Reverse mortgages

Live Well Financial's creditors are seeking a court-supervised bankruptcy, but the mortgage lender is opposing the move, saying it can get more for certain assets if it sells them before filing.

Ditech Holding Corp. has entered into purchase agreements with New Residential Investment Corp. and Mortgage Assets Management, in which each would acquire certain assets in the company's Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Roughly 50 of the more than 100 staff members Live Well Financial let go after it stopped funding loans will join Open Mortgage, a multichannel lender in expansion mode.

Issuance of mortgage-backed securities increased and came close to matching 2018 levels in the latest month tracked by Ginnie Mae.

The Michigan company said the loan — made to a borrower that plans to shut down its reverse mortgage business — has collateral.

Live Well Financial, a reverse and traditional mortgage lender that abruptly stopped originating on May 3, will lay off 103 employees, according to a Virginia Employment Commission filing.

Lower interest rates caused mortgage serving rights runoff plus a charge to the fair value of that portfolio and led to Ocwen Financial posting a first-quarter loss.

Homeowners in Chicago cheated by a mortgage fraud scheme are seeking to form a committee to protect their interests in the bankruptcy of Ditech Holding Corp., the company that owns their loans.

University Bancorp gained a number of offices from Huron Valley Financial. It also hired lenders and staff with experience in reverse mortgages and wholesale lending.

A pair of professors with industry ties say reverse mortgages deserve a second look, partly because of a series of federal reforms in recent years designed to protect taxpayers and consumers.