Origination

After a year of controversy, back-and-forth hearings, and battles on Capitol Hill, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau architect and advocate Elizabeth Warren will depart from the bureau and return to an endowed position at Harvard Law School come August. Date will assume responsibility for day-to-day affairs and operations at the Treasury Department. Last month Bloomberg News circulated reports that Obama would replace Warren, a polarizing figure on Capitol Hill, with the associate director.

In a statement released Monday, Michigan-based mortgage lender Shore Financial Services, Inc. announced its decision to appoint Susan Pelto, a regulatory compliance expert, its chief compliance officer. Alongside Pelto, the company advanced COO Kathy Welty to CRO, whereby she will now participate in a risk committee.

A Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller Home Price Index released Tuesday revealed slight bumps in home prices across composites collected for some 20 cities, with the nation's Capitol leading the way with an upward arc, even as existing-home sales flat-lined in June and single-family starts showed nominal signs of life. According to the index, 10- and 20-city composites jumped May over April by 1.1 percent and 1.0 percent, respectively, with only three in 20 assessments showing declines and Phoenix staying unchanged.

CoreLogic├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós international operations are making news in India, with the announcement that Cognizant will buy CoreLogic Global Services Pvt. Ltd. for a reported $50 million. The acquisition of CoreLogic Global, better known as CoreLogic India, will likely make Cognizant the third largest information technology services entity in the country, ousting Wipro Ltd. Lenders using the new program will benefit from a high level of customization, including the ability to tailor the alert system.

As splintering debt-ceiling negotiations unnerved analysts and ratings agencies, Treasury yields and mortgage rates remained relatively stable over the weekend, reflecting a widespread consensus among investors and market watchers that partisan divisions would soon give way to a grand bargain between policymakers. CNN reported Sunday that House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) refused to agree to a set of conditions at the White House, ending dramatic four-month-long negotiations.

In a statement released Monday, the American Land Title Association announced the departure of CEO Kurt Pfotenhaur, who plans to take over as EVP and vice chairman at the publically traded First American Title Insurance Company. Pfotenhaur arrives at First American with over 26 years of experience in politics and the financial services industry. As CEO of Washington, D.C.-based ALTA, he frequently rubbed elbows with senior contacts at the White House and Congress.

Real estate and relocation servicers provider Realogy Corporation became the latest in a string of companies to file critical commentary with regulatory authorities overseeing the Qualified Residential Mortgage rule, the embattled proposal that industry groups say would crimp housing by forcing homebuyers to front 20 percent in down payments. Realogy joins a host of other critics, including the Coalition for Sensible Housing Policy, 320 members of Congress, and some 44 private organizations.

Fifth Third Bancorp had a great spring season, judging by the company├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós scorching second quarter numbers. The bank estimates its quarterly results were the best on record since 2007, and the dramatic, 58 percent increase in mortgage banking revenue between the first and second quarters of this year contributed heavily to the company├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós recent success. Total net income during Fifth Third's second quarter was $337 million, demonstrating a significant rise quarter-over-quarter.

BancTec has rolled out an advanced mortgage servicing platform, geared toward new and existing lenders in need of accelerated and streamlined customer support, with considerable advantages for new users.

On Tuesday the Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System released a report detailing the registration of some hundred-thousand loan originators and over 15,000 new branches, with California and Texas accounting for the most.