Some underwriters in the private mortgage insurance space are rolling out new technology in their efforts to reacquire market share lost to the FHA even as market tidal forces continue to shift in favor of private MIs. Radian Guaranty, a subsidiary of Radian Group, has introduced its MI rate finder application, Radian Rates, for Android smart phone devices on Google Play. Designed as a mobile version of the company’s existing online rate finder, Radian Rates checks eligibility, compares options and automatically calculates the MI rate depending on the ...

The hundreds of billions of dollars – perhaps trillions of dollars – in recent and upcoming mortgage servicing acquisitions include significant regulatory risks, according to industry lawyers. Concerns include increased attention from regulators, outstanding liabilities and state licensing requirements. Up to $1.5 trillion in servicing could be transferred in the next two years, mostly from depository institutions to nonbanks, according to industry analysts. Most of the large banks are actively ...

The Conference of State Bank Supervisors, the American Association of Residential Mortgage Regulators and the American Council of State Savings Supervisors submitted a joint comment letter to the bureau expressing strong support for the CFPB’s proposed small-creditor amendment, which was issued along with the ability-to-repay final rule back in January. “CSBS, AARMR and ACSSS have a long-standing policy that regulations should not hinder an insured depository institution’s willingness to engage in portfolio lending, and...

The CFPB and state mortgage regulators appear to be hitting their stride in establishing a good working relationship when it comes to coordinating their examinations, including the development of an information-sharing protocol state officials hope will further improve efficiencies. Throughout 2012, representatives of the Multi-State Mortgage Committee of the Conference of State Bank Supervisors met regularly with various officials at the bureau to make sure examination scheduling and information sharing...

The CFPB published a final rule on disclosure of records and information earlier this month in which it did not back off of its insistence that it has discretionary authority to share confidential information with state attorneys general. Under the final rule, the CFPB is allowed to provide discretionary disclosures of confidential information to state AGs “to the extent that the disclosure of the information is relevant to the exercise” of the AG’s statutory authority. And the rule enables the bureau to similarly disclose...

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau will closely monitor sales of servicing, particularly to nonbanks, and require new contingency plans from servicers, the agency announced last week. The new scrutiny was prompted by complaints from borrowers as nonbank special servicers have increased their purchases of servicing in recent years. “The CFPB will, in appropriate cases, require servicers engaged in significant servicing transfers to prepare and submit written plans to the CFPB detailing how they will ...

The FHA will begin monitoring state housing finance agencies (HFAs) to ensure that the cash assistance they provide borrowers for closing costs, downpayment or rehabilitation costs are not coming from illegal sources. FHA Commissioner Carol Galante said there have been concerns about whether some HFA homeownership program funding models are in compliance with the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s current interpretive rule clarifying its prohibition on seller-funded downpayment assistance. Published in the Federal Register, the interpretive rule clarified that ...

California and Texas took the honors for top FHA producers among states and other U.S. jurisdictions in 2012, with a combined $59.2 billion in new mortgage loans insured by the FHA. The combined output of the two states represented 25.5 percent of the $232.1 billion in new FHA originations reported by all 50 states, Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands and the District of Columbia for the entire year. Total FHA production by state was up a modest 5.2 percent in the fourth quarter from the previous quarter and a hefty 21.9 percent from the prior year. California, which accounts for 25 percent of the U.S. housing market, reported ...

The CFPB convinced a federal district court in Miami to require a nationwide debt-relief services company to refund up to $100,000 to consumers who were allegedly unlawfully charged advance fees for debt settlement services. State Attorneys General of New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota and Wisconsin and the Hawaii Office of Consumer Protection joined the bureau’s lawsuit, making this the CFPB’s first joint-enforcement action with the states. The bureau asserted that the defendant, Payday Loan Debt Solution...

The five banks that are parties to the $25 billion national mortgage settlement have extended more than $26.11 billion in gross relief to more than 300,000 borrowers, or roughly $84,385 per homeowner, according to a new report from the Office of Mortgage Settlement Oversight. At that pace, the five participating servicers will satisfy their obligations under the settlement two years ahead of the 2015 deadline. “The report discloses that the banks have completed $21.92 billion in consumer relief to borrowers...