Secondary markets

With servicing multiples as low as they’ve been over the last 18 months, the head of Edison, N.J.-based Real Estate Mortgage Network Inc. has decided to take advantage of the situation, growing its portfolio by starting a correspondent lending division. The new unit will operate out of its new Irvine, Calif. wholesale fulfillment center.

Two Harbors Investment Corp. plans to offer 35 million additional shares of its common stock in a public offering, using the proceeds to buy additional MBS.

A day after Wells Fargo dropped its wholesale/broker bombshell, the smoke is starting to clear and some industry players are taking a proactive approach to what may lie ahead.

Twelve Democratic senators have called for a U.S. investigation into any role banks and regulators may have played in the scandal over the London Interbank Offered Rate.

As California goes, so goes the nation? Let’s hope not, at least as to legislation that will make California the first state in the nation to codify provisions of the national mortgage settlement.

A settlement will provide $125 million in compensation to nearly 34,000 borrowers harmed by Wells Fargo’s lending practices and another $50 million will be allotted to eight cities to fund community improvements in neighborhoods hard-hit by foreclosures.

A federal judge sentenced Scott Eric Perry to 18 months in prison on false statement charges related to an almost $750,000 mortgage fraud scheme in the Birmingham area.

New York Mortgage Trust Inc. has priced a 4.5 million share offering of its common stock; it was originally announced at 3.75 million shares.

Eighteen months ago National Mortgages News began hearing rumors that Wells Fargo was going to toss its wholesale lending network overboard. The bank denied it and in the ensuing quarters remained among the top ranked table funders in the nation, according to the Quarterly Data Report.

Colony Capital LLC is one of the winning bidders on a Fannie Mae REO sale sponsored by the Federal Housing Finance Agency, according to bidders and other sources familiar with the matter.

San Bernardino County is forging ahead with deliberations on a proposal to seize delinquent mortgages, despite its largest city’s decision Tuesday night to seek bankruptcy.

Lawmakers and financial market participants sparred Tuesday over the economic and other impacts of the Dodd-Frank law, as well as the resulting Volcker Rule and potential new money market fund rules.

The American Bankers Association has renewed its secondary market relationship with Freddie Mac.

Just eight months ago Southwest Bank had no warehouse lending commitments on its books, but today that figure stands at $80 million and growing.

The American Securitization Forum suggests a regulatory directive for Freddie Mac to outsource its loan delivery mechanism to Fannie Mae.

Now we’re told (but unconfirmed) that many large buyers of closed mortgages (correspondent purchasers, that is) have similar exclusionary lists, though they may call it something else.

Armour Residential REIT hopes to sell 40 million additional shares of stock in a deal that could raise an additional $305 million, at least.

CYS Investments Inc. priced a public offering of 40 millions shares of its common stock at $13.70 per share to generate proceeds for investment in agency residential mortgage-backed securities.

In a request for a protective order filed with the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California NCUA claims the depositions of the three senior NCUA officials should be barred.

Even though there were continued declines in mortgage interest rates to new record-low levels, total loan application volume continued to fall, this time by 2.1% on a seasonally adjusted basis for the week ended July 6.