Servicing

HAMP servicers completed 22,260 loan modifications in February, up 24% from the prior month, according to a Treasury Department report.

The Federal Reserve Board is opening the door for banks to rent REO properties in an effort to slow sales of distressed properties that are contributing to downward pressure on home prices.

Joseph Smith has assumed his duties as the monitor for the $26 billion foreclosure settlement and he will be responsible for making sure five mega-servicers live up to the terms of the agreement and reform their servicing and foreclosure practices.

There often has been more talk than action in some cases when it comes to bringing old deal-types back to the new-issue securities market. But two notable transactions did emerge recently, and investors considering them should take note of how they and today's environment differ from what was seen in the past.

Thirty Democratic senators are urging the Federal Housing Finance Agency to evaluate the use of principal reduction as a "targeted solution" for assisting underwater borrowers with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac loans.

William E. "Bill" Mills, Jr., co-founder and chairman of Atlanta-based public relations firm William Mills Agency, passed away on March 15. He was 78.

There have been 16 bank failures through the first quarter this year. In the third quarter and fourth quarter last year, 26 and 18 banks were shut down, respectively.

Delinquency rates on home equity loans may have peaked during last summer, but they still remain at "troublesome" levels, according to a new report released by the American Bankers Association on Thursday.

By at least two measures CMBS delinquencies took a notable upward turn in the last month, and by one measure new defaults also are still on the rise. But some observers believe the deterioration in performance is slowing in some areas and better days may lie ahead.

New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is warning state homeowners to beware of phone solicitations from scammers claiming to provide assistance related to the recent national mortgage servicing settlement.