Compliance & Regulation

News that Wells Fargo and Bank of America failed to comply with the mortgage loan modification timeline processing requirements of the mortgage servicing standards mandated by the national mortgage settlement are bittersweet for New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman.

Felony charges were filed against Robert Williams, an investor who pleaded guilty for his role in conspiracies to rig bids and commit mail fraud at foreclosure auctions.

When it comes to whether to outsource valuations or keep them in-house, opinions can be fierce, but the best advice is to not close the door to either until one has carefully examined all the pros and cons in line with which best matches a particular company’s size or situation.

Rep. Maxine Waters, the top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, is asking for an investigation into claims that Bank of America purposefully delayed borrowers from entering the Home Affordable Modification Program.

Lawmakers and industry officials continue to issue warnings about the impact of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's ability-to-pay rule, despite recent efforts by the agency to amend certain provisions to assuage industry concerns.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($417,500 or less) increased to 4.17%, the highest rate since March 2012.

ServiceLink has made available a multipurpose tool designed to ensure the mortgage loan data lenders and servicers report and record electronically is accurately transferred and in compliance with regulators.

Investors still want to buy in the commercial mortgage-backed securities sector while performance is relatively good, but they are mindful that recent origination standards are slipping and there are risks in CMBS 1.0 too.

The Mortgage Grapevine is discussing a scenario where the borrower is reluctant to have an appraiser come in because there are two rooms which were added to the property but are not on the tax rolls.

Mortgage industry consulting firm zIngenuity has acquired Irwin Reinsurance Corp., a Vermont-domiciled captive reinsurance firm, and merged it into what it describes as a an indirect subsidiary called zInsureRe in the Cayman Islands.