Subservicing

Freedom Mortgage's acquisition of RoundPoint Mortgage Servicing gives it a major subservicer and will increase the Mount Laurel N.J.-based company's mortgage servicing rights portfolio by nearly 44%.

An institution that services housing finance authority loans is putting $2.65 billion in servicing rights from Washington state up for bid through the Mortgage Industry Advisory Corp.

BSI Financial Services received a capital infusion for the subservicer to acquire mortgage servicing rights for its own account in order to offer its clients more liquidity for this asset.

Cascade Financial Services has become the only manufactured housing loan-focused servicer currently rated by Fitch, adding signs of a rebound in factory-built home financing that could lead to new private securitization.

Mr. Cooper Group is buying servicing rights on $24 billion in mortgages, a subservicing contract for an additional $24 billion in home loans and the Seterus platform from IBM.

Nonbank lenders are gearing up for new secondary market requirements and must make some difficult choices about whether to buy, sell or hold mortgage servicing rights, says Ruth Lee, the executive vice president of MorVest Capital.

Mortgage servicing assets are poised for gains in 2019. But as higher average mortgage rates spur lenders to sell servicing rights and diversify their loan offerings, servicers' work will also get more complicated and costly.

New Penn Financial will change its name to NewRez at the start of 2019, reflecting its acquisition earlier this year by New Residential Investment Corp.

Ginnie Mae is adding steps to its process for evaluating new issuers, including new notification requirements related to subservicer advances, servicing income, and borrowing facilities secured by mortgage servicing rights.

Mr. Cooper Group — the new name following the combination of Nationstar Mortgage and WMIH Corp. — posted a $54 million third-quarter profit and announced plans to buy Pacific Union Financial, as well as make other strategic acquisitions.