Amilda Dymi

Several federal agencies have joined forces in launching new public service advertisements designed to inform and assist homeowners at risk of foreclosure.

A Wichita, Kan., man was sentenced to seven years and three months in federal prison without parole for his role in a $2.7 million mortgage fraud scheme.

Millennial renters and Americans overall have become more optimistic about the housing market since January, according to Zillow.

RentTrack and TransUnion have partnered to ensure renters "get the credit they deserve for on-time monthly payments."

Hope LoanPort has partnered with technology provider IndiSoft to launch the National Homeownership Solutions Platform.

Essent Guaranty in Radnor, Pa., is now an approved insurer of mortgage loans sold to Federal Home Loan Banks.

Stearns Lending, a nonbank mortgage lender in Santa Ana, Calif., has hired a former Bank of America executive and banking veteran to lead its retail lending growth efforts.

Trulia, a San Francisco-based online marketplace, is offering mortgage lenders and agents the ability to coordinate their marketing efforts with real estate agents.

HF2 Financial Management in Denver is acquiring a majority equity interest in ZAIS Group, a specialty investment management firm.

FormFree Holdings, an Atlanta-based provider of borrower asset verifications, is integrating its AccountChek software into Ellie Mae's Encompass mortgage management solution.

U.S. Bank in Minneapolis will pay nearly $11,500 to a Native American couple in North Dakota to settle a lending-discrimination complaint with the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

The nation's youngest adults will spend more than $2 trillion in the next several years on rent and mortgage loans, according to a recent report by The Demand Institute.

National Mortgage Insurance Corp. in Emeryville, Calif., has launched a mobile application and new website designed specifically for credit unions.

Principal Real Estate Investors and Macquarie Group have jointly launched Principal Commercial Capital, a national lending platform that will both originate and securitize commercial mortgage loans.

A federal court in North Carolina ruled against the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s takeover and multimillion-dollar loan loss claim against Cooperative Bank.

Ellington Financial in Old Greenwich, Conn., has made a minority investment in retail reverse mortgage loan originator Longbridge Financial.

FirstBank Mortgage Partners in Jackson, Tenn., has agreed to pay $35,000 to settle allegations that it violated the Fair Housing Act by denying a mortgage loan to an applicant on maternity leave.

Data Facts has acquired One Source Credit Reporting Agency of Houston, to further expand the company's footprint in Texas.

American Homes 4 Rent in Agoura Hills, Calif., expects to raise about $488 million from the sale of rental revenue backed securities.

While year-over-year foreclosure activity continued to decline in August, an uptick in foreclosure auctions suggest the housing market still is in detox mode, according to RealtyTrac.