Mortgages

Home prices rose in 81% of U.S. metropolitan areas in the fourth quarter, even as the pace of sales slowed from earlier in the year, the National Association of Realtors said.

Arch's mortgage insurance unit saw an increase of over 1,000% in fourth-quarter underwriting income due to a significant decline in losses and loss-adjustment expenses.

Many institutional investors are refusing to purchase mortgages loans until they get assurance from the CFPB that they won't have to pay for others' mistakes. Their pullback could further the slow the issuance of private-label mortgage bonds this year, a huge concern at a time when the majority of home loans are insured by Fannie, Freddie and the FHA.

U.S. Bancorp agreed to pay $10 million while Banco Santander settled for $3.4 million following missteps in how they handled earlier orders from regulators to fix faulty foreclosure practices, according to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.

Foreclosures nationwide continued to decrease in December, according to CoreLogic.

The Federal Home Loan Bank System was designed to provide liquidity to community lenders and traditional insurers, not to unregulated lenders that circumvent the membership rules.

Walter Investment Management Corp. has named David Schneider as president of servicing and originations at Ditech Financial.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's indirect response to Quicken Loans' Super Bowl 50 commercial implicitly warns consumers to be wary of technology, which points to a bigger problem: does the CFPB even know what it wants from the mortgage industry?

Funding needed to construct houses is fairly plentiful, but homebuilders are still having trouble lining up financing to purchase and develop land. As a result, buildable lots are in short supply — and far more expensive.

The San Francisco Bay Area housing market has seen values that have risen to unsustainable levels, according to Fitch Ratings.

The Fannie Mae Home Purchase Sentiment Index fell 1.7 points to 81.5 in January, reflecting the effects of decreasing housing affordability.

PennyMac Mortgage Financial Services reported a rise in income on higher servicing revenue.

The nonbank mortgage sector ended 2015 with 12,300 more full-time employees than in December 2014.

Station Place Securitization Trust 2016-1 plans to issue a $225 million mortgage securitization that will be the first backed by a revolving warehouse lending facility since 2009, according to Moody's Investors Service.

Hotel property owners will discover that interest rates have climbed, if they try to refinance loans this year, Fitch Ratings said.

HSBC North America Holdings has agreed to pay $470 million to settle allegations it engaged in abusive practices in its mortgage foreclosure, origination and servicing operations.

Wells Fargo has reached a $16.2 million settlement in a class-action lawsuit regarding an alleged kickback scheme involving the shuttered Owings Mill, Md.-based Genuine Title.

Mortgage credit availability decreased in January, on a decline in some Federal Housing Administration and conventional offerings, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Genworth's U.S. mortgage insurance business earned $179 million in 2015, but the parent company lost $615 million as it still has problems with its long-term care insurance product.

Mortgage lenders are ramping up marketing and point-of-sale processes, in order to prepare for an environment in which home sales are expected to cool down, according to a new report by Stratmor Group.