Origination

Triumph Savings Bank, Dallas, this week hired industry veteran Barry Epstein to manage its new warehouse lending division, and plans to cater its effort to small nondepository mortgage bankers.

First Bancorp, San Juan, Puerto Rico, has entered into a definitive agreement to sell a loan portfolio with an unpaid principal balance of $516.7 million and a new book value of $438.5 million that is largely comprised of construction loans, but also contains some commercial real estate and commercial loans.

Home values fell 2.6% between the third and fourth quarters, their largest drop since the first quarter of 2009, as any push from the home buyer tax credits evaporated, said the latest Zillow Real Estate Market Report.

African-Americans and Latinos borrowed 62% less in 2009 to purchase or refinance homes when compared with 2004, while mortgages to whites declined by just 17% during the same time frame, according to a study of Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data by ComplianceTech, Arlington, Va.

The House Financial Services Committee wants to cut off all federal funding for NeighborWorks America, which supports hundreds of community-based groups that provide safe and decent housing for low-income families.

In our past few articles, we have been discussing the one sentence that will generate more clients for you. Here’s the sentence: People will do anything for those who encourage their dreams, justify their failures, allay their fears, confirm their suspicions and help them throw rocks at their enemies.

The seasonally adjusted application volume index fell by 7.7% from the previous week as mortgage rates shot up to their highest point since last spring because of stronger economic growth than anticipated, according to new figures released by the Mortgage Bankers Association.

When it comes to restructuring the housing finance system, the new chairman of the Senate Banking Committee wants to ensure that safe, 30-year fixed-rate mortgages will available to homebuyers with all lenders having equal access to the secondary market.

A rated small-balance commercial mortgage-backed securities deal appears to be the first seen in some time.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development has issued a mortgagee letter establishing a procedure for when counseling agencies can waive the fee for Home Equity Conversion Mortgage counseling services.