Servicing

MGIC Investment Corp. has filed a lawsuit in Federal Court in Milwaukee against Freddie Mac and its conservator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency, over the pool insurance dispute between the two companies.

The former MetLife Home Loans branch in Omaha, Neb., has become part of Gateway Mortgage Group, Tulsa, Okla.

Based on the comments appearing on our blogs and message boards, loan officers and mortgage brokers are overwhelmingly Republican. They don’t like too much regulation and given what’s transpired because of Dodd-Frank (regarding loan officer compensation) they’re fighting an uphill battle concerning how much money they can earn.

According to new figures compiled by RealtyTrac, servicers filed 188,780 notices of default in April, the lowest reading since July 2007.

What does the future hold for the GSEs? Combined agencies? A GSE for nonconforming?

Most Federal Reserve officials foresee a continued slow recovery in the housing market and some are optimistic the improvement may pleasantly surprise their fellow members on the Federal Open Market Committee.

Here's a fact you may not be aware of: properties governed by homeowner associations are the most rapidly growing form of housing in the U.S. today. Nearly 80% of new home construction is connected with an HOA or community association, according to the Community Associations Institute, the trade association representing HOAs.

Capital Trust, a real estate investment trust that invests in commercial real estate loans and securities, said it is exploring "strategic alternatives" for the New York-based company.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency—which recently established time limits for GSE servicers to respond to short sale offers—is now trying a expedite the negotiation process between various parties in such transactions.

Short sales outnumbered REO sales in 12 states in January, RealtyTrac said, indicating that lender-servicers have agreed to sell the home for less than what’s owed on the mortgage, therefore preventing a borrower from going through the foreclosure process which costs more than executing a short sale.