Servicing

The amount of commercial mortgage debt outstanding declined 1.3% between the second and third quarters, as there were fewer construction loans held by banks and thrifts and commercial and multifamily mortgages held in commercial mortgage-backed securities. This is according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's analysis of the Federal Reserve Board Flow of Funds data.

Ginnie Mae reported net income of $541.5 million in fiscal year 2010, a 6% gain from the prior year, while revenues jumped 54%.

New Jersey has become the 19th state to restrict the use of private transfer fees which require a percentage of a home's sales price be paid to a private third party each time the property is sold, often for up to 99 years.

The government's primary foreclosure prevention program – HAMP – has not lived up to expectations and will wind up helping just a fraction of its target audience, according to a new report from the bipartisan Congressional Oversight Panel.

Citigroup late last week agreed to sell a $441 million package of nonperforming loans with PennyMac Mortgage Investment Trust being identified as the winning bidder, according to industry sources who play in that space.

The profitability of small mortgage banking companies jumped to $1,423 per loan in the third quarter, a 55% spike from the previous quarter, thanks to refinancings and strong demand for mortgage-backed securities, according to a new report from the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Single-family originations should total $340 billion for the fourth quarter, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's latest estimates, which would push total originations close to $1.5 trillion for 2010.

Ginnie Mae will join Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in requiring mortgages it purchases to be transmitted in the Uniform Loan Delivery Dataset standard — the set of data points and e-document formats the government-sponsored enterprises will mandate for all mortgages it purchases beginning Sept. 1, 2011.

Citigroup is offering a free one-day mortgage assistance call-a-thon option that is expected to initiate foreclosure prevention efforts for distressed customers in need of advice but who have not yet taken the initiative to contact their lender.

Recent interest movement in Treasuries has narrowed their yield spread with real estate investment trusts, making some companies in the sector of publicly traded property and mortgage investment firms less attractive buys, according to Credit Suisse.