Category: Top National News

National Mortgage News, Aug. 2, 2017–Ian McKendry (subscription)Any change to the credit scoring models that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac use will have to wait until 2019, Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Mel Watt said late Tuesday.

National Mortgage News, Aug. 2, 2017–Brad Finkelstein (subscription)Genworth Financial’s U.S. private mortgage insurance business had an almost 50% increase in adjusted operating income, benefiting from lower-than-expected claim rates.

HousingWire, Aug. 2, 2017–Ben LaneOcwen reported its second quarter earnings on Wednesday morning, disclosing that it posted a loss of $44.4 million in the second quarter, compared to a loss of $32.6 million in the first quarter, and a loss of $87.2 million in the second quarter of last year.

Mortgage Daily, Aug. 2, 2017Last month’s government-insured reverse mortgage production was the slowest it has been since last year. But there was a year-over-year improvement.

HousingWire, Aug. 3, 2017–Ben LaneOcwen Financial could soon get a big boost in its fight against the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau from a once-unlikely source–the Department of Justice.

Los Angeles Times, Aug. 4, 2017–Andrew KhouriChanges in the mortgage industry are afoot, with the goal of loosening some of the strict standards established after the subprime crisis–rules some blame for impeding sales.

Reuters, Aug. 3, 2017–Richard LeongFannie Mae, the largest U.S. mortgage guarantor, said on Thursday its net income edged up to $3.2 billion in the second quarter from the previous quarter’s $2.8 billion due to higher credit-related income and investment gains.

MarketWatch, Aug. 3, 2017–Andrea RiquierFresh language in the earnings releases reflects the desire of the regulator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency, to remind Congress of how precarious the state of affairs has become for the two. But it also serves as a reminder of how far the companies have come since their crisis-era bailout, not thanks to Congressional action, but in spite of its inaction.

HousingWire, Aug. 3, 2017–Jacob GaffneyWhile the industry as a whole is rowing in the same direction, efforts to streamline the appraisal process, Timothy Mayopoulous said, is a step in the right direction for Fannie Mae, which earlier this year refined its appraisal policies, which reduced overall appraiser responsibilities.

Mortgage Daily, Aug. 3, 2017Total U.S. bankruptcies filed, including commercial and non-commercial filings, worked out to 61,366 during July, dropping from an upwardly revised 66,789 the prior month.