Servicing

The Federal Housing Finance Agency appears poised finally to allow principal reductions, but it's been nearly a decade since the mortgage crisis and underwater borrowers are much fewer thanks to higher home values.

The Securities and Exchange Commission is looking at whether mortgage servicers are boosting profits by prematurely unleashing debt collectors on delinquent borrowers, a person with direct knowledge of the matter said.

The mortgage industry made fewer loan modifications in January, while deeds-in-lieu and foreclosure sales spiked, according to Hope Now.

The agency may finally be reaching resolution on whether Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will allow principal reductions, two years into Director Mel Watt's tenure as agency director and nearly a decade after the mortgage bubble burst.

The House passed a bill late Monday to extend foreclosure relief for military service members through the end of next year.

A $6.2 billion, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac bulk portfolio of mortgage servicing rights has gone up for auction, with final bids due March 29.

As a handful of new issuers enter the market and the implementation of a key regulation pave the way for subprime securitization's comeback, the volume of new loans that are actually available to the market remains a question.

As servicers downsize their loss mitigation units, housing counselors are finding the companies' designated points of contact are less experienced, making it more difficult to get packages approved for troubled borrowers.

Mortgage professional hiring and new job appointments for the week ending March 18.

To hear some former examiners tell it, companies that are hostile during the exam process may get dinged more often than those that show respect and professionalism. Following are tips to ensure bankers do better on their next exam.