Mortgage Servicing News articles from July 2005

Mortgage Servicing News archives from July 2005

ARMs and HELOCS Could Run Off.(Adjustable rate mortgages)(Home-equity lines of credit)
July 1, 2005... New York -- The recent dip in long-term interest rates has loan originators revving up their engines, but the new portfolio churning may look different than the refinancing of recent years. This time, recently originated adjustable-rate...

Booming IO Market Sparks Concern.
July 1, 2005... Washington -- Two years ago, very few residential lenders were funding interest-only mortgages, but today these somewhat controversial loans account for 21% of the entire production market in the U.S., according to exclusive survey figures...

Residential Interest-Only Lenders in Q1 2005.
July 1, 2005... (Dollars in Millions) (part 1 of 2) Rk Organization Name Location 1 Countrywide Financial Corp. (E) Calabasas, CA 2 Wells Fargo Home Mortgage San Francisco, CA 3 Aurora Loan...

Appraisal Fraud Adds to Foreclosures.
July 1, 2005... Washington -- The National Community Reinvestment Coalition is calling for legislation to clean up the appraisal process after seeing more and more "predatory" loans with inflated appraisals that its special rescue fund can't restructure. ...

Attorneys Seek Increase in Fees.
July 1, 2005... Tustin, CA -- Attorneys who specialize in providing foreclosure work for the mortgage industry are lobbying the Department of Veterans Affairs to raise its proposed reimbursement schedule, but the head of an association of attorneys says the...

Study: Nontraditional Loans Responsible for 85% of Profits.
July 1, 2005... New York -- A new analysis of the industry's profitability sheds some light on why lenders are rushing into the nonconforming market: because that's where the money is. The study, by the international consulting firm of Mercer Oliver...

Top Subprime Subservicers at 3/31/05.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... (Dollars in Millions) (part 1 of 2) Rk Organization Name Location 1 Option One Mortgage Corp. Irvine, CA 2 Ocwen Financial Corp. West Palm Beach, FL 3 Homeq Servicing Corp....

Colorado Agency Using Loan Protector.
July 1, 2005... Solon, OH -- The Colorado Housing and Finance Authority has streamlined its residential mortgage servicing operation using Loan Protector's "LP direct," a Web-based ordering system for lender-placed insurance. Loan Protector here said that...

Interest Spreads, MSRs a Concern for Portfolio Lenders.
July 1, 2005... New York -- Analysts at Merrill Lynch have downgraded the stocks of several prominent financial companies, in most cases citing margin pressure from a flattening yield curve as the culprit behind the lower expectations. But firms with large MSR...

Countrywide Aims For $2.5 Trillion.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Calabasas, CA -- Meanwhile, not every company is worried about matching its hedge gains and MSR losses on a quarterly basis. At least Countrywide Financial Corporation, the nation's largest mortgage servicer, seems to be taking the view that...

Downside of a Bubble.
July 1, 2005... Everyone knows that if there is a "bubble" in home prices, and if that bubble bursts, it will likely cause a few headaches for mortgage servicers. Default rates will likely rise, loss mitigation options will diminish and selling REO will become...

The Return to 'Normalcy'.
July 1, 2005... Christopher Abbinante is co-chief operating officer, executive vice president and division four manager for title operations for Fidelity National Financial Inc. Division four includes CTIC, FNTIC and TT operations. An industry expert in title...

Speeds Rise Despite Mixed Refinancing Picture.
July 1, 2005... Prepayment rates for 30-year Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac mortgage-backed securities rose slightly in May, spurred by seasonal increases in turnover in the face of mixed refinancing activity, according to Bear Stearns. Fannie Mae 30-year MBS...

EMC Gets Top Servicer Ratings.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... New York -- Fitch Ratings has affirmed its top ratings on EMC Mortgage Corp.'s primary and special servicer functions. EMC is rated "RPS1" as a primary servicer of subprime and alt-A mortgage loans and receives the "RSS1" rating as a...

Commercial Realty Loans Keep on Getting Stronger.
July 1, 2005... While debate continues in some quarters about whether the economy has hit a soft patch or not, the performance of commercial mortgages is undisputably getting better on the delinquency and default front. The commercial mortgage loan default...

KeyCorp's Deal Adds to FHA Presence.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Cleveland -- KeyCorp is acquiring Dallas-based Malone Mortgage Co. in a move that is expected to expand the company's presence in the Federal Housing Administration financing and servicing areas. The terms of the acquisition, which requires...

Europe Ripe For Loan Sales.
July 1, 2005... London -- The whole loan sales market in Europe offers mortgage lenders a viable alternative to securitization, according to a recent report by Standard & Poor's Ratings Services' office here. "While challenges in as diverse a market as...

