After an operation orchestrated by regulators over 10 states, Morris Plains-based Mortgage Access Corp., doing business as Weichert Financial Services, inked its name to a remittance in the amount of $3 million over a multitude of compliance and internal control deficiencies. Some ten agencies joined the effort, with actors including banking regulators from Connecticut, Louisiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, North Carolina, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Vermont.

On Friday the House of Representatives put largely partisan weight behind a bill that would require the FDIC to investigate the 382 bank failures it has corralled with shutdowns since 2008. If reconciled with a similar bill passed by the Senate, H.R. 2056 could require the FDIC's inspector general to examine whether the current regulatory climate crimps lending for community banks. A House Financial Services Committee statement cites some 140 bank failures over 2009 and 157 over 2010, claiming their concentration in only 10 states.

A rule recently finalized by the Federal Trade Commission will take effect this month, prohibiting mortgage brokers, servicers, and nonbank lenders from advertising 19 practices it calls deceptive. The rule will enable the FTC, newly opened Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and state regulators to issue civil monetary fines and penalties against wayward mortgage advertisers. The Mortgage Acts and Practices Rule prescribes a number of penalties for deceptive claims about mortgages.

Canada may soon face a housing bubble crisis not unlike the one still felt by its southern neighbor, with a possible burst threatening to soak pockets of the U.S. economy that rely on purchases by overseas homebuyers.

Some 240 lenders across the country got in trouble with the Federal Housing Administration this year, with the federal agency announcing sanctions on Friday that included revocations of approval, suspensions, reprimands, and civil monetary fines. The FHA's Mortgagee Review Board slapped lenders with administrative penalties for scrimping on loan criteria required by the federal agency, which it said in some cases resulted in over-insured loans, excessive and duplicative fees for borrowers, among other things.

Total bank failures leveled out at 61 over last week as three more financial institutions faced closure and acquisition by other banks. The failures and acquisitions left the FDIC with a total $253.4 million tab.

Market worries cooled Monday as news reports confirmed a tentative debt-ceiling deal by public officials Sunday, a last-minute agreement that would avert the next financial crisis predicted by economists. In response to the possible deal, mortgage rates stepped down from nominal highs from last week. According to Headline News, Bank of America reported that 30-year fixed-rate mortgages fell to 4.37 percent, down several basis-points from last week. Fellow mortgage giant Wells Fargo yielded 30-year loans at 4.50 percent.

With Standard and Poor's refusing to rate their their criteria for commercial mortgage-backed securities, Citigroup Inc. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. withdrew their joint $1.5 billion bond sale of the financial products Thursday ├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔé¼┼ô a last-minute game change that sent shockwaves through the industry. Bloomberg News reported that the banks had triggered a ratings review need by S&P by raising the threshold for lower-ranked debt set to take the brunt of potential losses.

Mortgage interest rate deductions, treasured by homeowners for their help with ownership and health insurance, may soon get the axe, as lawmakers struggle to raise revenue and gain the upper hand on the multi-trillion-dollar deficit. If a Senate budget plan works its way to the House, the nation's homeowners may see their taxes spike by as much as $1.2 trillion over the next 10 years. The bipartisan "Gang of Six" senators moved forward with a proposal that would slash mortgage interest rate deductions.

As House Republicans shifted their focus to a balanced budget amendment Friday in order to push through a debt-ceiling raise bill, two analytics companies posted upticks in mortgage rates - a sign that some say the markets feel increasingly unsure about whether the nation will be able to pay its debts come August 2. A Bankrate, Inc. survey reflected a 6-basis point surge to 4.74 percent, with mortgages totaling 0.35 discount and origination points, with Freddie Mac reporting a similar jump.