Loan Think

As more submissions come in for our Top 150 Originator list, preliminary data shows we have a new leading producer for 2011. He is Eric Magee of Union Bank, with total volume of $234 million.

I started my first day at Goldman Sachs in 2004. As with all GS employees in New York, I sat through an all-day briefing on the firm, the culture, and the rules of the road. It was the most comprehensive session for new employees that I have ever experienced. That first day and all subsequent days after that while working at Goldman Sachs always exceeded my expectations.

In the old days every major Wall Street house and mega-lender had a whole loan trading desk. Some survived and some folded. Some continue to concentrate on CRA eligible loans, while others are actively trading nonperforming mortgages.

The definition of perfectionism is "a personal standard, attitude, or philosophy that demands perfection and rejects anything less." That definition sounds like a personality characteristic that could help every loan professional succeed. But what if being a perfectionist could actual hinder your success?

On March 7, U.S. District Judge Neil V. Wake sentenced Paige Kinney, aka Jamielee Miller, to 15 years in prison. Kinney had previously pleaded guilty to various charges related to a mortgage fraud scheme and to charges of bankruptcy fraud, wire fraud, mail fraud, and bank fraud in two separate indictments.

Last year's repeal of the final remaining vestige of Regulation Q, the prohibition of payment of interest on business demand deposits, at long last completed a pro-competitive process which began with the Monetary Control Act of 1980. The repeal was and is a good idea.

If it's springtime it's time for one of the things I anticipate the most in the mortgage calendar.

In case you haven't been paying close attention and reading the National Mortgage News website (and our paper weekly) the past year, there's a gargantuan shift underway in the mortgage industry. We correctly predicted that the servicing side of the business is 'deconsolidating.'

Despite the government's promise to crack down on violators of the new LO comp rules, nearly one year after they went into effect regulators have failed to deliver on their stern warnings and promises. Not surprisingly, some companies have elected to largely ignore the law, instituting compensation policies that are an obvious and blatant effort at circumventing the new compensation rules.

It's known as the 'Oops' loan market - where Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac lenders get jammed on a buyback request not because the loan is delinquent, but because one of the GSEs finds an underwriting flaw and demands a repurchase or damages. The seller/servicer then takes that loan and resells it to another buyer.