Gibraltar Capital and Asset Management, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Horsham, Pennsylvania-based Toll Brothers, Inc., recently acquired four new loan portfolios totaling more than $33 million.
Read More »Total HARP Volume Surpasses 2M as of November
As of November 2012, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have refinanced more than 2 million loans through the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP), the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) reported Tuesday. According to FHFA, nearly 130,000 homeowners refinanced their mortgages through HARP in November alone, making it the second biggest month for HARP activity in 2012 (behind June's 137,000 HARP refinances). In addition, HARP volume represented 23 percent of total refinance volume in November.
Read More »Report: Younger Generations Shouldering Greater Amount of Debt
According to a report from SaveUp.com, the average total debt load for an average member of Generation X or Y (those under the age of 47) is close to $37,000, slightly higher than the national average debt load of $36,157. Of the two groups, Gen X appears at first to be worse off, with the average person harboring a debt load of $46,972 compared to the Gen Y average of $28,930. However, SaveUp.com finds that more than 60 percent of Gen Xers' debt comes from mortgage and student loans--considered "good debt" that helps build assets.
Read More »Builder Confidence Slips in February, South Leads Declines
Led by a sharp drop in the South, builder confidence slipped in February to 46--the lowest level since November--the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) reported Tuesday. Economists had expected the Housing Market Index (HMI), a measure of confidence, would improve to 48 from January's reading of 47. Nationally, two of the three index components--current single-family sales and buyer traffic--declined, while the assessment of sales for the next six months edged up.
Read More »Report Examines Sustainability of Price Gains in Recovering States
Capital Economics recently explored concerns that particular states are seeing "unsustainable, investor-fueled" increases.
Read More »360 Mortgage Group Calls for HARP 3.0
While the revised Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP), commonly referred to as HARP 2.0, has allowed far more homeowners to refinance than the original version, there remains a large group of eligible homeowners who have yet to take advantage of the program.
Read More »Companies Join to Prepare Servicers for CFPB Examinations
Two industry service-providers are teaming together to help servicers prepare for CFPB examinations and adjust procedures to comply with new regulations.
Read More »Walter Investment to Buy Ally Business Lending Operations
Walter Investment Management Corp. has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Ally Bank's business lending operations.
Read More »Redfin: Sales, Prices Strong in January, Inventory ‘Anemic’
Redfin's Real-Time Price Tracker, which tracks prices, sales, and inventory, shows home sales were up in January 12 percent year-over-year.
Read More »Senate Democrats Urge Reappointment of CFPB Leader
Fifty-four Senate Democrats and Independents issued a letter to the president last week defending the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and pledging to support the re-appointment of current director Richard Cordray. In their letter, Cordray's Senate supporters decried the opposition's efforts as an attempt to "weaken the CFPB through structural changes" from "a minority of Senators [who] do not support the existence of the agency." The issue of Cordray's nomination comes at a pivotal time for CFPB.
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