Servicing

In the early days of the financial crisis investors were lining up for the mother of all loan auctions. It was thought to be the best buying opportunity for bad debt since the S&L crisis. And then a funny thing happened: banks and investment bankers decided not to dump their nonperforming loans, at least not in large numbers - or at fire - sale prices.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency's three-year effort to develop standardized loan data reporting requirements for newly originated Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac mortgages will finally go live this month.

Signaling their optimism about the state of the economy, many bankers are predicting that problem loans will moderate and consumer lending will perk up over the next six months, according to a new FICO survey released Tuesday.

Prices of homes sold by owner/occupants are rising for the first time in years and there has been modest price appreciation in January and February, according to a new CoreLogic report.

Since the housing crisis began in 2007, mortgage rates have currently dropped to all-time lows and home prices continue to bottom out in most markets. The big question still lingers on the mind of everyone in the industry: Are we on the road to a recovery or are there still gloomy days ahead?

A weak job market combined with growing demand for field services is forging innovative alliances that generate small business opportunities.

Morgan Stanley has agreed to pay civil money penalties and conduct a review of 60,300 foreclosures conducted by its former servicing subsidiary, Saxon Mortgage Services, as part of an enforcement action by the Federal Reserve Board.

Minor adjustments in the approach to distressed property data analytics and communication with the homeowner may separate a foreclosure from a sustainable workout. The key is in considering all the data involved, including factors that are not strictly related to servicing and field services.

Ocwen Financial Corp., which relies heavily on its overseas workforce, has decided to shutter a pair of North Texas servicing offices, laying off almost 680 mortgage workers in the process, according to a recent filing with the Texas Workforce Commission.

What are the most successful private companies operating in various financial markets including the mortgage space doing to prosper in 2012? Input from hundreds of Inc. 500 CEOs who have maintained above-average growth and profitability during tough economic conditions indicates there are six areas of focus that they considered key to their company's success.