Tag Archives: Company News

New American Funding has a reason to celebrate the end of summer thanks to a recent honor bestowed on the company by _Top_ _Agent_ _Magazine_. The publication recently named New American├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós managing director, Patty Arvielo, to its annual roster of Top California Mortgage Vendors.

A new report from Bankrate.com shows significant declines in mortgage closing costs, pointing to a victory for the industry. According to the website's recent study, the average cost to close on a mortgage loan in the U.S. dropped by seven percent during the past year.

MountainView Servicing Group announced Monday that it completed the sale of three bulk packages of mortgage servicing rights for Fannie Mae loans. The Denver-based subsidiary of MountainView Capital Holdings completed the sale on July 31. All packages were sold without bifurcation of seller and servicer representations and warranties. The three packages had a combined unpaid principal balance of $487 million and contained mostly conventional fixed-rate product secured by properties located across the country.

Universal Mortgage, Inc., has been acquired by Sterling Bancorp and its subsidiary, Sterling National Bank. Through the agreement between the New York-based companies, Universal's principals and their related teams will join Sterling's mortgage lending operations. Louis J. Cappelli, Sterling Bancorp's chairman and CEO stated, "We are acquiring a strong source of mortgage production that will complement our existing mortgage banking business and further enhance our significant level of non-interest income."

NAFCU Services Corporation has announced the renewal of an agreement with the organization's Preferred Partner, Genworth Financial's U.S. Mortgage Insurance division. The group recently confirmed USMI's partnership status, effectively extending the designation granted to USMI in 2011.

Morgan Stanley├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós former head of U.S. housing strategy, Oliver Chang, has formed an asset management firm targeting investments in the single-family rental market, recently co-founding Sylvan Road Capital, LLC. The newly formed company from Chang, Robert Lee, Sarah Lee, and Gavin Kleinknecht expects to put more than $1 billion into the market during the next two years.

Another large acquisition in the Florida market has been completed, with the announcement that IberiaBank Corporation (IBKC) has purchased Gulf Bancorp, Inc., and its subsidiary, Florida Gulf Bank. IBKC's deal closed following the end of business on July 31, the same day that BB&T Corporation concluded its buy out of BankAtlantic

The Texas State Affordable Housing Corporation (TSAHC) has announced the expansion of its initiatives for low and moderate income homebuyers. TSAHC will now extend its down payment assistance programs to current homeowners and those who have previously owned a home.

Freddie Mac announced Tuesday its plans to expand on its Relief Refinance Mortgage Program by aligning separate mortgage requirements. The GSE announced that it will align requirements for mortgages with loan-to-value ratios that are equal to or less than 80 percent with those for mortgages with LTV ratios greater than 80 percent. The alignment is expected to eliminate many of the lender├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós selling representation and warranty responsibilities on loans being refinanced. Details are scheduled to be announced to lenders by mid-September.

Uganda's leading mortgage lender, Housing Finance Bank Limited, has established a new partnership with Polaris Financial Technology Ltd. Housing Finance Bank selected Polaris' Intellect CBS platform to support its business and IT needs. Currently, Housing Finance Bank holds approximately 60 percent of all mortgage accounts in Uganda, and the entity is the ninth largest commercial bank in the country.