The Lede

Despite substantial investments in technology aimed at improving the mortgage servicing experience, overall mortgage servicer satisfaction has been flat so far in 2018, said J.D. Power, Costa Mesa, Calif.

U.S. non-bank residential mortgage-backed securities servicers are moving away from servicing delinquent borrowers and setting their sights increasingly on Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae loans, said Fitch Ratings, New York.

Homeowners are expected to increase spending on improvements and repairs at a solid clip over the coming year, according to the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University, Cambridge, Mass., and the National Association of Home Builders.

With a July 31 expiration date for the National Flood Insurance Program looming, the House yesterday passed a bill that would give the program a bit more breathing room.

MBA Education presents Successful Practices in Third-Party Risk Management on Sept. 25 at the JW Marriott LA Live, in conjunction with the MBA Risk Management and Quality Assurance Forum.

HousingWire, July 30, 2018--Ben LaneAccording to the Department of Justice, Sudhakar Reddy Bonthu pleaded last week to a charge of insider trading that stemmed from purchasing options in advance of Equifax's public disclosure of its data breach.

American Banker, July 30, 2018--Victoria Finkle (subscription)Ten years after the financial crisis, the regulatory pendulum appears to have swung firmly in banks' direction. But scratch beneath the surface and the crisis remains surprisingly relevant in the national political debate today--and the memory of the damage it did poses a greater threat than many bankers would like to admit.

Newsday (N.Y.), July 29, 2018--Sheryl Nance-NashThere's much buzz about how young people are graduating with so much student loan debt that they are foregoing rites of passage like moving out and buying cars. But some are marching forward with mortgages.

National Mortgage News, July 27, 2018--Kate Berry (subscription)A recent court ruling has dealt a blow to efforts by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to limit law firms' involvement in the debt collection process.

Mortgage Daily, July 26, 2018Radian Group Inc. swung to a big profit from a quarterly loss a year previous. New policies written increased, the book of business expanded and delinquency decreased.

HousingWire, July 26, 2018--Kelsey RamirezOcwen Financial continues to lose money, posting yet another loss, however the company pointed out that the losses continue to grow smaller, though this one was still larger-than-expected by some.

Wall Street Journal, July 26, 2018--Craig Karmin, Dana Mattioli, Emily Glazer (subscription)The San Francisco bank has been sounding out private-equity firms to drum up interest in the real-estate brokerage and investment bank, sources said. Wells Fargo bought Eastdil in 1999 for an undisclosed sum in an effort to bolster its commercial real-estate-lending business.

National Mortgage News, July 26, 2018--Hannah Long (subscription)The next director of the FHFA is still a mystery, but whoever succeeds current Director Mel Watt once his term ends in January will have a front-and-center role in efforts to reform the government-sponsored enterprises.

Mortgage Daily, July 25, 2018Mortgage servicing rights are being offered on 14,102 Ginnie Mae loans that had an aggregate unpaid principal balance of $3.607 billion as of June 29.

Bloomberg, July 25, 2018--Elizabeth DexheimerRep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., said fixing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac would top her list of priorities if Democrats take control of the House in this year's mid-term elections and she becomes leader of the Financial Services Committee next year.

National Mortgage News, July 25, 2018--Kate Berry (subscription)During the first seven months of Mulvaney's tenure, the CFPB had issued just one enforcement action, handing out the largest bank fine ever against Wells Fargo for failures in its auto lending and mortgage businesses. But since mid-June, the bureau has averaged about one public enforcement action a week.

American Banker, July 25, 2018--Kate Berry (subscription)Allied Progress, a nonprofit advocacy group, said in a lawsuit that it is seeking to compel the agencies to respond to a June Freedom of Information Act request seeking documents on Kathleen Kraninger's record in government.

National Mortgage News, July 25, 2018--Elina Tarkazikis (subscription)A "technical snag" stands to "orphan" a subset of VA loans by excluding them from Ginnie Mae securities, according to Dan Fichtler, director of housing finance policy at the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Mortgage Daily, July 24, 2018A pair of co-issue flow offerings for servicing rights on agency mortgages could ultimately give the successful bidder servicing on more than $1 billion in loans.

Mortgage Daily, July 24, 2018Black Knight noted improvement last month in U.S. foreclosure metrics, the rate of 30-day delinquency on residential loans climbed to the highest level in four months.

HousingWire, July 24, 2018--Kelsey RamirezWhile FICO and VantageScore have been locked into an intense competition while the FHFA makes its decision, they both agreed on one thing--the postponement is disappointing.

American Banker, July 24, 2018--Hannah Lang (subscription)Michael Bright, President Trump's nominee to head Ginnie Mae appeared to distance himself Tuesday from a 2016 paper he co-wrote on reforming the housing finance system, telling senators that he "hasn't thought about that paper in two years."