Servicing

Is the 'flow' servicing market poised for a revival? Well, not exactly, but there are signs of life in the sector, where an originator pledges to sell mortgage servicing rights to a buyer on a regular basis.

Residential lenders originated $16.5 billion of FHA-backed single-family mortgages in February, a nearly 10% decline from the prior month as the home purchase market slowed.

If you're looking for the missing piece to the mortgage "deconsolidation" equation, its name is Wells Fargo. Never before in the annals of residential finance has one company amassed such an enormous market share in lending (27%) and servicing (20%).

Wells Fargo's origination business has been operating at full steam, keeping the company’s mortgage servicing assets well above a cap proposed under Basel III. A new servicer compensation system could resolve the issue, but something has to give.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has accused Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC) of failing to produce documents relating to an investigation of the bank's mortgage-backed securities. Wells called the SEC's subpoena enforcement action "inappropriate and unwarranted."

The Federal Housing Finance Agency has a "healthy skepticism" about whether its REO bulk sale initiative will work, according to Meg Burns who's in charge of the sale.

Whether it is due to the weaker U.S. dollar, the large foreclosure inventory for sale, more favorable economic expectations going forward, or all of the above, Canadians are emerging as the largest group of foreigners purchasing residential property in U.S. Sun Belt states. And they do not mind buying foreclosures.

The government-owned Ally Financial sold $250 million of legacy mortgages last year, using the whole loan securitization market, according to a recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

In case you missed the story on the National Mortgage News website, here's a headline for you: Some firms have the ability to make $10,000 per loan on HARP 2.0 loans. A nice chunk of that profit estimate is tied to secondary market pricing.

Foreclosure law firm Steven J. Baum P.C. and Pillar Processing LLC have agreed to a $4 million settlement with New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman for conducting improper legal filings against distressed homeowners.