“The issues that have impeded the regulators’ ability to conduct electronic examinations must be rectified, and when resolved, will enable a more efficient and timely regulatory process,” said Karyn Tierney, chair of the MMC.
Over the past few months, the chief executive officers at two publicly traded mortgage firms and a private cooperative have departed, creating uncertainty in the market while underscoring what might seem obvious to some: It’s not easy running a mortgage business these days. CEOs heading for the exits – either on their own accord or via a management edict – include Jim Cutillo of Stonegate, Jeff McGuiness at the Lenders One Cooperative, and most recently Mark O’Brien, who headed nonbank lender/servicer Walter Investment Management Corp. And rounding out the “departure club” is...
An acquirer of mortgage servicing rights has agreed to pay $1.5 million and to stop committing further violations to resolve charges of misstating net income and misleading the Securities and Exchange Commission about its relationship with servicer Ocwen Financial Group. The settlement agreement between the SEC and Home Loan Servicing Solutions is the latest twist in the long-running federal and state investigations of Ocwen and its relationships with affiliated companies, which have included HLSS, Altisource Residential, Altisource Portfolio Solutions and Altisource Asset Management. The common thread in all five companies is...
Community banks continue to raise concerns about how regulations are hampering mortgage originations, according to the results of a survey by state regulators. While some community banks have ceased originations, lending data and forward-looking projections suggest that community banks have adapted to the post-crisis regulatory environment. The Federal Reserve and Conference of State Bank Supervisors released a report late last week detailing a survey of 868 banks with $10 billion or less in total assets. Single-family mortgages were named as a primary line of businesses by 69 percent of the surveyed banks in 2015, down from a 75 percent share last year. “Considerable variation in mortgage market conditions was reported...
The Federal Housing Finance Agency has skimped in its oversight of Fannie Mae’s and Freddie Mac’s budgets, in most cases not approving them until well after the start of the government-sponsored enterprises’ fiscal years, according to the Inspector General of the FHFA. The FHFA’s budget review and approval process for Fannie and Freddie is seriously flawed and plagued with cursory-level analysis and inadequate resources, the IG said. The agency generally agreed with the IG report and overhauled its budget-review process in July 2015. The IG noted...
The results of a new survey conducted for NeighborWorks America suggest that student loan debt is an obstacle for a growing share of potential homebuyers. The congressionally chartered organization with a focus on housing counseling also found confusion among potential homebuyers regarding the mortgage market. Some 57 percent of respondents said student loan debt was an obstacle to purchasing a home, up from a 49 percent share last year. The survey involved 1,000 adults. And 76 percent of respondents with student debt said the homebuying process is complicated, up from a 70 percent share in 2014. The greatest obstacle for potential homebuyers continues...
The former CFPB official said non-W-2 borrowers – like the self-employed, retirees and people with seasonal income – account for 30 to 40 percent of applicants for jumbo mortgages...