Government

Alliant National Title Insurance Company, a title insurance underwriter that partners with independent agents, announced the hiring of Katherine Kitty Stevens, Esq. as VP of Florida agent training and business development.

Platinum Data Solutions, a technology provider specializing in collateral evaluation and quality, has launched all-new upgraded scoring functionality for RealView, its configurable engine that processes and analyzes appraisals for compliance and completeness.

Mortgage Contracting Services (MCS) announced that Paul Lee has been named CFO.

While the government works toward GSE reform, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods (KBW), a financial services provider; says reform for the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) should also be a top concern.

ValuTrac Software, a software solutions provider to the appraisal management and mortgage lending industry, announced the hiring of David Yavorsky as the company's new CIO.

According to RE/MAX's National Housing Report for September, closed transactions fell 18.5 percent month-over-month, following the trend that usually occurs as summer passes into autumn. Year-over-year, sales increased 10.7 percent, making September the 27th consecutive month in which sales rose on an annual basis. The company also reported a slowdown in the rate of inventory decline. Compared to September 2012, inventories were down 13.4 percent, bringing the month supply to 5.0 at the current sales pace.

JPMorgan Chase is reportedly set to pay a record $13 billion to the government to settle questions surrounding its sale of bonds backed by poor loans. An unidentified source reportedly told Bloomberg that JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon discussed the deal on Friday with U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder. According to that source, the discussed deal does not release the bank from potential claims of criminal liability at the insistence of Holder, who earlier this year remarked that some institutions may be "too big to jail."

The Residential Standards Governance Committee of the Mortgage Industry Standards Maintenance Organization (MISMO) has elected Randy Gilster as its chairman.

Joseph A. Smith, the monitor overseeing fulfillment efforts put forward by each servicer involved in the National Mortgage Settlement, has issued a report on their progress satisfying consumer relief obligations outlined in the agreement. Smith's report covers servicer activities through December 31, 2012, which have been vetted and verified by the Office of Mortgage Settlement Oversight. Each servicer's internal review group provided Smith with information on the servicers' crediting progress in February of this year.

Collateral Analytics, appointed James R. Follain, Ph.D. as its SVP of research and development. Dr. Follain is an economist with over 35 years' experience in the analysis of housing and mortgage markets, much of which involved the measurement and management of the risks associated with lending and investing as well as public policies.