Law and regulation

PHH is appealing one of the largest judgments ever awarded in a mortgage case. The dispute encapsulates many of the problems that have plagued the servicing industry in recent years.

Freedom Mortgage in Mount Laurel, N.J., has agreed to pay $104,000 to settle claims that it discriminated against loan applicants with disabilities.

Several institutions said their underwriters already exclude paid and unpaid medical debt from their calculation, raising questions about what kind of impact the new model will have on lenders.

Though there is still a year for mortgage lenders to get in compliance with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's document changes, the perils of missing that deadline are considerable.

Amerisave Mortgage Corp. and its owner have been ordered to pay more than $20 million for allegedly overcharging borrowers and trapping them in higher interest rates than those advertised.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency provided its first specifics Tuesday on how it intends to create a single security for mortgage-backed securities guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Ocwen Financial Corp., the largest nonbank mortgage servicer, said investors shouldn't rely on its financial statements for 2013 and the first quarter of this year as the firm’s auditor reviews accounting controls.

Hawaii plans to sell $150 million in taxable bonds in November to fund a program to provide low-interest loans targeting residents with poor credit or low income who want to install energy savings devices like solar panels on their homes.

The overall message – that mini-correspondents were intended as transitions, not permanent business models – means that the loan channel would be examined for consistency with the intended purpose.

This is what CFPB will be looking for to determine if a mini-correspondent really is a mortgage banker or a mortgage broker.

Residential mortgage delinquencies declined for the fifth consecutive quarter to roughly 6%, the lowest level since the fourth quarter of 2007, as subprime loan portfolios continue to shrink.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are relying more and more on their income from loan guarantee fees just at a time when their regulator is considering a proposal to reduce those fees.

Banks and other lenders appear to be waiting on a regulatory signal from the Federal Housing Finance Agency before approving loans for borrowers with less than stellar credit profiles.

As warehouse providers try to build market share with new types of credit lines, allowing mortgage bankers to fund non-QM loans is the logical next step to staying competitive.

The mortgage-bond industry is taking steps toward creating standards meant to help kick-start sales as the government seeks to wean the housing market from its support.

Citigroup Inc.'s $285 million mortgage-securities pact with the Securities and Exchange Commission was approved by a judge whose earlier rejection of the accord was assailed by a federal appeals court.

Lenders need to take the initiative to analyze their Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data before the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau does.

The proposed merger of the Home Loan banks in Seattle and Des Moines could spur massive consolidation among their sister banks, but only if the two show it's possible to overcome governance and other logistical challenges that have deterred similar deals.

The senior officer loan survey, which is released by the Fed every three months, asked both large U.S. banks and foreign banks about the effect the new ability-to-pay and qualified mortgage rules were having on approval rates for various types of home purchase loans.

Unlike other regulatory agencies that in many cases looked at form over substance, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau will ignore structures altogether when it perceives them to be "sham" transactions.