News

MountainView Servicing Group announced the offering of another Fannie Mae mortgage servicing rights (MSR) portfolio, this one with an unpaid principal balance of $2.4 billion. According to MountainView, the portfolio features 100 percent first-lien and 99.7 percent fixed-rate products (with 86 percent 30-year fixed-rate loans) and a weighted average interest rate of 3.69 percent. Bids for the portfolio are due February 6 at 3 p.m. Eastern.

The Surveys of Consumers' Index of Consumer Sentiment, released jointly by Thomson Reuters and the University of Michigan's Survey Research Center, dropped to 81.2 this month from December's 82.5. The monthly decline stands in contrast to the Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index, which rose for the second straight month in the group's most recent report. The measure of sentiment about current conditions fell slightly to 96.8, while the expectations index was down to 71.2.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's (OCC) latest underwriting survey shows lending standards have continued to relax as banks duke it out over a dwindling market. Despite the drop in standards, examiners indicated risk in residential mortgage portfolios remained unchanged or decreased at 87 percent of banks. Still, OCC cautions banks to ensure they're giving "appropriate attention" to underwriting, loan structures, and loan administration.

The nation's economy continued to grow in the fourth quarter, helped along by improvements in consumer spending and business investment. In its "advance" estimate of real gross domestic product (GDP) last quarter, the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) put growth at an estimated annual rate of 3.2 percent. Last quarter's increase was driven mostly by positive contributions from personal consumer expenditures, nonresidential fixed investment, and exports.

As companies like Target and Michaels Stores continue to take a drubbing over high-profile data breaches, a report from cybersecurity firm HALOCK Security Labs suggests mortgage lenders may not be doing enough to protect applicants' sensitive financial data. After investigating practices at 63 lenders of varying size, HALOCK found more than 45 companies (70 percent) permitted applicants to send personal and financial information through unencrypted email attachments.

Molly Scherf has been named to oversee large bank supervision at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the agency announced.

The National Association of Realtors' (NAR) Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) fell in December to its lowest level in more than two years, with declines reported in all four of the country's major regions. The index, a forward-looking sales indicator based on contract signings, dropped 8.7 percent to 92.4 from a downwardly revised reading of 101.2 in November. December's index was at its lowest measure since October 2011, when it read 92.2.

The average interest rate on the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) came down to 4.32 percent (0.7 point) for the week ending January 30, Freddie Mac reported in its Primary Mortgage Market Survey.

Instead of bringing America together and setting us forth on the path towards economic growth and prosperity, what President Obama did in his State of the Union address was offer of the same misguided, go-it-alone ideas we've heard before, as opposed to real job creation and economic growth. Rather than go through the same divisive rhetoric and "stale political arguments" Americans have grown tired of, let's agree to put politics aside and do what's best for everyone, not just the chosen few.

Norcom Mortgage announced its entry into the Florida market with the opening of a new branch in Trinity. The Connecticut-based lender also announced the appointment of Barry Horvath to lead operations at the new location.