Mortgage Servicing News articles from May 2005

Mortgage Servicing News archives from May 2005

Ranieri, Partners Look at GMACCM.
May 1, 2005... Washington -- A partnership that includes Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, Goldman Sachs and Five Mile Capital has been granted exclusive negotiating rights to buy a majority stake in GMAC Commercial Mortgage, the nation's largest commercial servicer....

Fannie's REO Program Ensnared in GSE Debate.(real estate owned)
May 1, 2005... Washington -- The Department of Housing and Urban Development is clamping down on Fannie Mae's activities and it has ordered the government-sponsored enterprise to stop its third-party REO (real estate owned) management and sales activities....

Moody's Growing Servicer Oversight.
May 1, 2005... New York -- Moody's Investors Service may have been the last of the big three rating agencies to embrace servicer ratings, but the firm is rapidly expanding its servicer evaluation unit. Warren Kornfeld, a senior vice president at Moody's,...

Bulk Market Is Heating Up.
May 1, 2005... Washington -- Mortgage rates have been firming up the past few months and that means the market for "bulk" servicing rights is finally taking off. As Mortgage Servicing News went to press, at least one large transaction had been announced...

1st American Buys LP.(LoanPerformance)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Santa Ana, CA-Financial services data giant First American Corp. here has agreed to buy LoanPerformance for an undisclosed amount. Based in San Francisco, LoanPerformance is best known in the residential finance industry for its database...

Top Residential Subservicers at 12/31/04.(Illustration)
May 1, 2005... (Dollars in Millions) (part 1 of 2) Rk Organization Name Location 1 Dovenmuehle Mortgage (E) Schaumburg, IL 2 Cenlar FSB Ewing, NJ 3 Wells Fargo Home Mortgage...

Delinquency Rates Expected to Keep Improving.
May 1, 2005... Washington -- Loan performance improved widely in the fourth quarter of 2004, though the Federal Housing Administration continues to suffer from unexpectedly high default rates. The number of FHA loans entering foreclosure hit an all time high...

Residential Delinquency Rates Decline in '04.(Brief Article)(Illustration)
May 1, 2005... Delinquency Rate Loan Type Dec. 31 '03 Dec. 31 '04 Prime 2.37% 2.22% Subprime 11.53% 9.88% FHA 12.23% 12.21% VA 7.99% 6.96%...

Steel Mountain Eyes Performing And Nonperforming Loan Market.(Steel Mountain Capital)(mortgage loan portfolios)(alliances of Silver Point Capital)
May 1, 2005... Denver -- Four veteran mortgage acquisition specialists have teamed up to create Steel Mountain Capital, a firm that will purchase performing and nonperforming mortgage loans and other assets. The new company, which was unveiled last month,...

Bill Would Exempt Servicers from FDCA.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Washington -- The House has passed a bill that would provide mortgage servicers a special exemption from the Fair Debt Collection Act so that they can approach delinquent borrowers in a less hostile way. The bill (H.R. 1025), sponsored by...

Fidelity Overhauls BuyBankHomes Site.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Jacksonville, FL -- Fidelity National Financial has launched an enhanced version of its BuyBankHomes.com website portal for selling bank-owned homes. Fidelity said the new site incorporates Intelligent Map Searching, so that users no...

Secondary Changes.(GSE reform )
May 1, 2005... It may be a while before we know what reform of the government-sponsored enterprises means for mortgage servicers. But some of the broad outlines of what is likely to occur - if GSE reform is enacted - have taken shape. You can expect to see a...

Teamwork and Training, part 2.
May 1, 2005... Ms. Coon is a shareholder in the Michigan-based law firm of Trott & Trott. This viewpoint is the second part of an article she wrote about the foreclosure process. The first part ran in the April edition. Increasing case loads, while...

Does Alan Greenspan Love Banks or What?
May 1, 2005... When contemplating GSE reform, here's an interesting question to ponder: If Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac pose a systemic risk to the U.S. financial system because they own $1.4 trillion in mortgage assets, then how come the nation's top five...

Investors Spooked by March Rise in Prepays.
May 1, 2005... A sharp acceleration in the speeds of 30-year Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac mortgage-backed securities in March represented "a warning shot to mortgage investors," according to Bear Stearns & Co. Fannie Mae speeds rose from a constant...

