Rural home purchase lending rose for the fifth straight year in 2016 although volume remains below pre-recession levels, according to new research by the Housing Assistance Council based on Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data. HAC, a nonprofit organization that supports and tracks affordable housing efforts in rural areas, estimated that 55 percent of the 1.05 million rural home loans originated last year were first-lien purchase mortgages. The increase was substantial compared to 2012 and 2013, when two-thirds of rural originations involved refinance, the group noted. The U.S. Department of Agriculture guaranteed 9 to 12 percent of all rural home purchase loans originated in each of the last three years, the study found. Of the 16.3 million HMDA submissions by covered institutions, an estimated 2.0 million involved funding for homes in rural or small-town communities, researchers found. While mortgage activity ...
The Senate could vote on Brian Montgomery’s nomination as FHA commissioner and assistant secretary for housing before the end of the year. The nomination appears to be on a fast track to get Montgomery, a mortgage industry and FHA veteran, on board at the Department of Housing and Urban Development by early January, according to an industry participant who requested anonymity. Last week, the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs voted 18 to 5 to advance Montgomery’s nomination. Twelve Republicans and six Democrats voted in favor of the nominee. Sens. Sherrod Brown, D-OH, and Elizabeth Warren, D-MA, opposed Montgomery’s nomination due to concerns that his work as a private consultant with the mortgage industry might influence his judgment as FHA commissioner. Montgomery, a principal with The Collingwood Group, is no stranger to the job. He served as ...
Vendor Resource Management, which the VA hired in June to service its nationwide mortgage portfolio and real estate-owned assets, has subcontracted a significant portion of the servicing to BSI Financial Services. According to VRM, BSI took over the servicing of the VA’s national portfolio beginning Dec. 1, 2017. VRM retained the REO servicing. VRM was first awarded the servicing contract in 2012, and the company initially subcontracted Ditech Financial to service VA’s larger national portfolio. The contract was later amended to facilitate a pilot whereby a portion of VA properties would be managed under the award. A new 10-year contract was awarded subsequently to VRM, which became effective on July 1, 2017. Based in Irving, TX, BSI Financial is a loan subservicer and a provider of technology and outsourcing services to banks and institutional investors in the ...
FHFA Announces Maximum Conforming Loan Limits for 2018. On Nov. 28, the Federal Housing Finance Agency announced the maximum baseline loan limits in 2018 for one-unit properties, which are increasing to $453,100, and up to $679,650 in most high-cost areas. Loan limits may be higher for Alaska, Hawaii, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands. TOTAL Scorecard Database Upgrade Postponed. FHA has postponed its planned upgrade of the TOTAL Scorecard database that was scheduled initially on Nov. 22, 2017. Additional details will be forthcoming. VA Data Collection: Lender Satisfaction Survey. The VA is seeking approval from the Office of Management and Budget to conduct a survey to gauge lender satisfaction with the various aspects of the VA Home Loan Guaranty program. PennyMac Provides Update to FHA DTI Overlay. Previously, PennyMac’s debt-to-income ratio requirements for ...
Acting Ginnie Mae President Michael Bright also issued a warning that expulsion from the program for “lenders who produce pools with inexplicably fast prepayment speeds” was a distinct possibility.
It's only a matter of time before the White House officially nominates acting Ginnie Mae president Michael Bright to be the permanent head of the agency...
The CFPB and VA recently issued their first WARNO, or “warning order,” to members of the U.S. armed forces and veterans with VA home loans, urging them to stay on their toes and avoid deceptive mortgage refinance offers. “If you have a VA home loan, then there is a good chance that you have already come into contact with unsolicited offers to refinance your mortgage that appear official and may sound too good to be true,” the two agencies said. Many of these solicitations promise extremely low interest rates, thousands of dollars in cash back, the ability to skip mortgage payments, and no out-of-pocket costs or waiting period. “Don’t be fooled,” the CFPB and VA said. “Before responding to any ...
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