Category: Top National News

Mortgage Daily, Sept. 29, 2017Single-family performance at Fannie Mae is better than it’s been in nearly a decade. Meanwhile, the manged portfolio continued to grow.

Reuters, Oct. 2, 2017–David ShepardsonEquifax Inc. was alerted in March to the software security vulnerability that led to hackers obtaining personal information of more than 140 million Americans but took months to patch it, its former CEO said in testimony to be delivered to Congress on Tuesday.

The Hill, Oct. 3, 2017–Megan R. WilsonThe power of the real estate and home building industries is being put to the test in a fight with Republicans over a key tax break for homebuyers–the mortgage interest deduction.

Reuters, Oct. 2, 2017–Melissa FaresSince emerging in 1990, more than a million seniors have taken out reverse mortgages, according to the HUD, making them a popular but risky lifeline for asset-rich, cash-poor elderly Americans.

National Mortgage News, Oct. 2, 2017–Brad Finkelstein (subscription)Genworth Financial is evaluating options for its private mortgage insurance business as its proposed acquisition by China Oceanwide was delayed for a third time.

Wall Street Journal, Sept. 27, 2017–Christina Rexrode (subscription)Ginnie Mae is targeting lenders who aggressively push military veterans to refinance their home loans, leading the borrowers in some cases to rack up thousands of dollars in unnecessary fees.

HousingWire, Sept. 19, 2017–Ben LaneOcwen Loan Servicing, a subsidiary of Ocwen Financial, reached a $17.5 million settlement that covers a pair of lawsuits that accused Ocwen of calling consumers’ cellphones without their consent, in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.

National Mortgage News, Sept. 19, 2017–Kate Berry, Ian McKendry (subscription)Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray allegedly misled Congress about the agency’s investigation into Wells Fargo’s illegal sales practices and may have rushed a settlement with the bank, according to a new report by the Republican staff of the House Financial Services Committee.

Bloomberg, Sept. 19, 2017–Elizabeth DexheimerAs a Barack Obama appointee who supports tough bank regulation, Richard Cordray was never going to be popular in a federal government controlled by Republicans. But Cordray is proving effective at driving state GOP officials crazy too over his refusal to say whether he will step down as director of the controversial Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to run for governor of Ohio as a Democrat.

Wall Street Journal, Sept. 19, 2017–Ezequiel Minaya (subscription)Progressive Corp. swung to a loss in August, the company reported Tuesday, with Hurricane Harvey more than tripling the insurer’s catastrophe losses in the period compared to last year.