The Lede

A new Home Equity Report from Zillow Inc., Seattle, said Gen X homeowners bore the brunt of the housing crash, and it still shows a decade later as they lag behind in gaining equity in their homes.

The Mortgage Bankers Association's Mortgage Action Alliance issued a Call to Action yesterday, urging lawmakers in the House and Senate to continue moving toward secondary mortgage market reform.

Conservatism has swept over the real estate investment trust sector, reported Fitch Ratings, New York.

Servicing costs for performing loans dropped in 2016 for the first time since the beginning of the recession in 2008, according to the latest MBA Servicing Operations Study.

Servicing costs for performing loans dropped in 2016 for the first time since the beginning of the recession in 2008, according to the latest MBA Servicing Operations Study.

Servicing costs for performing loans dropped in 2016 for the first time since the beginning of the recession in 2008, according to the latest MBA Servicing Operations Study.

National Mortgage Professional, July 18, 2017--Phil HallWhile many people are ready to tuck the housing crash into the history books, its residue is still being felt by Gen X homeowners with minimal equity gains, said Zillow.

HousingWire, July 24, 2017--Brena SwansonA federal district court in Kentucky handed a victory to a Louisville, Kentucky law firm, Borders & Borders, after a long-standing legal battle with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau over alleged Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act violations.

National Mortgage News, July 24, 2017--Elina Tarkazikis (subscription)Debt collection and mortgage issues make up about half of the 1.2 million complaints reported to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau since it began accepting complaints in July 2011. Of these complaints, 272,153 are mortgage related.

National Mortgage News, July 24, 2017--Brad Finkelstein (subscription)Ocwen Financial finalized the deal to sell its interests in $110 billion of nonagency mortgage servicing rights to New Residential Investment Corp. for total consideration of $400 million.

Wall Street Journal, July 25, 2017--Laura Kusisto, Sarah Chaney (subscription)A shortage of new single-family homes across the U.S. is pushing up prices and locking many buyers out of the market. The silver lining: a boom in renovations of existing homes.

Wall Street Journal, July 24, 2017--Richard Rubin (subscription)The mortgage interest deduction, a sacred cow in the U.S. tax code, does nothing to promote homeownership, according to an academic paper released Monday, a finding that undermines one of the core justifications for the tax break.

Mortgage Daily, July 21, 2017The federal government has negotiated a settlement with a man who is accused of abusing the federally insured reverse mortgage program.

New York Post, July 23, 2017--Nicole GelinasFor nearly 80 years, Washington has subsidized homeownership--creating massive distortions both in house prices and in what neighborhoods look like. Now the feds will subsidize rental homes as well - expanding government control over even more of the economy.

HousingWire, July 21, 2017--Jacob Gaffney[Friday was] the 7th anniversary of Dodd-Frank and the 6th anniversary of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. And here's where we are: The big banks are still wearing blinders. And here's the proof.

National Mortgage News, July 21, 2017--Brian Collins (subscription)House Financial Services Committee leaders and two top real estate trade groups have cut a deal on a bill to reform the National Flood Insurance Program, which will add momentum to the legislation.

HousingWire, July 20, 2017--Ben LaneThe rule in question is the "final rule" on Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing, which requires that cities and towns that receive federal funding to examine their local housing patterns for racial bias and to design a plan to address any measurable bias.

Scotsman Guide, July 20, 2017--Victor WhitmanDavid Stevens, president and chief executive officer of the Mortgage Bankers Association, discusses how the MBA plan for GSE reform creates a level playing field for lenders regardless of size.

National Mortgage News, July 20, 2017--Brad Finkelstein (subscription)Ocwen Financial Corp. agreed to settle a shareholder lawsuit for a cash payment of $49 million, plus 2.5 million shares of the company's stock.

HousingWire, July 20, 2017--Kelsey RamirezSmall lenders urged Congress to ensure a level playing field for all lenders at a Senate Banking Committee's hearing Before the hearing, the Mortgage Bankers Association sent a letter to the Banking Committee, expressing its support for small lenders. It also emphasized that its proposal for secondary mortgage market reform supports the small mortgage lender market.

Mortgage Orb, July 19, 2017--Allen PriceAs lenders and banks continue to look for ways to reduce their leverage and risk by selling mortgage servicing rights, subservicers will play a larger role in the overall mortgage market.

HousingWire, July 19, 2017--Ben LaneTed Tozer stepped down as president of Ginnie Mae in January after serving seven years, and while the agency has still not found a permanent replacement, Tozer has found a new position.

Urban Institute, July 19, 2017--Edward Golding, Laurie Goodman, Jun ZhuThe brief estimates this change will allow around 95,000 new mortgages to be approved annually, a disproportionate percent of which should go to black and Latino families.

Bloomberg, July 20, 2017--Joe LightOn Thursday, a key Senate committee plans to hold a hearing on the nation's system for funding home loans that will feature small lenders. On Wednesday, the Mortgage Bankers Association sent to lawmakers a letter signed by 110 small and midsize lenders supporting their plan, arguing that the bigger risk to small lenders without a law is that future regulators could reverse the protections they have now.

National Mortgage News, July 18, 2017--Brian Collins (subscription)Senate Banking Committee leaders introduced a bipartisan flood insurance bill this week to reauthorize the National Flood Insurance Program for six years, hoping to pass it quickly ahead of a looming deadline of Sept. 30 when the program expires.

Mortgage Daily, July 18, 2017Retail loan originators generated 116,882 refinances of single-family loans that are owned or backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac during May. That was the lowest number of GSE refinances since May 2014.

Mortgage Daily, July 18, 2017More than $600 million in loans are behind an offering of Ginnie Mae mortgage servicing rights. Nearly half of the loans are secured by properties in Texas.

National Mortgage News, July 18, 2017--Brian Collins (subscription)House appropriators are trying to put the brakes on the Property Assessed Clean Energy program, which finances energy upgrades on homes through Federal Housing Administration-backed loans.

National Mortgage News, July 20, 2017--Ian McKendry, Kate Berry (subscription)House and Senate lawmakers formally filed resolutions on Thursday to repeal the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's arbitration rule, but there were early signs that enacting them may prove challenging.