Tag Archives: Investors

The Obama administration rolled out an ambitious package of benefits and structural changes Wednesday for homeowners who want to refinance their loans. The plan would cost anywhere from $5 billion to $10 billion and pay for itself with fees exacted from financial institutions. If it makes it into law, the bill would significantly expand refinancing opportunities for underwater borrowers, shift appraisal responsibilities in distressed neighborhoods to an automated system under the GSEs, and offer new servicing reforms.

In less than two weeks, M.D.C. Holdings, Inc., will welcome a new company officer, with the announcement that John M. Stephens will join MDC as the group's chief financial officer, principal accounting officer, and senior vice president. MDC's board of directors recently appointed Stephens to the leadership positions, and his new roles with MDC will become effective on February 13.

Homeowners moved closer to the sidelines last year, buying fewer homes than in 2010 and edging homeownership toward lows not seen since the 1990s. The Commerce Department released figures Tuesday that posted 66 percent for homeownership rates last quarter, reflecting declines by 0.5 percent year-over-year and 0.3 percent on a quarterly basis. Homeownership vacancy rates hovered around 2.3 percent last quarter, 0.4 percentage points lower than in 2010.

Home prices fell by 1.3 percent in November last year, slashing figures in 19 of 20 metropolitan areas for the second straight month, according to the most recent Standard & Poor├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós/Case-Shiller index. The index showed that home prices declined by 3.6 percent year-over-year, with 13 of 20 areas suffering steep declines in annual returns. It showed the weakest annual return of several cities, even while Las Vegas, Tampa, and Seattle all settled near new lows for home prices in November.

Mortgage lender Churchill Mortgage has announced a new addition to its sales force. The company has named Kevin Watson as the regional sales manager for Churchill's middle Tennessee area.

The American Legal & Financial Network (ALFN) recently released a brief statement announcing the resignation of the organization's current president and CEO, William LeRoy. The Missouri-based group extended few details surrounding LeRoy's departure, but the ALFN did indicate that LeRoy's resignation would be effective immediately.

Interest rates for the benchmark 30-year fixed-rate mortgage plunged to 3.72 percent this week on new concerns about debt crises in Europe, according to real estate company Zillow. In releasing the Zillow Mortgage Marketplace, the Web site found that interest rates for the 15-year loan also fell to 3.01 percent, alongside 2.63 percent for 5-year and 1-year adjustable-rate mortgages. Mortgage rates remain low despite uplifting news from the continent, where 25 eurozone nations signed off on a new fiscal pact Monday.

The latest analysis from a Fiserv Case-Shiller index said Monday that home prices could slide back by 3.6 percent this year, and may not completely pick up until the first half of 2013. Fiserv, Inc. found a double-dip that began last summer stretching into last fall as home prices declined in 340 of 384 metropolitan areas surveyed by the technology provider. It said some 302 areas slammed into new lows, and projected that home prices will fall in southerly direction this year before climbing by 2.4 percent over the second quarter next year.

A new federal task group set up to investigate residential mortgage-backed securities fraud made progress Friday when officials signed off on subpoenas for 11 undisclosed financial institutions. Numerous high-ranking federal officials joined New York Attorney General and co-chair Eric Schneiderman at a press conference to outline the Residential Mortgage-Backed Securities Working Group, which President Barack Obama announced he would form during his State of the Union address Thursday.

In Colorado, MountainView Servicing Group has announced the upcoming sale of an estimated $129 million in Ginnie Mae mortgage servicing rights. The servicing portfolio will go on the block on Tuesday, January 31, at noon (EST). MountainView's servicing portfolio auction encompasses 566 loans, and most of the loans - around 99 percent - are Federal Housing Administration fixed-rate mortgages.