Origination

Federal banking regulators began leaking copies of their much anticipated mortgage risk retention rules on Monday — with very few surprises contained in the final proposed language except for one: where Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac fit in.

KBW Inc., New York, on Monday placed 14 real estate investment trusts in its first ever 'REIT Dividend Honor Roll.'

J.I. Kislak Mortgage LLC, Miami Lakes, Fla., on Monday named industry veteran Felix Beck as an advisor to the fast growing company.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development late last week issued RESPA guidance to help lenders and settlement service providers fill out the 'Good Faith Estimate' when the Federal Reserve's loan officer compensation rule goes into effect later this week.

A leading indicator of existing home sales rose 2.1% in February after falling for two consecutive months, but economists at the National Association of Realtors aren't optimistic about a surge in sales this spring.

Among the states, North Dakota will recover most quickly from the housing downturn, according to Tree.com Inc.'s LendingTree.

Four states are considering legislation that would prohibit or restrict appraisers from using distressed sales, such as those of foreclosed properties, as comparable sales when assessing the value of a home.

The Pulte Group, the giant Bloomfield, Mich.-based home building firm, is terminating its $250 million revolving credit facility, effective March 30. The company will realize a charge of approximately $1.3 million associated with the change, which will be recorded in its first quarter financial results.

Homebuyer traffic was up in February, as slowly rising mortgage rates at that time prompted some buyers to lock, according to a monthly survey of real estate agents.

Recently I read the only thing people dreaded more than a trip to the dentist, was applying for a mortgage. As I sat in the dentist chair a few weeks ago, as a result of one of my 2011 goals to take care of my “dental health,” and experienced afresh and anew the agony of dental exploration, I couldn’t help but compare the dentist office to some of our own mortgage practices.