News

Mortgage applications fell 3.8 percent from the week earlier, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. The trade group found that application volume waned by 3.3 percent on a seasonally unadjusted basis from the week before. Purchases went up 2.7 percent from one week earlier, climbing by a seasonally unadjusted 3.6 percent in the same vein. Refinance applications declined on the whole. The Refinance Index dipped by 5.6 percent from the week before, as conventional refis slipped by 6.1 percent and government refis climbed down by 2.1 percent.

Parties to the landmark mortgage servicing settlement in February appointed one man to oversee $25 billion in compliance. In an interview with DS News, our sister publication, Joseph A. Smith, onetime banking commissioner for North Carolina and ex-nominee for the Federal Housing Finance Agency, lays out the role he envisions playing as he monitors funds for homeowners, states, and the federal government. The settlement monitor speaks with an understated tone about his stewardship of the historic settlement, which 49 state attorneys general and federal officials completed in February.

The Illinois Association of Realtors has released March data that shows the strongest performance for home sales in the state since 2007. In addition to the rise in homes sold during the month, the IAR also reported that median pricing in the state received a lift, breaking 20 months of price declines. In addition to the rise in homes sold during the month, the IAR also reported that median pricing in the state received a lift, breaking 20 months of price declines. Sales of single-family homes and condominiums rose 21.1 percent year-over-year in March.

In Maryland, New American Funding is working to help borrowers who may qualify for refinancing under HARP 2.0. The third-party lender allows struggling homeowners to avoid broker fees through their mortgage banking services, should the borrower meet the HARP 2.0 requirements. Current statistics show that 23 percent of Maryland's homeowners are considered underwater, owing more on their home than it is worth. Maryland's high number of underwater borrowers makes it the seventh-ranked state nationally, based on the percentage of struggling homeowners.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau went live with an inquiry Tuesday that it said will help it determine whether to move on new rules for dispute arbitration clauses. As with many comment periods for new rules, the inquiry is open to the general public and financial services companies. The CFPB said that it wanted to look for answers to questions about the prevalence of arbitration clauses in contracts for financial products, the kinds of claims consumers bring against financial services companies, and how arbitration clauses impact consumers.

Fitch Ratings has released its commentary on the current rends in regional home pricing, noting that significant variability persists among each area surveyed. In its recent report, Fitch also called for the nation's housing recovery to continue at an irregular and anemic pace for the duration of 2012. Citing tighter credit standards and static levels of household income, Fitch's analysis revealed that all regions are experiencing lower prices for new home sales. According to data from Fitch, the West has been hardest hit by flagging home prices.

New homes sales fell 7.1 percent in March to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 328,000, the steepest percentage decline since February 2011, according to the Commerce Department. Sales for January were revised upward from 313,000 to 353,000. Economists had expected the report to show a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 318,000 new home sales in March. New-home sales in March were up 7.5 percent from March 2011. The median price of a new home fell 1.0 percent in March to $234,500, but was up 6.3 percent from March 2011.

The Case-Shiller Home Price Indexes fell for the sixth straight month in February, with the 10- and 20-city indices each dropping 0.8 percent from January, according to Standard & Poor's. The 10-city index slid to its lowest level since May 2003 and the 20-city index dropped to its lowest level since October 2002. Prices fell in 16 of the 20 cities surveyed, improving month-over-month in only Miami, Phoenix, and San Diego. Prices were down year-over-year in 15 of the 20 cities, improving only in cities like Denver, Detroit, and Minneapolis.

Milwaukee-based MGIC Investment Corp. reported net losses of $19.6 million for the first quarter, down from $33.7 million year-over-year. The mortgage insurer said that total first-quarter revenues hovered at $379.7 million, up from $353.1 million in revenues from last year. MGIC wrote $255 million in net premiums, down from $274.5 million from the same period last year. New insurance written by MGIC amounted to $4.2 billion, an increase from $3 billion in the first quarter last year.

A new setup manager recently joined Churchill Mortgage Corp. at the company's Houston office. The Tennessee-based mortgage lender said that Melissa Tucker would take over at branch locations off of Riverway and Sam Houston Parkway in North Houston.