Compliance

Declines in the mortgage delinquency rates on all one-to-four unit residential loans outstanding during the first quarter add another layer of affirmation to previous data that suggest some level of market stabilization.

A top reason why borrowers continue to be intimidated by the prospect of facing their lender-servicers is fear they will be taken advantage of.

Frederic Gladle pleaded guilty in January to one count of bankruptcy fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft for charging distressed homeowners fees in exchange for fraudulently delaying foreclosure sales.

Documenting and verifying a borrower’s income is one of the most basic tasks for an underwriter. While this appears to be relatively simple, validating income has become increasingly complex and susceptible to borrower fraud.

At least 25 community banks and thrifts have announced in recent weeks that they would stop filing financial reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission in response to a new law aimed at reducing red tape for small companies.

Looking to expand its risk, fraud and compliance management offerings, FIS recently acquired ICS Risk Advisors and Memento. Terms of the deal were not announced.

New York's Department of Financial Services hammered banks over their relationships with force-placed insurers in a Friday hearing, challenging JPMorgan Chase officials on lucrative reinsurance arrangements that the Department suggested are tantamount to kickbacks.

The National Credit Union Administration has barred the former CEOs of U.S. Central FCU and Members United Corporate FCU from working for, or with any corporate credit union for their roles in two of the biggest credit union failures.

Efforts to bring back a private-label residential mortgage-backed securities market have not been quick, nor—dare I say—wholly successful at this point.

The National Flood Insurance Program is due to expire at the end of this month and the Senate still can’t seem to find a way to pass a short-term extension or move ahead with a comprehensive reform bill that re-authorizes the program for five years.

Mortgage interest rates may be at historically low levels, but the housing industry is not helping the overall economic recovery in the U.S. With the secondary market all but dried up except for Freddie and Fannie, who together purchased over three-quarters of originations in 2011, getting a mortgage these days is near impossible—perfect borrowers need only apply.

Accused of price gouging, kickbacks and borrower mistreatment, insurers QBE and Assurant sparred with the New York Financial Services Department in a Thursday hearing on force-placed insurance.

Let's assume that the recent downdraft in rates won't get any worse and then ask this very basic question: will those buying MSRs at today's rock bottom prices look like geniuses when the smoke finally clears?

New York’s Superintendent of Financial Services decried "perverse incentives" in the force-placed insurance market on Thursday and recommended banning insurers from the standard practice of making payments to referring banks.

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.

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.

Despite strong bipartisan support, a bill that would provide banks greater assurance of confidentiality when they provide information to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau remains mired in the Senate. Exactly why is hard to unravel, but most industry representatives point to Sen. Bob Corker as the chief roadblock.

Out of all of the SARs filed from depository institutions in 2011, possible mortgage fraud was reported on 92,028 files, compared to only 70,472 the prior year.

Allonhill, a mortgage due diligence provider that two weeks ago lost a consulting contract with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, has given layoff notices to dozens of employees, according to industry consultants who were briefed on the matter.

Citing the $2 billion loss at JPMorgan Chase, Massachusetts Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren is calling for the enactment of a new version of the Glass-Steagall Act.