Servicing

The incidence of property valuation fraud rose 46% in the third quarter compared to the same period a year ago, according to a new report from risk mitigation firm Interthinx. Interthinx noted that on a sequential basis property valuation fraud jumped 25%. The company, whose software helps lender/servicers track fraud, said it is seeing a continued shift to fraudulent schemes involving short sales, real estate owned inventories and refinancing by borrowers whose equity has been impaired by falling real estate values.

Concerned about a coming wave of foreclosures on payment option ARMs, California Attorney General Edmund wants some of the state's largest servicers — including Bank of America and Wells Fargo — to detail their plans on how they will help homeowners facing dramatic monthly payment increases on these controversial loans. According to figures compiled by National Mortgage News and the Quarterly Data Report, Wells and BoA (through acquisitions of failing franchises) are two of the largest holders of POAs. In total, AG Brown sent a letter to 10 residential servicers including JPMorgan Chase, Litton Loan Servicing (a unit of Goldman Sachs), Residential Capital Corp., Ocwen Financial Corporation, OneWest Bank (formerly IndyMac), American Home Mortgage Servicing, Saxon Mortgage (a unit of J.P. Morgan), and Select Portfolio Servicing. The companies need to respond to the AG's office by November 23. Mr. Brown called POAs "ticking time bombs that the lending industry has the power to defuse," adding that "Unless these banks and loan servicers act quickly, hundreds of thousands of mortgages will reset across the state, creating a new wave of foreclosures." According to NMN/QDR, there at least $500 billion in outstanding POAs in the U.S.

PennyMac, the mortgage vulture fund founded by a former top executive at Countrywide Financial Corp., has registered $25.8 million worth of additional stock, according to a new public filing. In total, the firm registered 1,368,851 shares at a proposed maximum offering price of $18.91, according to the company's S-8 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Formally known as PennyMac Mortgage Investment Trust, the company went public this past summer and has yet to release any earnings. In trading Friday its stock was at $18.55 compared to a low of $18.34 and a high of $20. A spokesman for the company did not return a telephone call about the filing. Besides investing in delinquent loans, PennyMac is also a specialty servicer.

Even though Genworth Financial posted a small profit in the third quarter, its U.S. mortgage insurance division continued to lose money, albeit at a lower rate. The MI unit posted a $116 million net operating loss in the quarter compared to a $121 million loss in the same period a year ago. Genworth said its primary insurance-in-force declined by $25.8 billion versus the prior year from a combination of lower net insurance written, rescissions, and higher claims paid. Genworth recently increased its maximum loan-to-value ratio to 95% in 199 metropolitan areas (from 90%) but has maintained more stringent LTVs in such battered markets as California, Florida, Arizona, Nevada and Michigan. The company noted that its U.S. MI business "achieved three consecutive quarters of increased loss mitigation savings and decreased losses." The life and mortgage insurer reported net income available to common shareholders of $19 million compared to a loss of $258 million in the year ago period. Meanwhile, in Friday afternoon trading most mortgage insurance stocks were tumbling along with the rest of the Dow, which fell 268 points in mid-day trading. However, Genworth, and Triad Guaranty of Winston-Salem, were exceptions. Triad, whose stock rose slightly, is in the process of self liquidating.

The House and Senate moved quickly to pass an extension of the $729,750 GSE loan limit through the end of 2010, hoping to avoid any potential disruption in the mortgage market. Both chambers cleared the loan limit extension late Thursday as part of a continuing funding resolution. President Obama is expected to sign the continuing resolution (CR) shortly. The maximum $729,750 loan limit for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Federal Housing Administration loans in high cost areas will expire at yearend, dropping to $625,500. The CR extends the higher loan limits through December 31, 2010. The CR also extends the nationwide $625,500 loan limit for FHA-insured reverse mortgages through December 2010. "Given the lack of a private secondary mortgage market, FHA, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are pretty much the only game in town," said Robert Story, chairman of the Mortgage Bankers Association. "Extending the current loan limits, along with other initiatives will help restore stability to the housing and mortgage markets." VA loans were not included in the extension. The Department of Veterans Affairs already has the authority to guarantee single-family loans with a maximum loan balance of $729,750 through December 31, 2011.

