Amilda Dymi

Financial marketplace rhetoric is unique and foreign to most outsiders who may have a newfound curiosity about the mentality and the jargon of Wall Street. After all, there is not much dispute about the role of mortgage-backed securities' traders in triggering the housing foreclosure crisis.

Refinancing to modify a mortgage loan has proven to be the best solution for some borrowers, even though the list of mortgage loan options available shrunk significantly during the past few years to the point that makes some worry creativity is almost impossible, or simply dead.

It appears that residential delinquencies are headed in the right direction - down - but the jury is still out on how improving late payments are affected by government modification programs and delays caused by the robo-signing settlement.

The foreclosure-to-rent movement is an opportunity bound to keep servicers, investors and the Federal Housing Finance Administration busy in the near future. It also is a game changer in the nation’s housing culture because while following the path of homeownership preservation it also embraces renting.

Bundled services never get out of fashion. Service demand indicates mortgage loan servicing process challenges from loan default to foreclosure management are carving out a new market for innovative default risk control and loss mitigation solutions.

Borrower engagement is opening the way to an equally engaging relationship between servicers and field servicers.

For the first time in a year foreclosure sales outpaced completed foreclosures--which dropped by 24% at yearend 2011 contributing to a notable decrease in the foreclosure inventory. Yet, the answer to those wondering whether the foreclosure inventory backlog is really easing up appears to be: No.

For the first time in a year foreclosure sales outpaced completed foreclosures--which at yearend 2011 decreased by 24%--contributing to a notable decrease in the foreclosure inventory, according to CoreLogic

Trapped between conflicting requirements that indicate collapse and abolition prospects, the future status of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac is emerging as one of the year's biggest concerns.

The long list of issues to be discussed at the MBA National Mortgage Servicing Conference in Orlando includes new government regulations, how are the servicers adjusting their processes to remain in compliance, technology that improves operational processes, and how to ensure sensible property valuations, which according to Susan Allen, one of the conference speakers, is key to mortgage servicing.

Suzanne Ball, president of America's Infomart, a field services company based in Dallas, plans to be at the MBA National Mortgage Servicing Conference to check the pulse of her peers on loan information security issues.

While the topic is old and familiar, the search for best strategies and a "new world order" in single point of contact borrower management continues.

While interest rates are low and residential inventory for sale is at an unprecedented high, it is more challenging than ever to obtain an affordable mortgage and qualify first-time homebuyers. Geographic variations on the other hand offer opportunity to leverage the demand through state- and local-level solutions that fit local market needs.

The expansion of the Home Affordable Modification Program is getting a lot of applause even though judging from past performance it may not get a standing ovation when the new deadline expires in December 2013.

Trapped between conflicting requirements that indicate collapse and abolition prospects, the debate over the future status of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac is emerging as one of the year’s biggest concerns for insiders and academics.

To help "stabilize housing markets" over the next five years Wells Fargo will invest $10.5 billion in Los Angeles and $1.3 billion in Atlanta through an initiative that aims to expedite bank-owned property sales and foreclosure prevention options.

Survival of the fittest will continue to be the theme in 2012. And the annual MBA National Mortgage Servicing Conference is the precursor of events to come, says Derrick Logan, senior VP in the strategic alliance group for REO Allegiance, Bayonne, N.J. "It sets the tone for the whole year."

Traditionally field economists would focus on economics and finance leaving political economy to academics. The crisis is changing that demanding more politically sensitive outlooks that capture the complexity of major socio-economic events of today.

A few years back when it came to minority housing especially in the largest metropolitan areas the risk of stretching lending too thin was often overshadowed by the benefits of higher rates of homeownership.

Insiders who see a housing market rebound ahead are not equally optimistic about delinquencies and foreclosure rates in a market that at best will be flat.