residential or ...
A dramatic disconnect has surfaced between different segments of the mortgage industry when it comes to being prepared to comply with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s pending integrated-disclosure rule. Professionals in the land title insurance side of the business are far more confident about their readiness than are depository institutions, recent surveys reveal. A survey conducted in April by the American Land Title Association found that 92 percent of respondents indicated their company will be prepared to implement the new loan estimate and closing disclosures and to comply with the CFPB’s regulation. That number isn’t as good as it seems, though. A much smaller 62.6 percent said they are on schedule for implementation. Another 29.4 percent conceded they are behind ...
First Guaranty Mortgage Corp., Frederick, MD, originated $940 million of home mortgages in the first quarter, a 48 percent jump from the same period a year earlier.
Several hard money lenders are involved in financing flippers, charging interest rates that are several percentage points above the going Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac rate.
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