Two rating agencies, separately, plan to change their criteria that affect residential mortgage-backed securities, paving the way for possible further downgrades. Moody's Investors Service said that in upcoming weeks it will update certain assumptions behind its loss projections for major U.S RMBS sectors. "We expect these revisions to have a significant impact on alternative-A credit, option adjustable-rate mortgages and some jumbo pools backing securitizations from 2005-2007, with the most pronounced changes expected for the 2005 pools," Moody's said. Separately, Standard & Poor's has made what it characterized as "big changes" in its rating criteria for collateralized debt obligation and U.S. RMBS that include a calibration standard for its top AAA-rated securities based on the experience during the Great Depression. "Overall, the effect should be to make it more difficult for securities in the sectors that have displayed poor credit performance during the current financial crisis to receive high ratings," said Mark Adelson, chief credit officer for S&P.

Mission Capital Advisors LLC is currently marketing a portfolio of commercial mortgage loans with an outstanding balance of approximately $48 million. The company is soliciting final bids through Dec. 1 for the purchase of individual loans or the entire portfolio, which includes nonperforming assets secured by multifamily and office properties located in West Bloomfield, Mich. and Denver. The multifamily asset sale represents a follow on of sorts from a fourth quarter 2009 closing on behalf of the same CMBS special servicer. In the transaction, Mission Capital sold a large portfolio of mixed commercial mortgage loans of which four were secured by Class A multifamily located in the Bloomfield, West Bloomfield, and Novi, Mich. markets. Relative to the office asset in Denver, a communications company previously occupied the subject. It features large contiguous blocks of space in addition to state-of-the-art communications and power redundancy. For more information, go to missioncap.com/deals.

Wolters Kluwer Financial Services, Minneapolis has expanded its loss mitigation offering to include state and federal lending compliance consulting services that help servicers avoid discriminatory lending practices when modifying loans. Servicers can use it to ensure they meet all Home Affordable Modification Program fair lending guidelines recently issued by the Treasury Department, according to the company. WKFS said its compliance consultants are available to evaluate existing loan modification policies and procedures and help servicers address fair lending risks, review a sample of completed loan modifications the servicer has completed and denied, and conduct a statistical analysis of all completed modifications to identify modification criteria that might lead the servicer to violate fair lending laws. While modifying loans at risk of default as quickly as possible, servicers also need to make sure everyone is treated fairly and equally in the process, said WKFS senior consultant and statistician Don Morrow. Moreover, regulators are expected to "intensify their scrutiny of servicers' fair lending compliance," he said.

The number of vacant homes for rent jumped to 4.59 million in the third quarter, up 16% from a year ago and up nearly 190,000 units from the second quarter, according to the Census Bureau. The rising number of rentals reflects a slow sales market that forces speculators to rent properties and families moving up to rent their previous homes. It also reflects a glut of condominiums. "Condos keep coming on the market," said Bernard Markstein, director of economic forecasting at the National Association of Home Builders. The Census Bureau reported that the number of vacant homes for sale rose to 1.99 million in the third quarter from 1.92 million in the second quarter. The number of vacant homes on the market had dropped by 14% during the first half of the year. The slight increase occurred during a period of rising sales with homebuilders continuing to reduce their inventories of unsold houses. Mr. Markstein said the increase reflects more foreclosed homes coming on the market, as well as condo units. The Census Bureau also reported that the U.S. homeownership rate edged up to 67.6% in the third quarter, from 67.4% in the previous quarter. The homeownership rate was 67.9% in the third quarter of 2008 and it peaked at 69.2% in the second quarter of 2004. A percentage point decline in the homeownership rate represents 1.1 million owner-occupants that lost their homes.

Fannie Mae has revamped its forbearance policies for homeowners who are ineligible or don't qualify for loan modifications under the Obama administration's Home Affordable Modification Program. Fannie's new "Payment Reduction Program" replaces its HomeSaver Forbearance Program starting Nov. 1; the old program allowed for a temporary 50% reduction in the borrowers monthly payments. Under PRP, the borrower's interest and principal payments are reduced by 30% for up to six months while the servicer considers other workout solutions. "Reducing the payments by 30% rather than the previous 50% is more logical as permanent solutions are closer to 30% than 50%," Fannie spokesman Brian Faith said. "This will make the adjustment from the temporary solution to the permanent solution easier for borrowers," he added. This change comes at a time when tens of thousand of borrowers in HAMP trial loan modifications are not expected to complete the process or receive permanent modifications. Fannie's PRP program also provides temporary relief for struggling borrowers with second homes or investment properties. Relief under the HAMP program is restricted to the borrower's primary residence.