Mortgages

Aggregate 30- and 15-year conventional prepayment speeds in December were up from the previous month but by less than expected, and Ginnie Mae speeds also were slower than anticipated.

New tool helps lenders meet regulatory expectations and build a unique settlement agent list updated with real time risk status.

Some banks will be leery about originating loans to the self-employed because they can't document their ability to repay, but others insist that such loans, even outside of QM, are too lucrative to ignore.

If you look on the bright side, you will realize that this year has all the makings of a potentially incredible year.

There ought to be some flexibility to allow negotiated loan fees. But in these highly regulated days, nothing is easy.

A steep drop in refinances and declining purchase activity are taking a toll on Federal Housing Administration endorsements.

A floating-rate loan on the Fountainebleau Miami Beach backs the single-asset commercial mortgage-backed securities deal, according to a Standard & Poor’s presale report.

If current trends persist, the delinquency rate of securitized commercial mortgage loans could fall another two percentage points to below 4% by December 2014, according to Fitch Ratings.

FCI Lender Services' Gordon Albrecht has long focused on areas mainstream players eschew, and right now he is helping servicers manage liabilities and costs intensified by Jan. 10's regulatory deadline.

Loan officers won’t be looking for leads as much as sophisticated technological support and the tools needed to be successful from their lenders.

This follows a near 2% negative return in 2Q13, according to LifeComps.

Thomas Provenzano, foreclosure, Department of Justice

The unit is being created to help servicers comply with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s new mandates.

The parent of PrimeLending makes a 50% stock/50% cash bid for the 76% of SWS it doesn’t own.

Now that Jan. 10 has arrived with its many new regulations, some loan officers are thinking about whether they should stay in the mortgage business. There are other issues, however, that they should be thinking about as well.

Small lenders have cut over 14,000 employees since June.

The qualified mortgage rule, reduced refi activity and ongoing commoditization are forcing smaller institutions to take a hard look at exiting the mortgage origination business.

Americans flush with cash as they regain equity in their homes are spending more after years of pinching pennies.

The agency is reportedly auditing a number small lenders and brokers for compliance.