Compliance & Regulation

United Capital Markets, which helps firms hedge their servicing portfolios, says the Federal Housing Finance Agency could be all wet on several assumptions in its 'Joint Servicing Compensation Initiative,' a document that thrives to revamp GSE servicing fees.

The House Financial Services Committee late Wednesday approved a bill (H.R. 839) to kill the Obama administration's signature foreclosure prevention program, calling it a failure for low performance.

Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., on Wednesday blasted federal regulators and state attorneys general for using "strong arm tactics" to force the nation's megabanks (and megaservicers) to agree to a $30 billion settlement along with changes to their foreclosure and loan modifications practices.

Although executives at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac would love to see their dividend payments to the U.S. Treasury cut in half, it's unlikely that it will happen, according to a new report from Keefe, Bruyette & Woods.

Three surviving spouses of reverse mortgage borrowers have sued HUD, alleging that what HUD characterized in 2008 as a clarification of its policy constituted a change from long-established federal rules that should have protected them from having to repay lost equity in order to stay in their homes.

Mortgage servicers may be wary of entering into a global settlement with the state attorneys general because whatever deal is struck between the two parties would not be binding on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Radius Capital Corp. and its president, Robert DiGiorgio, have been charged by the Securities and Exchange Commission with securities fraud for allegedly making false and misleading statements related to the company’s issuance of mortgage-backed securities guaranteed by Ginnie Mae.

Mortgage fraudster Michael McGrath, who siphoned off $140 million of credit union funds through his company, U.S. Mortgage Corp. and its CU National Mortgage affiliate, will serve at least 12 years of a 14-year prison term meted out by a federal judge two weeks ago, according to prosecutors.

Federal regulators are working toward a very narrow definition of “qualified residential mortgage” that would force securitizers of high-quality loans to retain 5% of the credit risk. Only well-underwritten mortgages with 20% downpayments would be classified as QRMs and be exempt from risk retention.

The National Association of Mortgage Brokers is expected to file suit against the Federal Reserve Board Wednesday morning, seeking to block the agency's controversial loan officer compensation rule.