Following an industry report on immigrants in the American housing market, Residential Finance Corporation announced a new program for foreign and immigrant homebuyers.

While more than 90 percent of homes purchased in 2011 were existing homes, more than half of homebuyers declared a preference for new homes, according to the National Association of Home Builders' (NAHB) Characteristics of Home Buyers, an analysis of the 2011 American Housing Survey conducted by the Census Bureau. Along with their preference for new homes, survey respondents expressed a desire for energy-efficient homes. According to NAHB, these two qualities go hand-in-hand.

While Edward DeMarco, acting director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), anticipates the gradual reduction of the GSEs in the housing market, he does not believe either Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac will exit conservatorship and return to the private sector. As such, FHFA's goals for this year expand on last year's three main goals of building an infrastructure for the future of the secondary market, contracting the GSEs' role in the market, and maintaining the GSEs' foreclosure prevention and credit availability efforts.

First Financial Network, an Oklahoma City-based loan sale advisor, recently announced the addition of a new SVP of business development. First Financial welcomes Tim Buss, an industry veteran who began his career in 1987.

The Warren Group ranked Norcom Mortgage, a privately-owned mortgage lender, No. 1 for purchase lending in its recent Residential Mortgage MarketShare Report.

Guardian Real Estate Services LLC, a Portland, Oregon-based real estate management, investment, and development firm, announced last week a new commitment to social equity and diversity. Guardian's newly-announced commitment includes intentions to continue to promote diversity within the company.

As the vocabulary surrounding the housing market switches from crisis to recovery, the NAHB has deep concerns about factors currently limiting the recovery.

Institutions insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) recorded their second-highest annual earnings ever in 2012, according to the FDIC's Quarterly Banking Profile for the fourth quarter of 2012. High noninterest income and declining loan loss provisions contributed to the increase, according to the FDIC. Net income for all FDIC-insured institutions over the year was $141.3 billion, a 19.3 percent increase from net income recorded in 2011.

Following a recent report from the Office of the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP), which charged that Treasury has not appropriately limited compensation for executives at companies bailed out by TARP, a House subcommittee held a hearing on the matter.

As regulatory institutions provide some clarity to the mortgage market, the National Association of Home Builders insists the market is in need of a sound and functional appraisal system.