Paul Davis

TowneBank in Suffolk, Va., has agreed to buy Monarch Financial Holdings in Chesapeake, Va., for $220.6 million in stock.

Community bankers merit more regulatory relief, particularly those that hold mortgage originations. That was a key message from James Bullard, St. Louis Fed President, during a community banking conference in St. Louis hosted by the Federal Reserve Board and the Conference of State Bank Supervisors.

WashingtonFirst Bankshares in Reston, Va., has agreed to buy direct mortgage lender 1st Portfolio Holding Corp. in Fairfax, Va.

Rep. Patrick McHenry said Democrats' resistance to passing certain regulatory relief measures is due to a leftward shift.

First Horizon has agreed to pay $212.5 million to settle claims tied to the Memphis, Tenn., company's past underwriting and origination of certain loans.

The $5.8 billion First Financial said in a press release Wednesday that it will pay $1.9 million in cash for 4Trust Mortgage in a deal that should close next month.

CertusHoldings in Greenville, S.C., has agreed to sell its small business finance unit to BankUnited in Miami Lakes, Fla.

The founders of FBC Mortgage have agreed to take over the mortgage lender as part of Stifel Financial's purchase of Sterne, Agee & Leach.

Wilshire Bancorp in Los Angeles has agreed to buy Manhattan Bancorp's mortgage lending division.

Federal Savings Bank in Chicago has agreed to buy Baytree National Bank & Trust in Lake Forest, Ill.

Mortgage lending, particularly for bigger banks, cooled some in October as home buying season ended. Meanwhile, loan pricing deteriorated again, showing that lenders are still cutting rates to land the best credits.

Complete Financial Solutions in Spokane, Wash., has agreed to buy Northern Star Financial in Mankato, Minn.

Doral Financial in San Juan, Puerto Rico, continues to shed assets.

Interest rate risk. Demanding regulatory and GSE standards. Shifting demographics. These are among the reasons that lenders will have a hard time balancing the call for affordable home loans with legal and market realities.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency is receptive to the idea of Federal Home Loan Bank mergers, according to the agency's director.