Allied Sells Commercial MBS Portfolio.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Washington -- Allied Capital has sold its commercial mortgage-backed securities portfolio and collateralized debt obligation assets to Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec for cash proceeds of about $976 million. And Allied Capital has...

REITs at Risk for 'Correction' in Real Estate Markets.(Real Estate Investment Trust )
July 1, 2005... New York -- Some U.S. real estate investment trusts and real estate operating companies could face challenges if a correction were to happen in the "frothy" real estate investment and capital market areas, according to Moody's Investors...

C&S Marketing Enhances Fraud Detection with Scoring Tool.
July 1, 2005... Sacramento, CA -- In an effort to enhance its ability to detect and prevent loan fraud, C&S Marketing has upgraded its collateral risk scoring tool, HistoryPro. HistoryPro shows the likelihood of foreclosure for a property in a statistical...

Consumers Feel Better about Credit, But Voice Concern on Home Loans.
July 1, 2005... Costa Mesa, CA -- Experian here and the Gallup Organization said that in May, customer sentiment about their credit had slightly improved according to the Experian-Gallup Personal Credit Index. On the other hand, the survey shows customers...

RealtyTrac Reports an Increase In Foreclosed Property on Market.
July 1, 2005... Irvine, CA -- The number of new properties in foreclosure increased nationwide for the second month in a row, according to a report released by Irvine, Calif.-based online marketplace for foreclosure properties RealtyTrac. RealtyTrac's...

Advantage Title Closes $13.5M Refinance Deal.(Advantage Title )(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Huntington, NY -- Advantage Title said that it has issued a lender's title insurance policy for $13.5 million in connection with the blanket refinancing of four shopping centers located in Nassau and Suffolk Counties in New York. The four...

ScoreNet Offers Additional Data, Monthly Updates to its Customers.
July 1, 2005... San Francisco -- The Fair Isaac Corp. has expanded its ScoreNet service to offer subscribing banks and businesses their choice of up to 202 credit attributes from Experian consumer credit files, accompanying Fair Isaac scores calculated at...

National City Offers Customers New Identity Protection Service.
July 1, 2005... Detroit -- Identity theft is a growing problem that plagues the customers of financial institutions across the country. Metro Detroit customers are getting some new ammunition in the war on identity theft. National City, Cleveland, is...

Ocwen Releases New Vendor Management Tool.
July 1, 2005... West Palm Beach, FL -- Ocwen Financial Corp. here has released Vendor Assurance, a Web-based vendor management tool designed to make it easier, quicker and more profitable for mortgage lenders to electronically manage the settlement process....

Consumers Keep Tabs on Credit Scores.
July 1, 2005... Minneapolis -- Fair Isaac Corp., pioneer of the FICO credit score used by lenders to evaluate consumer credit risk, said that its myFICO consumer division and its partners have sold the 10-millionth FICO score to U.S. consumers. The milestone...

Fair Isaac Helps Detect Fraud Clues.
July 1, 2005... Orlando, FL -- Fair Isaac Corp., a provider of analytics and decision technology, has released Falcon One, a new software solution designed to help financial institutions combat existing and emerging types of fraud at customer "touch points"...

LSI Launches Flood Maps on Web.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Jacksonville, FL -- LIS Flood Services, a division of Fidelity National Financial that provides flood determination services for the real estate and lending industries, has launched Web Maps, a comprehensive suite of online flood map services....

Refi Boom Might Still Have Some Legs.
July 1, 2005... It was supposed to end. The refi boom, that is. Wake me up when it's over. To be sure, refinancing has tapered off considerably from its peak levels, when as many as three quarters of home loan applications were for refinancing. ...

WaMu Selects State of Texas For Its New Operations Center.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Austin, TX -- Washington Mutual may have spent last year slashing jobs from its mortgage banking unit, but now the company is investing in a regional operations center that is expected to add some 4,200 jobs in Texas over the next seven years,...

Home-Equity Delinquencies Remain Low.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... New York -- A strong housing market and low interest rates has helped keep the delinquency rate on securitized home-equity loan portfolios low, according to Moody's Investors Service. In February, the 60-plus-day delinquency rate was 5.53%,...

Franklin Credit's 1stQ Earnings Rise by 51%.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... New York -- Franklin Credit Management, a specialty consumer finance company that acquires, originates, services and resolves performing and nonperforming mortgage loans, said that net income increased 51% in the first quarter to $3.1 million....

Susan Barnes to Head S&P's Mortgage Group.(appointed Susan Barnes as practice leader and head of its Structured Finance Residential Mortgage Group )(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... New York -- Standard & Poor's has appointed Susan Barnes as practice leader and head of its Structured Finance Residential Mortgage Group in North America. Previously, Ms. Barnes, a managing director, served as the senior analytical...

