Category: News and Trends

Black Knight Financial Services, Jacksonville, Fla., said improvement in the nation’s foreclosure inventory, which has been consistent for some time now, appears to be picking up speed.

Experian, New York, said first mortgage default rates fell to 0.63 percent in May, down by six basis points from April.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency yesterday reported Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac completed 49,573 foreclosure prevention actions in the first quarter, bringing the total number of foreclosure prevention actions to nearly 3.7 million since the start of the conservatorships in September 2008.

Rural Housing Service Administrator Tony Hernandez said recent changes to the agency’s refinancing provisions will make it easier for borrowers to finance RHS loans and stay in their homes.

CoreLogic, Irvine, Calif., said foreclosure activity increased slightly in April, but continued to drop from a year ago. It also reported the nation’s foreclosure inventory fell to the lowest level since September 2007.

The TILA/RESPA Integrated Disclosure rules have forced lenders to rethink their processes and rely more on technology to originate loans more efficiently. To do this, smart lenders have implemented dynamic, sophisticated technology to help process, track and monitor loans during the origination and approval process in support of TRID compliance.

CoreLogic, Irvine, Calif., said 268,000 homeowners regained equity in the first quarter, bringing the total mortgaged residential properties with to 46.7 million, or 92 percent of all mortgaged properties.

The Mortgage Bankers Association and more than a half-dozen industry trade groups, in a letter to Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Mel Watt, expressed reservations about a potential last-minute addition to the new Uniform Residential Loan Application.

As the housing market continues to recover, homeowners who are underwater on their mortgages are increasingly concentrated in the Rust Belt, while West Coast homeowners are less likely to be in negative equity, reported Zillow Inc., Seattle.

Independent mortgage banks and mortgage subsidiaries of chartered banks reported a net gain of $825 on each loan they originated in the first quarter, up from $493 per loan in the fourth quarter, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported this morning.