What We're Hearing

File this under ‘Mortgage Lazarus’: Even though it confirmed to National Mortgage News last week that it was in the process of closing its doors, software provider MortgageDashboard has posted a notice on the sign-in page of its website, saying it has found private equity backers and is up and running again. Later today NMN will publish the full story (by our technology editor Tony Garritano) on its website. Meanwhile, in Senate testimony today Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke said the return of the private label (read jumbo) securitization market will be a slow process. As most readers know, the private label market has been dead for so long that I can’t even remember the funeral. Sen. Mel Martinez (R-Fla.) complained a bit that consumers in his state who have the wherewithal to buy high priced homes don’t have a whole lot of financing options. Mr. Martinez was a HUD secretary during the George W. Bush administration...