Archives

February 28, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- An administrator working for the Federal Trade Commission is mailing 1,455 refund checks to consumers defrauded by a mortgage loan modification and foreclosure rescue scam. The FTC alleged, and the court found, that operators of the scam falsely told consumers they would prevent their homes from being foreclosed and negotiate lower mortgage interest rates, monthly payments, and principal balances. The court also found that homeowners got few, if any, loan modifications, and many people lost their homes to foreclosure after paying up to $5,500.

Reston, Virginia - February 25, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Superior Court of New Hampshire in Cheshire County on February 14, 2011 affirmed the legality of MERS’ role as a nominee for lenders.

McLean, VA - February 25, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Freddie Mac (OTC:FMCC) today reported its fourth quarter and full-year 2010 financial results and filed its 2010 annual report on Form 10-K with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

WASHINGTON, DC - February 24, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Desiree Brown, the former treasurer of a private mortgage lending company, Taylor, Bean & Whitaker (TBW), pleaded guilty today to conspiring to commit bank, wire and securities fraud for her role in a more than $1.9 billion fraud scheme that contributed to the failures of Colonial Bank and TBW.

NEW YORK, N.Y. - February 24, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Mortgage rates retreated further this week, with the benchmark conforming 30-year fixed mortgage rate dropping back to 5.09 percent, according to Bankrate.com's weekly national survey. The average 30-year fixed mortgage has an average of 0.45 discount and origination points

McLean, VA - February 24, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Freddie Mac (OTC: FMCC) today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®), which shows a drop in long-term fixed rates this week.

Washington, D.C. - February 24, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged the former treasurer of the one-time largest non-depository mortgage lender in the country with aiding and abetting a $1.5 billion securities fraud scheme and an attempt to scam the U.S. Treasury's Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP)

WASHINGTON, D.C. - February 24, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Federal Reserve Board on Wednesday issued a final rule and requested public comment on a second rule under Regulation Z to revise the escrow account requirements for certain home mortgage loans. The revisions to the regulation, which implements the Truth in Lending Act (TILA), are being made pursuant to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.

WASHINGTON, DC - February 24, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- U.S. house prices fell in the fourth quarter of 2010 according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s (FHFA) seasonally adjusted purchase-only house price index (HPI). The HPI, calculated using home sales price information from Fannie Mae- and Freddie Mac-acquired mortgages, was 0.8 percent lower on a seasonally adjusted basis in the fourth quarter than in the third quarter of 2010. The unadjusted national decline was 2.2 percent. Over the past year, seasonally adjusted prices fell 3.9 percent from the fourth quarter of 2009 to the fourth quarter of 2010

Washington, DC - February 24, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Federal Housing Finance Agency today reported that the National Average Contract Mortgage Rate for the Purchase of Previously Occupied Homes by Combined Lenders, used as an index in some ARM contracts, was 4.71 percent based on loans closed in January. This is an increase of 0.13 percent from the previous month.

McLean, VA - February 24, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Freddie Mac (OTC: FMCC) announced today that it will not issue a Reference Notes® security on February 24, 2011. The company’s 2011 Reference Notes calendar designates dates that it may use to announce the issuance of Reference Notes securities.

WASHINGTON, DC - February 24, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Akinola George, 40, of Washington, D.C., has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of bank fraud, mail fraud, and conspiracy to commit bank/mail fraud in a scheme that led to $2.4 million in losses.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - February 23, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Mortgage applications increased 13.2 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending February 18, 2011

BEDFORD, N.H. - February 22, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- New Hampshire Housing Finance Authority recently named its “Top 10” loan originators for 2010. These individuals originated more than 146 loans and generated over $23 million in first-time...

February 18, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Utah Housing Corporation announced the closing of a $74 million bond sale completing the commitment of bond purchases to the US Department of Treasury under a special program under the 2008 Housing and Economic r...

KNOXVILLE, TN - February 18, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- A federal grand jury has returned a superseding indictment against Jerry Kerley, 57, of Kodak, Tenn., and Jeffrey Whaley, 46, of Sevierville, Tenn.. The superseding indictment, which was returned this morning, charges Kerley and Whaley with conspiring to defraud Citizens Bank, located in New Tazewell, Tenn., and SunTrust Mortgage, Inc., located in Richmond, Va., through a mortgage fraud scheme. The indictment alleges that the conspiracy involved a "straw borrower" mortgage fraud scheme in which straw borrowers were induced to obtain mortgage loans in their names based on promises that they would not have to make a down payment or mortgage payments for the property, would receive cash at closing, and would share in the profit following a resale of the property.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - February 17, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The delinquency rate for mortgage loans on one-to-four-unit residential properties decreased to a seasonally adjusted rate of 8.22 percent of all loans outstanding as of the end of the fourth quarter of 2010, a decrease of 91 basis points from the third quarter of 2010, and a decrease of 125 basis points from one year ago, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) National Delinquency Survey. The non-seasonally adjusted delinquency rate decreased 46 basis points to 8.93 percent this quarter from 9.39 percent last quarter.

McLean, VA - February 17, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Freddie Mac (OTC: FMCC) today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®), which shows a drop in long-term fixed rates this week

Washington, D.C. - February 16, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- ICBA Mortgage, the mortgage-lending subsidiary of the Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA), today announced the renewal of its alliance agreement with Fannie Mae, which allows ICBA-member community banks to access a package of special benefits that helps them better serve their customers' housing-finance needs

WASHINGTON, D.C. - February 16, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Chairwoman Biggert, Ranking Member Gutierrez and Members of the Subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to testify today. I appreciate the opportunity to share insights resulting from the Administration’s efforts to mitigate the effects of the most serious housing crisis since the Great Depression.