Servicing

In a statement released Thursday, mortgage software provider Ellie Mae announced new technology and service upgrades to help mortgage lenders to manage their trade and improve eFolder capabilities.

On Thursday LCS Financial Services Corporation released a statement signaling that it hired Mike Sullivan to take over as SVP, representing a leap in the right direction for the former senior executive. Mike├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós contributions to previous organizations and the industry are very impressive.

Joining the ranks of other concerned trade organizations, the Mortgage Bankers Association submitted a comment letter to Treasury Department adviser and nominee Elizabeth Warren, urging the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to consult with stakeholders on closing costs and holding firm on a key question affecting various consumer financial laws. The question in mind concerns the Real Estate Settlement and Procedures Act and Truth-in-Lending Act, some of the provisions for which the CFPB wants to combine in order to create a uniform mortgage disclosure form.

In testimony before the House financial services committee and two subcommittees, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau associate director and potential nominee Raj Date made it clear that the agency plans to pounce on new rules for mortgage-servicers in July. Date described a transfer of authority to the bureau from seven agencies set to occur in July. According to Bloomberg News, the congressional committee asked Date to testify as it looks over gaps and lapses in the current body of mortgage servicing regulation.

According to a recent quarterly report released by the Mortgage Bankers Association, commercial and multifamily originations slowed to a rate 25 percent lower in the quarter this year than the last quarter in 2010. Titled the Commercial Real Estate/Multifamily Finance Quarterly Data Book, the report documented new signs of life in the economy, denoting $7.8 billion in profits for mortgage commitments, the highest in the first quarter in three years, reflective of a 60-percent increase from the first quarter last year.

The National Association of Realtors released a survey this week showing strong support for the belief that homeownership is a credible and worthy goal, with 72 percent of renters surveyed agreeing that owning a home remains a top priority. The 2011 National Housing Pulse Survey signaled a 72 percent thrust among renters who want to own a home, a marked improvement from 63 percent last year. The survey revealed a backlash against the proposed Qualified Residential Mortgage rule, which critics charge will raise down payments by 20 percent.

In a statement released Wednesday, TD Bank said it green-lighted Malcom Hollensteiner for a move to serve as the director of retail lending sales. As we continue our journey to grow and build the best-in-class lending business, I am proud to welcome Malcolm to the TD family, said Michael Copley, EVP for retail lending at TD Bank.

Last week Ginnie Mae released a report indicating that it guaranteed millions less mortgage-backed securities in May than April, posting over $25.4 billion.

HUD and the Treasury Department jointly released the June edition of the Obama administration├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós Housing Scorecard, offering mixed results as home sales crested on a slight uptick and an oversupply of foreclosed properties remained in place. According to the Scorecard, existing home sales jumped slightly over June, trending from 25,100 to 26,900. Mortgage rates elevated the new home sales by staying low, with a number of borrowers refinancing their mortgages to recoup losses and boost their savings.

In a prepared statement that it submitted to the Senate Financial Institutions Subcommittee, the American Bankers Association aired concerns about a dry-up in risk in the financial markets, an increasingly serious dilemma that it blamed on Congress for trying to prevent past mistakes from occurring again. The ABA delivered the statement in response to a new loan officer compensation law, a voluminous text with multiple rules and regulations that drove up costs and lost hours for brokers.