Report: Arizona Is Scene of Rising Home Loan Fraud.
July 1, 2005... Chicago -- There has been somewhat of a shift in the states that have the greatest mortgage fraud problems, according to a periodic report from the National Home Equity Mortgage Association and the Mortgage Asset Research Institute that...

WaMu Drops Fee for HELOC.
July 1, 2005... Washington Mutual has dropped the annual fee for its Personal Equity Manager product and has lengthened the fixed-rate option up to a 30-year term, making it one of the most flexible home-equity and mortgage products currently available. ...

Freddie Mac Joins the Fray with New Option ARM Products.
July 1, 2005... Washington -- Freddie Mac wants to start purchasing option-adjusted ARMs later this year as it tries to catch up with the market and the Wall Street conduits. These adjustable-rate mortgages offer borrowers several payment options, including...

Assignment, Releases & Title Services: Migration Frustration.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... As quickly as loans fly in the front door, just as many fare flying the coop out the back door. That's the experience the mortgage industry has had to manage during the past few years. A record loan boarding workload has been coupled with a...

First Advantage Acquires Unit from Affiliate First American.
July 1, 2005... St. Petersburg, FL -- Two closely related companies, First Advantage Corp. and First American Corp., have reached a definitive agreement whereby First Advantage, a risk mitigation and business solutions provider, will purchase the Credit...

PMI Says Captive Reinsurance Passes Accounting Test For Risk Transfer Deals.
July 1, 2005... Walnut Creek, CA -- The PMI Group Inc. here said a self-commissioned study found its deep cede captive reinsurance arrangements satisfy the risk transfer requirements of SFAS 113 because the probability of significant loss to the other party is...

Fidelity Helps Florida Counties with Deed Recording.
July 1, 2005... Jacksonville, FL -- Fidelity National Information Services Aptitude Solutions division, a provider of technology for county government automation, has been selected by five Florida counties for automated indexing and redaction services. ...

Data Tree Adds Abstractor Service.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... San Diego -- Data Tree, a provider of recorded land record documents and a member of the First American Corp. family of companies, has added two new features to its DocEdge.com, abstractor services and batch retrieval. DocEdge currently...

Fidelity Taking Step Toward Spin Off of Title Insurance Division.
July 1, 2005... Jacksonville, FL -- While investors had a positive reaction when they first heard about Fidelity National Financial here spinning off its title business, at least one rating agency is taking a wait-and-see attitude. Fidelity executives...

Orion and Ernst Team Up on Lien Recording.
July 1, 2005... Southlake, TX -- Orion Financial Group here, a mortgage industry document services provider, has partnered with Ernst Publishing Co., Clarksville, N.Y., a national authority on land recording offices, to record mortgage assignments and...

RealEC Updates Software to Enhance Tracking of Settlement Services.
July 1, 2005... Santa Ana, CA -- RealEC's latest version expands into supply-chain management software to make it easier for the user to track the ordering on settlement services. RealEC Technologies here is a provider of supply-chain technology to the...

Stewart Subsidiary Broadens Title Footprint.
July 1, 2005... Houston -- REIData Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Stewart Information Services Corp. here, has introduced SearchManager, an integrated, interactive Web-based title search application with Florida coverage, now available through...

Mold Also a Concern for Commercial Servicers.
July 1, 2005... Washington -- A growing concern for lenders and servicers is how to manage mold since the problem has expanded from the residential side of the mortgage market into the commercial arena where claims are occurring more frequently, according to...

Mark Hughes.(promoted Mark Hughes to the office of president.)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... The Bohan Group, a San Francisco-based provider of risk analysis to the mortgage industry, has promoted Mr. Hughes to the office of president. Mr. Hughes has been an executive vice president at the company for the past four years and was named...

Ginnie Expects More FHA Hybrids.(Federal Housing Administration)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Washington -- Ginnie Mae is expecting to see a boost in securitizations of hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages in July now that FHA lenders are originating a competitive 5/1 hybrid product. Federal Housing Administration 5/1 hybrids had a...

Servicing People.(appointments)
July 1, 2005... CALIFORNIA Irvine-Portellus Inc. said that Brenda Arnold has joined the company as senior process and project manager. In this capacity, Ms. Arnold will oversee company processes and manage the installations of its mortgage-related...

Lenders Keen on Bundling.
July 1, 2005... Edina, MN -- The industry is calling for the automation of settlement services to further streamline the mortgage process. In terms of dollars and cents, 61% of respondents to this publication's affiliate, the Electronic Mortgage Technology...

Thornburg Raises $123M From Stack Offering.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Santa Fe, NM -- Thornburg Mortgage here has priced a follow-on offering of 4,000,000 shares of common stock at $30.80 per share. Gross proceeds from the transaction were $123.2 million and will be primarily used to fund adjustable-rate loans...