Servicing

Recent revelations that Ally Financial and Chase Home Mortgage may have been cutting corners on their foreclosure paperwork have sent the servicing industry into a panic, with new concerns being raised about massive delays in foreclosure times and a reduction in company ratings.

One of the most important aspects of selling bank-owned properties is to “know your assets,” according to David Brown, vice president, director of REO at First Horizon National Corp., Memphis, Tenn.

With Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac now requiring that all mortgage servicers review how they handle foreclosures, more questions are being raised about the impact that potentially invalid affidavits will have on the foreclosure process, on servicers and the industry overall.

House speaker Nancy Pelosi is urging the Department of Justice to launch an investigation into the handling of delinquent mortgages, loan modifications and foreclosures by banks for possible violations of laws and regulations.

Educational collaboration is a goal Mortgage Contracting Services LLC aims to expand through free summits across the country. And municipalities are the center of their attention.Following the success of its first session held in Frisco, Texas, the firm said it planned to host additional mini-summits in locations where executives travel to attend scheduled tradeshows and other industry events to ensure higher participation.

Bank of America Home Loans – the nation's third largest wholesale lender – said it will cease originating mortgages through loan brokers immediately, calling it a "strategic decision," allowing the company to focus on retail lending.

Moody's has placed on review for possible downgrade the servicing quality ratings of Bank of America, which recently halted certain foreclosures in 23 states.

A judge in Palm Beach County, Fla., late Monday ruled that the State Attorney General's office overstepped its authority when issuing a subpoena to examine the foreclosure practices of the Shapiro & Fishman law firm.

Texas on Monday asked 27 residential servicers doing business in the state to voluntarily suspend foreclosures and to halt sales of properties already foreclosed upon, according to a published report.

The economic value of residential mortgage servicing rights – which have been sliding for two years now – appear to have stabilized, according to a research note from MIAC Analytics, New York.