Amilda Dymi

In April second mortgage default rates increased for the first time in at least five months, from 1.42% in March to 1.51%, according to the Standard & Poor’s and Experian Customer Credit Default Index.

Affordable financing will be a challenge in the near and the distant future. The very slow recovery from the overall economic crisis has initiated a new era of affordable housing incentives.

he RealtyTrac April 2011 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report finds foreclosure filings dropped 9% compared to March and 34% from April 2010, largely due to delays in foreclosure processing.The April decline marks the seventh straight month the total number of default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions decreased year-over-year down to a 40-month low.

The RealtyTrac April 2011 Foreclosure Market Report finds the number of foreclosure filings in the month dropped 9% compared to March and 34% from April 2010, largely due to delays in foreclosure processing.

National real estate appraisal management services provider Coester Appraisal Group, Rockville, Md., is pioneering a repurchase guarantee that protects midsize lender-servicers against appraisal-based buybacks.

Regulatory compliance pressures have renewed mortgage lender-servicers focus on real estate appraiser accountability and internal quality control strategies.

In an ever-changing regulatory environment it is crucial for lender-servicers to act quickly and modify their processes to remain in compliance with the Interagency Appraisal and Valuation guidelines under the Dodd-Frank bill that went into effect on April 1.

Vague language in the Dodd-Frank Act that entitles borrowers to a defense to foreclosure transfers origination liability burdens to servicers and may even “put a stop” to foreclosures.

Current and expected regulatory compliance requirements and loss mitigation challenges are pressing servicers to address shortages in well-trained, experienced staff.

It is a renter’s market. So Beazer Homes of Atlanta, one of the country’s top-10 homebuilders, is betting on affordable, distressed home rental opportunities—for now.

Pre-disaster management counseling and training issues are high up on the agenda of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Despite evidence that some home prepurchase education and foreclosure prevention programs are working, inconsistent proof of the effect of counseling indicates the industry cannot quantify their level of efficiency.

Current and expected regulatory compliance requirements and loss mitigation challenges are pressing servicers to address shortages in well-trained, experienced staff.Supporters say mortgage servicing standards will help increase workout efficiency. But there is a catch.

A study sponsored by the Mortgage Bankers Association shows that despite evidence that some home pre-purchase education and foreclosure prevention programs are effective, inconsistent proof of the effect of counseling indicates the industry remains clueless about what works and what does not work.

In 2010, commercial and multifamily mortgage origination volumes increased to $118.8 billion, up 44% compared to 2009, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. And first liens accounted for 92% of the total dollar volume closed.

A pilot program designed to avoid Home Equity Conversion Mortgage delinquencies is gaining track among seniors in need of help at about the same time pending legislation calls for cuts of all funding for federally mandated reverse mortgage counseling.

A pilot program designed to avoid Home Equity Conversion Mortgage delinquencies is gaining track among seniors in need of help at about the same time pending legislation calls for cuts of all funding for federally mandated reverse mortgage counseling.The FY 2011 Continuing Appropriations Act (H.R. 1473)—scheduled to pass Congress in mid-April—would eliminate $88 million in HECM counseling funds.

The housing-crisis-driven high demand for financial counseling services of recent years appears to be on track for further collaborative growth and innovation despite budding and expected economic improvements.

National servicing standards “are clearly doable,” according to New York State banking superintendent Richard Neiman. In a speech at the SourceMedia Mortgage Servicing Conference here last week, Neiman called for a “a renewed level of cooperative federalism.”

National servicing standards "are clearly doable" according to New York Banking superintendent Richard Neiman, but the Empire State's top regulator says a lack of cooperation between the states and federal regulators is hobbling the effort.