News

Churchill Mortgage, a provider of FHA, VA, USDA, and conventional residential mortgages, has expanded its staff with the addition of 23 employees at various branches across its 26-state reach.

According to new COUNTRY Financial Security Index survey, a vast majority--88 percent--of respondents think owning their home is important. However, only 45 percent say they think homeownership is feasible for middle-income households. Part of the pessimism regarding respondents' ability to purchase a home may stem from concerns about their savings and the job market. According to the survey, 65 percent of consumers say they wouldn't be able to make mortgage payments after nine months if they lost their job.

Following a rocky October, mortgage applications picked up for the week ending November 9, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey. The survey's Market Composite Index increased 12.6 percent from the previous week. In a commentary, Capital Economics property economist Paul Diggle said "the balance of evidence increasingly suggests that mortgage-dependent buyers are starting to make more of a contribution to the housing recovery."

RxOffice Compliance developer IndiSoft announced a partnership with the law firm of K&L Gates to keep on top of regulatory changes that affect users.

The national mortgage delinquency rate fell further in Q3 2012 to 5.41 percent, TransUnion reported Tuesday. The Q3 rate is a decrease from 5.49 percent in Q2 2012 and a near 8 percent drop from 5.88 percent in Q3 2011, according to the credit bureau. While the national delinquency rate has been making progress, Tim Martin, group VP of U.S. housing in TransUnion's financial services business unit, said, "we still have a long way to go to reach more 'normal' conditions of a delinquency rate in the 1-2% range for the U.S. average."

California-based Equator has announced the appointment of a new company leader. Adding Ashley Bean as the company's VP of certification, Equator is set to bolster its service provisions for real estate agents.

Origination volumes for commercial and multifamily mortgages declined from Q2 and year-over-year, according to data from the MBA.

American International Group (AIG) is making plans to move away from its savings and loan business and toward mortgage investment, CEO Bob Benmosche revealed in an interview with Reuters. The company's mortgage insurance subsidiary, United Guaranty Corporation (UGC), has seen steady growth after adopting a risk-based pricing strategy. However, Benmosche said AIG is interested in moving beyond mortgage insurance and is looking at ways to get involved more directly.

Two more banks have lost in their attempts to dismiss claims of misconduct in sale of mortgage-backed securities (MBS) to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. U.S. District Judge Denise Cote rejected motions filed by Goldman Sachs and Deutsche Bank, two of 16 defendants brought before her court by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA). Cote's rulings on both motions cite previous judgments made on similar arguments brought to her by JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, and UBS--all of which also failed.

Lender Processing Services (LPS) recently introduced reInsight MLS, and Georgia MLS became the first to launch the new offering.