Countrywide CEO Expects Higher Servicing Profits.
May 1, 2005... New York -- Countrywide Financial Corp. CEO Angelo Mozilo has a long history of setting ambitious goals - and usually meeting them. Speaking at a Piper Jaffray Financial Services Conference here last week, Mr. Mozilo said that Countrywide...

VisiRelease Helps Lenders 'In-Source' Lien Releases.
May 1, 2005... Cranbury, NJ -- VisiRelease, mortgage lien release, conveyance and assignment software provided by Visionet Systems, is enabling lenders to "in-source" instead of outsourcing. For the conveyance department, the clock starts ticking when the...

Appraisal Provider Aids Fannie on REO.(real estate-owned)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Orlando, FL -- The company a la mode, a mortgage and appraisal technology firm, has completed a custom plug-in for its Xsites Order Manager, allowing appraisers contracted by Fannie Mae to deliver real estate-owned appraisal reports to the...

Marriott Uses Fiserv for Managing Timeshare Loan Portfolio.(MortgageServ loan servicing platform)
May 1, 2005... Brookfield, WI -- Marriott Vacation Club International is now using the MortgageServ loan servicing platform to manage its vacation ownership loans, the company said. Headquaratered in Orlando, Fla., Marriott Vacation Club International...

Lenders Cautious On Tech Spending.( technology investment)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Brookfield, WI -- With refinancing activity slowing down, lenders are starting to consider technology investments that can make their servicing shops more efficient. But they want to know they can capitalize those investments over a...

Derivatives Weigh Down Freddie Mac.(fair value )
May 1, 2005... First, the bad news. Despite solid operational performance, Freddie Mac's 2004 net income declined by $2 billion, reflecting a substantial decrease in the value of derivatives that are used to manage interest rate risk exposure. Now, the...

Big Isn't Always Best When Servicing Commercial Mortgages.(forecasts and trends of mortgage debt outstanding)
May 1, 2005... Commercial and multifamily mortgage debt outstanding has touched $2.29 trillion at the end of 2004, representing a major opportunity for commercial servicers. One major competitive factor that has been cited in servicers obtaining and...

Realtors Expect Lower Vacancy Rates in All CRE Categories.(forecasts and trends of vacancy rates )
May 1, 2005... Washington -- Vacancy rates in all the four major commercial property types are likely to decline this year as the commercial real estate market improves, according to the National Association of Realtors. David Lereah, the association's...

CMBS Delinquency Level Keeps Falling.(Delinquency Rate)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... New York -- Delinquencies for U.S. commercial mortgage-backed securities went down to 1.22% at March 2005 and the trend is likely to continue for the rest of 2005, according to Fitch Ratings. The rating agency's loan delinquency index...

FHA Adjusts Cap on Hybrid ARM Rate Changes.(annual interest rate adjustment)(forecasts of lenders)
May 1, 2005... Washington -- Federal Housing Administration lenders have a chance to become real players in the hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage market now that HUD has finally modified its 5/1 hybrid regulation. The Department of Housing and Urban...

IRS Is Looking At 200 RE Cases.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Washington -- The U.S. Internal Revenue Service said it initiated nearly 200 real estate fraud investigations in fiscal year 2004 and secured 89 convictions for tax fraud and money laundering. "In recent years, the booming real estate...

No Slack in Housing Demand.(services of ResearchWorldwide.com )(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... New York -- Despite some talk from economists about a housing bubble - not unlike the dot-com bubble - getting ready to burst, private homebuyers aren't listening and perhaps don't need to. According to commercial real estate research firm...

Lenders Still Face Threat From Mold Claims.
May 1, 2005... Hartford, CT -- In the last three years, the insurance industry has moved quickly to protect itself from mold damage claims by adding "mold exclusions" to policies for residential and commercial real estate. And one environmental...

Insurance & Taxes.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Managing escrow for insurance and tax purposes can provide an additional profit opportunity for mortgage lenders, or it can be a great big headache. In some cases, servicers may face a little bit of both. Escrow accounts provide an opportunity...

