Servicing

Fannie Mae is assuring lenders they don't have to pull a new credit report before closing, but they do have a responsibility to ensure the borrower can repay the mortgage.

Ginnie Mae is raising its net worth requirement for mortgage-backed securities issuers, requiring them to meet bank-like capital standards.

Critics of the government's HAMP program are blaming the Treasury for failing to take into account the massive debt of defaulted mortgage borrowers.

Credit Suisse expects mortgage repurchase demands to remain strong throughout the remainder of the year, but believes the worst of it might be over when 2010 ends.

Mortgage insurance companies, which have been bleeding massive amounts of red ink for two years, could see their prospects brighten in a post-Fannie Mae/Freddie world, according to one proposal making the rounds in Washington.

The Home Affordable Modification Program has succeeded in limiting the supply of distressed properties to hit the market and, as a result, has helped stabilize prices. That success may be short-lived.

Inlanta Mortgage, Waukesha, Wis., has purchased the assets and hired the employees of American Foundations MortgageBanc through a strategic agreement.

BB&T, which traditionally has kept a tight lock on its warehouse lending program, disclosed that it had $1.5 billion in commitments at June 30 with about half of that in the form of outstanding loans.

The Obama Administration isn't waiting until the Senate confirms a director to head the new Consumer Finance Protection Bureau to begin implementing "the most significant financial reform legislation since the Great Depression."

Lewis Ranieri — the co-inventor of the mortgage-backed security — and bond market maven Bill Gross are among a group of 12 speakers testifying next Tuesday at a Treasury forum on the future of the housing finance system, a discussion that will touch on what to do with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.