The Lede

The Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service on Friday issued final regulations providing guidance requested by the Mortgage Bankers Association on the section 199A pass-through deduction included in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

Since the federal government shutdown began on Dec. 22, the Mortgage Bankers Association has worked with the Trump Administration and Congress to minimize its impact on mortgage lenders, servicers and customers. Now, MBA is asking its membership for anecdotal evidence to support its continued efforts.

ATTOM Data Solutions, Irvine, Calif., released its Year-End 2018 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report, which shows foreclosure filings fell by 8 percent in 2018 from the year before and by 78 percent from its 2010 peak.

Mortgage Media, Jan. 18, 2019Among the more significant developments in the mortgage industry has been the Federal Housing Finance Agency's development in 2012 and thereafter of a credit risk transfer program for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.It's a strong and solid move, notes Andrew Rippert, chief executive officer of the Global Mortgage Group at Arch Capital Group Ltd., involved in insurance, reinsurance and mortgage insurance around the globe.

Naional Mortgage News, Jan. 18, 2019 (subscription)Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac shares soared Friday amid fresh reports that the Trump administration is working on proposal that would recommend freeing the mortgage-finance giants from government control.

National Mortgage Professional, Jan. 21, 2019--Phil HallSixty-seven percent of people surveyed in a new Gallup Poll believe African-Americans in their community have the same chance as whites to get any housing they can afford. This represents the lowest point since Gallup began its annual survey on the intersection of race and socioeconomic issues in 1989.

National Mortgage News, Jan. 17, 2018--John Dilorio (free article)The author, CEO of 1st Alliance Lending in Connecticut, said his company's refusal to comply with a consent order from the Connecticut Department of Banking is causing a regualtory nightmare.

National Mortgage News, Jan. 17, 2019--Bonnie Sinnock (subscription)Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are adding another round of new underwriting requirements and a workaround for employment verification in response to the prolonged government shutdown.

Wall Street Journal, Jan. 16, 2019--Andrew Ackerman (subscription)New House Financial Services Committee Chairman Maxine Waters plans to investigate White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney over his previous role as the Trump administration's temporary head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

National Mortgage News, Jan. 16, 2019--Hannah Lang (subscription)The Federal Housing Finance Agency will no longer defend the constitutionality of its single-director leadership structure in court, according to a new case filing with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in Texas.

Reuters, Jan. 17, 2019--Pete Schroeder, Suzanne Barlyn, Michelle PriceThe U.S. government shutdown over President Donald Trump's call for Congress to fund a wall he promised to build on the U.S.- Mexican border is threatening another campaign pledge to make rules easier to navigate for banks and corporations.

HousingWire, Jan. 16, 2019--Jessica GureinMore than 300 employees working for mortgage servicer Seterus in Durham, North Carolina, will be out of a job come March. The news, revealed by a local CBS affiliate, comes just days after Mr. Cooper Group announced it had purchased Seterus from IBM.

American Banker, Jan. 16, 2019--John Adams (subscription)Fiserv will acquire First Data in an all-stock deal with a value of about $22 billion that will combine two of the financial services industry's largest technology and processing companies. Fiserv shareholders will own almost 58%t of the combined company, with First Data's shareholders holding the rest.

National Mortgage News, Jan. 15, 2019--Bonnie Sinnock (subscription)Consecutive-month default rates for home loans are increasing, and they could remain higher the next few months, according to data from Standard & Poor's Dow Jones Indices and Experian.

HousingWire, Jan. 15, 2019--Ben Lane"We recently restructured some of our departments within our originations organization and, while we regret a small number of positions were eliminated, we believe our changes will further our strategic goals and best position us for continued growth in the market," the company said.

HousingWire, Jan. 15, 2019--Jessica GuerinMany predict the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates in the year ahead, and this means HELOC borrowers can expect their loan payments to creep upward.