An unspecified number of counties would have been assigned lower loan limits, based on house price trends, but the FHFA weighed “other factors” and left them unchanged.

Under current rules, a servicer cannot explain on the notice itself that the borrower’s hazard insurance is insufficient rather than expired or expiring...

Regarding Altisource Portfolio Solutions, Sterne Agee noted: “It is difficult to be optimistic from here"...

The Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act allows homeowners who received principal reductions or other forms of debt forgiveness to avoid paying taxes on the amount forgiven.

The 57 percent reduction in endorsements takes FHA closer to the levels of activity seen before the housing crisis.

The Prestwick Group and MIAC are also working on servicing deals.

However, the technology initiative will not be a slam dunk. Real estate laws vary from state to state, which can present a high hurdle for large national lenders to clear.

A sale of that size would greatly reduce the bank’s portfolio and would signal a strategy shift.

“It’s been seven years since the financial crisis, and certainly a lot of things have changed,” said Rui Pereira, managing director at Fitch Ratings.

There’s a growing fear that the CSBS might move to increase capital standards for nonbank originators as well.