Servicing

The House of Representatives approved a continuing funding resolution early Thursday morning that extends the $729,750 maximum loan limit for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Federal Housing Administration single-family loans until Sept. 30, 2011.

The document processing problems plaguing the mortgage servicing industry could cause some foreclosures to take up to 10 years, according to Mark Zandi, chief economist for Moody's.com.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. said Wednesday that it is halting 56,000 foreclosures in process, pending a review of whether employees properly signed and verified information in foreclosure documents.

In a letter sent to Ohio judges, Attorney General Richard Cordray is requesting that state courts make a special review of all foreclosure cases that involve GMAC Mortgage.

Foreclosure starts continue to accelerate with the GSEs displaying more aggressive timelines on early-stage delinquencies.

Due to growing concerns raised by the GMAC foreclosure scandal, Fitch Ratings believes loss severities on residential MBS could worsen, and is warning servicers to double-check how they foreclose on troubled loans.

Fannie Mae issued $48 billion of mortgage-backed securities in August, a 12% increase from July with the GSE also reporting improving delinquency numbers.

Representatives of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae bandied about some big numbers during a session I recently attended at the New England Mortgage Bankers Conference in Providence, RI.

Lewis Ranieri, one of the co-inventors of the MBS, says in a new letter to Congress that a national 'rent-to-own' program could help alleviate the national foreclosure crisis.