Tag Archives: Investors

Although the new qualified mortgage (QM) rules are expected to bring stability to loan manufacturing, the many nuances of compliance have resulted in doubling the cost of loan origination. This assessment was offered by Tom Showalter, chief analytics officer at Digital Risk. In an interview on Mortgage Markets Today, Showalter explained the threat of ""manufacturing risk,"" or the risk that key elements of data defining the loan are either corrupted or misrepresented.

The nation's second largest lender is reportedly cutting 450 jobs in its West Coast offices, according to Bloomberg. ""These notifications have been ongoing and reflect our previously announced efforts to reduce our size, resolve legacy issues and simplify our company,"" said Dan Frahm, a spokesman for Bank of America. The lender is still hiring in non-mortgage areas, and some employees will find jobs in other parts of the firm, he said.

A recently released audit of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's handling of aged repurchase demands finds the enterprises' fee collecting has been inconsistent--or in some cases nonexistent. ""By inconsistently waiving, enforcing, and excepting late fees through 2012, the Enterprise missed assessing up to $284 million in late fees that are now unlikely to be collected–losses that taxpayers ultimately bore,"" the Federal Housing Finance Agency's Office of the Inspector General (FHFAOIG) commented in the report.

Valuation Vision (V2), a provider of alternative valuation products and tech solutions nationwide, announced the hiring of Brandon Goldstein as managing director of capital markets.

MountainView Servicing Group, provider of residential mortgage servicing rights (MSR) transaction and valuation advisory services, announced the offering of yet another Fannie Mae portfolio. Possessing an unpaid principal balance of just less than $760 million, the portfolio includes 100 percent fixed-rate and first-lien product, with 89.7 percent 30-year fixed-rate loans. In addition, the portfolio contains $464 million-about 61 percent-Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) servicing.

In Chicago, National Tax Search (NTS), a nationwide property tax management services firm, announced the enhancement of its services with the addition of flood zone determinations.

Lehman Brothers has reportedly sought approval to settle a $1.2 billion claim from Freddie Mac on money owed to the GSE before the company declared bankruptcy in 2008. Bloomberg reports Lehman is seeking approval on a settlement in the amount of $767 million. If approved by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, the settlement would untie money Freddie Mac had fought to claim priority on, allowing Lehman to pay other creditors seeking to collect on their own debts from the company.

Marty Reed, VP of business operations at Black Knight Financial Services (BKFS) MLS Solutions division, has been appointed for a three-year term on the board of directors for the Council of Multiple Listing Services (CMLS), the company announced.

A report released by Prudential Real Estate finds that the number of consumers--particularly young ones--who are optimistic about residential real estate took a healthy step higher in December. According to Prudential, 78 percent of consumers (and nearly 90 percent of Millennials) surveyed look favorably toward the residential market in 2014. This is a full 5 percentage points more than the company's third-quarter 2013 results and 15 points more than its end-of-year 2012 results.

The University of Michigan/Thomson Reuters Index of Consumer Sentiment stood at a reading of 81.2 in an early-look report released Friday. The index was unchanged from its final January reading. The mid-February reading was affected by deterioration in the gauge measuring perceptions about current conditions, which fell to 94.0 from January's 96.8. That was offset by a pickup in the measure of six-month expectations, which rose to 73.0 from 71.2 previously.