Servicing

JPMorgan Chase saw its mortgage-related revenue get hammered in the first quarter, falling a stunning 75% to $696 million (compared to 4Q), as originations declined and the firm focused resources on its massive servicing portfolio and dealing with legal issues tied to that business.

Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller blasted a study Tuesday that said proposed servicer settlement terms could cost the economy $10 billion a year.

Mortgage application volume decreased by 6.7% on a seasonally adjusted basis for the week ended April 8 as the average rate for the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rose for the fourth consecutive week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

For the first time in four years, the number of foreclosures has fallen in the tri-county South Florida region, according to the latest report by CondoVultures.

A growing share of loans originated by banks are coming through their wholesale/correspondent channel, according to the American Bankers Association's annual real estate lending survey.

Putnam Investments plans to launch a new REIT to purchase mostly residential MBS guaranteed by the Government National Mortgage Association, and the GSEs.

At the Fifth Annual SourceMedia Mortgage Servicing Conference in Dallas, attendees concerned about the future of their industry discussed at length the pros and cons of recent regulatory changes and still-pending rules and requirements they may have to abide by in the near future.

Ending the Making Home Affordable program would increase avoidable foreclosures and put the fragile housing market in worse shape, the program’s director told an audience at the SourceMedia Mortgage Servicing Conference in Dallas.

Next month PHH Corp., Mt. Laurel, N.J., will report first quarter earnings but this time around it likely won’t announce a large markup in the value of its mortgage servicing rights, according to a new report from FBR Capital Markets.

Mortgage-related mergers and acquisitions should pick up a head of steam this year, according to a new report from Milestone Advisors.