Compliance & Regulation

Wide-ranging efforts to reform Home Equity Conversion Mortgage lending and servicing practices are designed to close loopholes and resolve policy inconsistencies, but some obstacles remain unresolved and more work needs to be done.

A recent survey shows a very large number of mortgage lenders worry about loan quality and Truth in Lending Act and Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act Integrated Disclosure Rule compliance costs.

Embattled nonbank servicer Ocwen took a $100 million charge for a potential settlement of foreclosure violations and posted a third-quarter loss, but warned the final cost to settle allegations that it backdated foreclosure notices could be higher.

Technology companies such as Ellie Mae, which almost doubled its employees to 700 and saw its stock price reach a new high this year, are seizing an opportunity to transform how mortgages are made.

The Supreme Court is slated to hear arguments Tuesday in a case that could determine when and how borrowers are allowed to cancel their mortgages.

In a surprise victory for mortgage servicer PHH Corp., a California judge overturned a $16.2 million jury verdict awarded to a California homeowner in July for a botched loan modification.

The court asked another governmental entity to remedy the plight of non-borrowing spouses facing foreclosure. So far options appear to give few consumers relief.

Bank of America Corp. Chief Executive Officer Brian T. Moynihan, who was named chairman this month, said legal costs stemming from defective mortgages are largely behind it.

McGraw Hill Financial said it's negotiating a possible settlement of government investigations into how its S&P unit graded commercial mortgage-backed securities and recorded a $60 million charge to cover the costs.

The credit quality of U.S. commercial mortgages being packaged into bonds slipped further in the third quarter as borrowers piled on more debt, according to Moody's Investors Service.