Headlines

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) recently reported in their Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) that, pending home sales increased in April for the fourth consecutive month and reached their highest peak in nine years. All four major regions saw growth in April, led by the Northeast and Midwest.

Castle & Cooke Mortgage, LLC has announced Ernie Martinez’s promotion to the position of Branch Manager for its El Paso, Texas location. Castle & Cooke Mortgage is an independent mortgage lender with over 250 employees and 35 locations across the United States.

Carrington Mortgage Services, LLC, announced in a press release that it will make The Carrington Loan program available through its national wholesale lending division. This program was developed in order to support the company’s commitment to serve the “underserved” market and first-time homebuyers.

Ocwen Financial Corporation, a leading financial services holding company, recently announced that the company will close its residential servicing operations at its Houston facility.

U.S. Real Estate Services (USRES), a nationwide appraisal management company (AMC) headquartered in Lake Forest, California, has announced that Citadel Servicing Corporation (CSC) is using its origination broker price opinion (BPO) services, according to an announcement from USRES.

Newbold Advisors, a Clearwater, Florida-based management consulting company that serves lenders, servicers, GSEs, MI companies, investment banks, and private investors in the financial industry, has announced the hiring of Detta Cutright as managing director of financial services as part of a continued, strategic growth strategy.

Altisource Portfolio Solutions S.A. recently announced in a press release. that Jim Leath has joined the company as the VP of enterprise sales and business development for all of the company’s services. Altisource provides mortgage, financial, and technology services for the real estate industry. They also provide marketplace and transaction solutions for the real estate, mortgage, and consumer debt industries offering both distribution and content.

The salary consumers need to purchase a home varies from city-to-city across the country, but San Francisco remains the most unaffordable city all consumers except those with high salaries, according to a recent HSH.com survey.

MCS Valuations, LLC (MCSV), a nationwide provider of appraisals, broker price opinions, and other valuation-related products to the financial services industry, has named Rebecca English assistant VP of operations in Sandy, Utah, according to a recent press release.

First American Title Insurance Company, a provider of title insurance and settlement services and the largest subsidiary of First American Financial Corporation has launched its TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosure (TRID) Tool Kit for First American-affiliated title agents.