Mortgages

Though they have a reputation for being precarious, Federal Housing Administration loans are leading the decline in mortgage application defect risk, according to First American Financial Corp.

Deutsche Bank jumped in Frankfurt trading after a media report that the lender is nearing a $5.4 billion settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice in a probe tied to residential mortgage-backed securities, less than half an initial request.

Mortgage industry hiring and new job appointments for the week ending Sept. 30.

Strong home sales are boosting originations of Federal Housing Administration loans and opening the door for first-time buyers — developments that could portend the mortgage insurance agency receiving a positive report from auditors this fall.

An FHA lender was cited for violating Department of Housing and Urban Development rules by allowing repayment provisions in second mortgages.

Community bankers are showing renewed interest in consumer lending but admit they may be losing ground to more tech-savvy players, according to a survey released Thursday.

Artificial intelligence like IBM's Watson may not make bank compliance officers obsolete, but it could mean far fewer of them will be needed in the future, focused on higher-level tasks.

BB&T Corp. has agreed to pay $83 million to settle a Department of Justice investigation over loans that failed quality control tests but were still insured by the Federal Housing Administration.

Home sales in California are expected in increase in 2017 as price appreciation slows down, according to a forecast from the California Association of Realtors.

Mortgages jumped more than 20% to 7.4 million originations in 2015, reversing a more than 30% decrease a year earlier, according to housing finance data released Thursday. The data also found that nonbanks accounted for fully half of new mortgage originations — the largest proportion in over 20 years.

Homes were less affordable than their historic averages in 24% of U.S. markets as prices rose and wage growth slowed, according to Attom Data Solutions.

IBM will purchase Promontory Financial Group — a consultancy so influential it has been dubbed the industry's "shadow regulator" — in a move that could extend artificial intelligence into every aspect of banking.

Mortgage rates fell as investors purchased more 10-year Treasury bonds after the Federal Open Market Committee decided to leave short-term rates unchanged.

Granite Bank in Portsmouth, N.H., has acquired Cousins Home Lending.

Contracts to purchase previously owned homes fell to a seven-month low in August, held back by a tight supply in the housing market.

The red-hot growth in home prices across the West is starting to slow in some cities as sticker shock and low inventory put off weary buyers.

The Rural Housing Service has quietly launched a new construction loan program designed to increase the availability of new homes in rural areas.

The Department of Justice wants banks to more fully cooperate with civil investigations. Companies now are expected to "materially assist" the agency in providing documents, access to witnesses and even inculpatory documentary evidence such as emails and text messages.

Eight years after high-risk, deceptive lending practices precipitated a near-meltdown of the global economy, we learned that at least 5,300 Wells Fargo employees created 2 million sham accounts that its customers apparently did not want, need or understand.

Deutsche Bank isn't the only lender wrestling with the U.S. to resolve an investigation into toxic mortgage bonds: Credit Suisse Group and Barclays are also each in settlement talks with the Justice Department.