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A series of news outlets offered up a considerably better forecast than others for mortgage insurers, many of which continue to fend off rumors in the industry that their capital reserves may not be strong enough.

Mortgage fraud cases showed few signs of slowing, with defendants either receiving their sentences or pleading guilty in Alabama, California, and New Jersey. The defendants allegedly bilked millions out of lenders.

Churchill Mortgage Corp. is promoting from within, naming Doug Walker as its vice president of sales support. Walker has been employed with Churchill for more than a decade, and his new role will encompass lender support for home loan specialists in all branches of the financial institution.

Technology provided a big boost for Bank of Idaho giving the company an estimated 67 percent increase in loan officer productivity. Utilizing Mortgagebot to integrate point-of-sale transactions, Bank of Idaho has shortened its average closing time for mortgage loans by 22 percent.

With refinancing activity continuing a backslide, the number of homebuyers filing mortgage applications waxed over last week, falling by 4.9 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to a weekly survey by the Mortgage Bankers Association. The trade group recorded new lows for 30-year and 15-year loan contract interest rates. According to the MBA's Market Composite Index, a yardstick for mortgage loan applications nationally, numbers declined by a seasonally unadjusted 5.3 percent.

Mortgage application volume suffered a drubbing Wednesday, even as the U.S. economy fell behind in important global rankings and the euro zone crisis continues to trouble investors. With numerous economists attributing lows for consumer confidence to a bevy of international concerns, MReport spoke with analysts to spot any troubling signs for housing as the global economy wobbles. The verdict: Market watchers should keep an eye on euro zone fallout for mortgage rates and credit supply.

On of the country├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós largest independent mortgage companies, Mortgage Master, Inc., has opened its first office in Manhattan. MMI cites the city├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós relatively resilient housing market as the catalyst behind its recent expansion in New York. The Manhattan branch will serve the Tri-State area, which includes Connecticut, New Jersey, and New York, and Massachusetts-based MMI holds licenses in all three states.

Promoting from within, SunTrust Mortgage Inc. is set to strengthen its internal structure. Both Debi Minton and Jeff Calvert were recently named as assistant vice presidents with the Georgia-based financial institution. Minton, hired by SunTrust in April, boasts more than 23 years of finance-related experience, and additionally, she├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós spent over eight years within the mortgage lending space, prior to her promotion.

Keeping trends on track for mortgage rates, real estate Web site Zillow revealed a 15 basis-point plunge for the benchmark 30-year fixed-rate mortgage. The current rate beached on a record all-time low made possible last month. According to the Zillow Mortgage Marketplace, which the Web site creates by tracking thousands of anonymous loan quotes reported daily, the 30-year loan fell from 4.07 percent last week to crest at 3.92 percent. Meanwhile, rates for the 15-year loan hovered at 3.17 percent.

A confirmation hearing for Consumer Financial Protection Bureau director-nominee Richard Cordray largely went as expected for the Senate Banking Committee Tuesday, with Democratic members defending the federal agency and Republicans heaping criticism on it. Lingering tensions found their way into exchanges between lawmakers from both parties, in and outside the committee room. For his part, Cordray used his opportunity before the Senate Banking Committee to reassure lawmakers about his intentions.