Mortgages

Research found the Ditech name still resonates with consumers after a five-year absence from the market, the lender says, though this incarnation won't be originating nonprime loans.

Democratic allies are hoping that, once confirmed, Julian Castro will focus on increasing affordable housing and making mortgage credit more available to first-time homebuyers.

Mortgage lenders may have managed to learn about hashtags and followers, but streaming audio and podcasts are still pretty mysterious to them.

Bankruptcy filings helped delinquent homeowners reduce the likelihood of a foreclosure auction by 70%, researchers have found.

Purchases of new homes rose in April for the first time in three months as buyers took advantage of falling mortgage rates.

ReverseVision has launched an online education platform aimed at teaching lending professionals about reverse mortgages.

The share of California homes sold in nondistressed, traditional sales transactions is at its highest level in seven years, according to data from the California Association of Realtors.

Valuation Partners, an appraisal management company in Sugar Land, Texas, said on Thursday that it has launched a unit to handle valuations of commercial properties.

Servicing income rose last year but not enough to offset other expenses.

The government is not providing enough support to serve a wider range of homeowners, many lenders say. But it's doubtful that the private market can do much better at this point.

Prior to 2006, the industry primarily relied on enforcing lender representations and warranties. Recent widespread litigation has shown the immense costs of relying on cures. Prevention is a better solution.

Mortgage originators do not meet two of the eight required tests to qualify for tax purposes as statutory employees.

JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo are retaining more high-quality, conforming mortgages that they would normally sell to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, raising concerns that the banks are adversely selecting the weakest loans for the government-sponsored enterprises.

Mortgage rates fell for a fourth week, reducing borrowing costs for homebuyers during the key spring selling season.

New York banking regulator Benjamin Lawsky said Wednesday his office will investigate claims that Ocwen Financial Corp. and other servicers require distressed borrowers to sign nondisclosure agreements in order to receive mortgage modifications.

Most of the loan pools are geographically diverse, but a pool concentrated in the Southwest is expected to appeal to bidders that want to turn nonperforming loans into single-family rental properties.

Bank buyers and sellers should pay attention to the Fed's recent approval of Cullen/Frost's acquisition of WNB Bancshares. Cullen/Frost had to agree to improve its fair lending and other functions, underscoring the importance of buyers who work well in resolving compliance and other problems with regulators.

White papers don’t always get much respect in our industry, probably because so many are just veiled brochures, pitching products and services.

Recently raised regulatory concerns about the massive transfer of mortgage servicing rights from banks to nonbanks are fueling industry hopes that policymakers may be open to addressing the issue.

Fannie Mae cut its forecast of industrywide home purchase lending for 2014 to $710 billion from $732 billion, underscoring the housing industry's struggles despite overall positive signs for the economy.