The focus on foreclosure documentation on forward mortgages has set the stage for similar scrutiny on reverse mortgages, and the extra documentation required in a reverse mortgage adds to this challenge, according to compliance experts. In a recent legal analysis, Christopher Willis and Mercedes Kelly Tunstall, litigation attorney and of counsel at the Washington law firm Ballard Spahr, respectively, said reverse mortgage lenders and servicers could avoid many of the problems encountered by forward mortgages by examining their foreclosure process carefully and learning from ...

The Department of Housing and Urban Development has hired a new contractor to service Home Equity Conversion Mortgages and other secretary-held mortgage assets. Irving, TX-based Deval, LLC, officially took over from C&L Service Corp. as HUD’s new loan servicing contractor effective March 1. Servicers may assign loans through Deval once they reach 98 percent of the maximum claim amount. As part of its servicer duties, Deval will handle borrower inquiries, payoff requests for Hope for Homeowners mortgages, HECM servicer inquiries and certain HECM-related requests. In addition to assigned HECM loans, Deval will be ...

The FHA and Ginnie Mae continue to face risk-management challenges despite steps they have taken to better assess, manage and minimize risk, according to an updated report from the Government Accountability Office. The report said recommendations the GAO made in a previous assessment to improve risk management have not been fully implemented at either of the agencies. Both agencies, however, said efforts are underway to implement GAO recommendations. The FHA is getting more scrutiny from Congress because of the weak condition of the Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund, whose capital reserve ratio has ...

The Home Affordable Refinance Program for underwater Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac mortgages has accelerated sharply in the first quarter of 2012, according to a new analysis and ranking by Inside Mortgage Finance. Based on loan-level data on mortgage-backed securities issued by the two government-sponsored enterprises during the first quarter, HARP activity surged to a record 180,572 loans in the first three months of the year. That was up 93.8 percent from the fourth quarter of 2011, and it featured a huge 56.3 percent jump in activity from February to March. Total HARP activity...(Includes one data chart)

Certain watchdog agencies of the federal government have expressed concern to Congress about whether additional steps already taken by the FHA and Ginnie Mae to improve their risk management are sufficient to avert potential government intervention. A recent study by the General Accountability Office and testimony by Department of Housing and Urban Development Inspector General David Montoya before a House panel have raised questions about the financial stability of the FHA and Ginnie Mae and their ability to respond to a major financial crisis. Both the GAO and Montoya concluded that the two agencies...

The FHA’s total capital resources dipped slightly by $400 million in the last three months of 2011, but things could have been much worse had it not been for lower claims activity, according to the FHA’s quarterly report to Congress on Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund programs. On balance, the report shows little change and nothing unexpected during the quarter, said industry participants. The much-anticipated changes will come after two FHA premium adjustments become effective on April 1 – an annual mortgage insurance premium increase of 10 basis points and a 75 bps hike in upfront premiums, they said. The upfront premium increase is expected to ...

The FHA would have more flexibility to adjust its insurance premiums and greater latitude to require lender indemnification under legislation approved by the House Financial Services Committee this week. The committee passed H.R. 4264, the FHA Emergency Fiscal Solvency Act of 2012, by voice vote on March 27, sending the measure to the House floor for consideration later this year. The bill is slightly different from the initial draft the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Insurance, Housing and Community Opportunity passed on Feb. 7, according to the bill’s author, Rep. Judy Biggert, R-IL. Under the bill, approved lenders may ...

Perceived inaccuracies in public discussions about the FHA’s health and the way the agency manages its business have prompted Acting FHA Commissioner Carol Galante to address the issues and answer critics. In a posting on the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s official blog this week, Galante said the FHA is “moving in the right direction” and that the Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund is in a much better shape than it was in 2009. Critics have raised concerns about FHA’s solvency, citing the current level of capital reserves, which have fallen way below the ...

Despite the steps taken recently by the Department of Housing and Urban Development to shore up the FHA insurance fund, concerns remain as to whether such actions are enough to make up for FHA’s losses and restore the agency’s mandatory 2.0 percent capital reserve ratio in a timely manner, according to HUD’s top internal auditor. Testifying before the House Committee on Appropriations this week, HUD Inspector General David Montoya warned further actions might be necessary to ensure the stability of the FHA Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund and reduce its risks. For example, FHA now uses credit scores to ...

A Texas-based mortgage lender that recently lost its approval to originate and underwrite FHA loans sued in state court to compel the Department of Housing and Urban Development to withdraw an announcement of the enforcement action. AmericanHomeKey filed the complaint in Dallas County Court to force the withdrawal of a March 23 HUD press release announcing the immediate and permanent revocation of the lender’s FHA authority to originate, underwrite and close new mortgages with FHA insurance. The lender said a premature announcement would ruin its relationship with investors and result in massive losses. The HUD Mortgagee Review Board announced ...