Servicing

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.

Richard Kaye, president of Red Rock Servicing, Irvine, Calif., which serves as an asset manager and servicer of distressed assets, said his company’s experience in direct-to-consumer debt counseling paved the way for Red Rock to develop a short-sale and REO platform that can create economies of scale to alleviate the backlogs.

Mortgage application volume declined by 0.8% on a seasonally adjusted basis last week, as fewer borrowers take advantage of record low interest rates to refinance, according to new figures released by the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Mortgage bankers are making money hand-over-fist on their new originations these days, and profit margins continue to be fat thanks to a low cost of funds and the ability to heap on all sorts of fees.

Despite recent year-to-year declines in foreclosure filings, REO has risen to a record high for the third time in the last five months. But the latest figures suggest it is generally increasing at a more controlled pace in many areas, with the exception of states like California.

Evidence of sloppy mortgage servicing practices should come as no surprise to anyone who has paid attention to the industry during the foreclosure crisis.