Servicing

In the loss mitigation area, one of the key industry trends is a "competition for the right kind of people who have the right kind of experience," according to Gagan Sharma, president and CEO of BSI Financial.

The mortgage industry commonly thinks of fraud on the origination side without noticing how often it is taking place in pre-foreclosure activity. As with origination, there are many pieces on the servicing side that serve up red flags to fraudulent activities.

The GSE regulator told House Democrats at a closed door meeting that the Federal Housing Finance Agency is committed to making meaningful changes to a special program that will allow more borrowers with high LTV loans to refinance at lower mortgage rates.

Helios AMC, a commercial real estate special servicer which is sponsored by Ranieri Partners, has acquired real estate advisory firm The Situs Companies. The combined entity will retain the Situs name. The purchase price was not disclosed.

Fitch Ratings found delinquencies on loans underlying commercial mortgage-backed securities declined for the second month in a row in September as its numbers bore out what the company has identified as a trend toward improvement in the hotel sector.

Credit rating agency DBRS this week approved American Mortgage Consultants, New York, as a third-party due diligence provider for residential MBS.

As the Obama Administration examines options to expedite the sale of foreclosed properties, the Federal Housing Administration is weighing a tweak to its 203(k) program, opening it once again to investors.

Analysts found prepayments surged notably in September.

Mortgage companies continued to pare back their payrolls in August as lenders cut 2,800 full-time employees during the month, following 1,900 layoffs in July.

The Obama Administration's efforts to expand a GSE refinancing program and reach a large number of underwater borrowers will depend on how far the Federal Housing Finance Agency will go in providing lenders relief from loan buy-backs, according to industry officials and analysts watching the effort.