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Inside Mortgage Finance

May 5, 2006

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Diverse Group of Mid-Size Servicers Post Huge Gains in Otherwise Modestly Growing Business

A dozen or so mid-sized lenders are capitalizing on the burgeoning nonprime mortgage market to build up their servicing portfolios, according to a new analysis by Inside Mortgage Finance. Despite a downturn in mortgage originations, a robust housing market and continuing steady gains in house prices have helped fuel relatively strong growth in the mortgage servicing market. According to Federal Reserve Board data, the home mortgage market topped the $9 trillion mark at the… [Two data tables included] Read More

Ameriquest Tackles Cost, Compliance Issues With Major Shakeup of Retail Originations

In a move that it says will make it more efficient and better able to compete in new market niches, Ameriquest Mortgage has shuttered most of the company’s retail branches in favor of a centralized origination strategy. “We are launching a new strategy for our retail mortgage business, one that will enable us to offer a broader array of competitively priced products and higher-quality customer service.” said Aseem Mital, CEO of ACC Capital Holdings, in… Read More

OFHEO Gets its First GOP Director, and Perhaps a More Aggressive Regulatory Environment for Fannie and Freddie

The Bush administration has finally installed its own man as chief financial regulator for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, perhaps signaling a more aggressive approach to using existing authority rather than wait for comprehensive reform of the government-sponsored enterprises from Congress. James Lockhart this week took over as acting director at the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight, making him the first Republican to hold the post in the agency’s history. Said to be a… Read More

Earnings Volatility Claims Another Victim in Mortgage Servicing Business: NetBank Puts Platform up for Sale

Shaky earnings from its servicing operation have pushed NetBank to offer its servicing platform and most of its servicing portfolio for sale. Selling the unit will free-up between $20 million and $35 million in risk-based capital for the online bank to invest in more profitable initiatives, and save the company the quarterly headache of volatile servicing profits. … Read More

Mortgage Fraud Becoming More Sophisticated, Better Technol-ogy Needed to Fight it, Experts Say

Rising home-appreciation rates, concentrations of immigrants in high-cost housing areas, total mortgage-broker control of the loan process, and wide dispersion of participants in a loan transaction all contribute to the growing incidence of mortgage fraud, but all these can be counteracted, according to mortgage fraud experts. Perpetrators of mortgage fraud are so slick that unless lenders run all their loan applications through a foolproof automated wringer, lies and misrepresentations will filter through and lead… Read More

Large Lenders Looking for Competitive Advantages Need to Embrace Offshoring as a Way to Lower Costs

Offshoring elements of the mortgage business has become commonplace and lenders that ignore the efficiencies of tapping cheaper overseas labor markets could find themselves losing ground to their competitors, noted Craig Focardi, an analyst with TowerGroup and author of a new offshore study. Large lenders (doing at least $7.5 billion in new loan volume) these days are more seriously considering sending some back office or IT functions to India. Lenders are anxious to offset direct… Read More

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