Property Tax Deduction Big in California.
May 1, 2005... Los Angeles -- The California Association of Realtors says that building up equity is only one way homeowners can build up wealth as a result of their investment. True, in a state like California, where the median home price has increased...

Irwin Will Use Fidelity System.(contracts of Fidelity Information Systems)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Jacksonville, FL -- Irwin Mortgage Corp. has signed a letter of intent to use the Fidelity Information Systems' Mortgage Servicing Platform to automate loan administration, Fidelity said. Irwin Mortgage, which services in excess of 225,000...

NTS Provides Tax Administration for CRE Lender.
May 1, 2005... Chicago -- National Tax Search, a nationwide provider of property tax management services, has reached a service agreement with Cohen Financial, a commercial real estate finance company. NTS will provide property tax tracking, reporting and...

NTS Forms Unit For Technology.(National Tax Search)(National Tax Technologies)(TaxQ)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Chicago -- National Tax Search, provider of property tax management services, has formed a sister company, National Tax Technologies, to develop and manage new software initiatives. National Tax Technologies will oversee the maintenance and...

Advanced Call Center Helps Loan Protector Manage Volume.
May 1, 2005... Solon, OH -- Loan Protector Insurance Services, by implementing new call-center technology to boost efficiency, has been able to handle increases in both inbound and outbound call volume without adding staff. Loan Protector, an outsourcer...

CUNA Will Get Access To Insurance Tracking.
May 1, 2005... Solon, OH -- A custom interface developed by Loan Protector Insurance Services here, an outsource provider of insurance tracking and verification programs, with the Fidelity Mortgage Servicing Package is helping CUNA Mutual Mortgage Corp. more...

Roundup: FLDI Integrates Title, Recording Firms.(alliances and partnerships of First Lenders Data Inc)(alliances and partnerships of American Title Inc)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Austin, TX -- First Lenders Data Inc., a provider of technology, data and bundled services to the mortgage industry, has unveiled new integrations with U.S. Recordings and American Title. U.S. Recordings, based in St. Paul, Minn., is a...

Escrowdesk Updates Platform.(product enhancement of Escrowdesk)(TrackMyFile.com)(Financial Processing Systems)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Newport Beach, CA -- Escrowdesk, a software developer specializing in transaction management and digital document storage, has upgraded its TrackMyFile.com platform with an integration from Financial Processing Systems. The integration...

MetLife Adds Flood.(National Flood Insurance Program )("Write Your Own" program)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Warwick, RI -- Metlife Auto & Home has been appointed by the National Flood Insurance Program to offer flood insurance, becoming one of a select group of insurance companies approved for the NFIP's "Write Your Own" program. "Most standard...

FHLBank Leader Is Wary of MBS Authority.(Federal home loan banks)(impact of mortgage securitization)
May 1, 2005... Washington -- Legislative efforts to get the Federal Home Loan Banks involved in mortgage securitization has the potential to "destroy" the FHLBanks, according to a FHLBank president. FHLBank of New York president Alfred DelliBovi is...

Freddie Mac Guarantees REMIC Maturity.(Real Estate Mortgage Investment Conduit)
May 1, 2005... McLean, VA -- Freddie Mac is launching a new REMIC program that features innovations such as a guaranteed maturity to minimize extension risk in a rising rate environment and electronic trading capability to reduce the disparity between bid and...

Servicing People.(appointments)
May 1, 2005... ALABAMA Birmingham-AmSouth Bank has named two former SouthTrust executives - Larry Hamilton and Wade King - to lead its Mortgage Banking Division. Mr. Hamilton has been appointed executive vice president and head of AmSouth Mortgage....

PMI Will Limit Its Exposure To Multiple Loan Customers.
May 1, 2005... Walnut Creek, CA -- Mortgage insurer The PMI Group here has adopted changes to its underwriting policies, cutting its potential exposure on consumers who have multiple loans. Without giving a specific reason for the change, PMI reduced the...

MI Cures Outpace Defaults in February.(Mortgage Insurance Companies of America)
May 1, 2005... Washington -- For the first time in almost a year, mortgage insurance cures outpaced new defaults in February, a signal that residential credit quality may be improving. The Mortgage Insurance Companies of America reported that 38,421 new...