Archives

WASHINGTON, D.C. - August 15, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released a second update to its exam procedures in connection with the new mortgage regulations issued in January 2013. The interim exam procedures offer valuable guidance to financial institutions and mortgage companies on what the CFPB will be looking for as the rules become effective.

WASHINGTON, DC - August 14, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- HOPE NOW, the voluntary, private sector alliance of mortgage servicers, investors, mortgage insurers and non-profit counselors, released its Q2 2013 data, which shows that approximately 204,000 homeowners received permanent loan modifications from mortgage servicers from April through June of this year.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - August 12, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- At a White House ceremony this afternoon, President Barack Obama signed the Reverse Mortgage Stability Act, bipartisan legislation “to authorize the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to establish additional requirements to improve the fiscal safety and soundness of the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage insurance program.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - August 7, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Attorney General Eric Holder and U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina Anne M. Tompkins announced today that the United States has filed a civil lawsuit against Bank of America Corporation and certain of its affiliates, including Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith f/k/a/ Banc of America Securities, LLC, Bank of America, N.A., and Banc of America Mortgages Securities, Inc. (collectively “Bank of America”). The complaint alleges that Bank of America lied to investors about the relative riskiness of the mortgage loans backing the residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS), made false statements after intentionally not performing proper due diligence and filled the securitization with a disproportionate amount of risky mortgages originated through third party mortgage brokers

WASHINGTON, DC - August 2, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Almost 3 million people have cashed or deposited more than $2.6 billion in checks related to the Independent Foreclosure Review (IFR) Payment Agreement through August 1, 2013.

Washington, DC - August 1, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- House Financial Services Chairman Jeb Henserling, R-Texas and House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Darrell Issa, R-Calif., sent a letter to Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Director Richard Cordray about concerns that senior employees have left CFPB in order to profit from the very rules they helped create.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - July 31, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Legislation needed to reduce financial risk for reverse mortgage borrowers has now been approved by both chambers of Congress.

Washington, D.C. - July 31, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS) released today its 2013 first quarter reports on state-licensed and federally registered mortgage entities in NMLS

Reston, Virginia, - July 29, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- MERSCORP Holdings, Inc. today announced that Rhode Island Superior Court Associate Justice Allen P. Rubine rejected another claim of wrongful foreclosure against Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc. (MERS) and other co-defendants.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - July 29, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Federal Reserve Board on Friday released an amendment to the enforcement action against GMAC Mortgage requiring approximately $230 million in cash payments to mortgage borrowers

WASHINGTON, D.C. - July 24, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) today filed a complaint in federal district court against a Utah-based mortgage company, Castle & Cooke Mortgage LLC, and two of its officers for illegally giving bonuses to loan officers who steered consumers into mortgages with higher interest rates. The Bureau is seeking an end to this unlawful practice, restitution for those consumers who were upcharged, and civil money penalties

Washington, DC - July 24, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Three years after the Dodd-Frank Act failed to address the need for housing finance reform and end the record taxpayer-funded bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the Financial Services Committee today approved legislation to end their bailout and create a sustainable housing finance system for America

WASHINGTON, DC - July 22, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- The ongoing housing recovery coupled with improvement in both consumer confidence and the labor market are expected to boost economic growth in the second half of the year, according to Fannie Mae’s (FNMA/OTC) Economic & Strategic Research Group. The latest jobs report showed steady year-to-date job creation and measures of consumer confidence are at or near recovery highs. Furthermore, despite a sharp increase in mortgage rates during the past two months, home sales have held up and home prices have continued to post gains, helping to keep the economy on a positive—albeit modest—growth path in 2013.

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, CA - July 18, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- New business practices instituted in the wake of nationwide reforms appear to be contributing to the increase in overall customer satisfaction with primary mortgage servicers, according to the J.D. Power 2013 U.S. Primary Mortgage Servicer Satisfaction Study

WASHINGTON, D.C. - July 17, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Justice Department announced that seven defendants were arrested and arraigned today for their roles in a mortgage fraud conspiracy that operated in Detroit.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - July 17, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BAC) today reported that second-quarter 2013 net income rose 63 percent to $4.0 billion from $2.5 billion in the second quarter of 2012. Earnings per diluted share increased to $0.32 from $0.19 in the second quarter of 2012. Revenue, net of interest expense, on a fully taxable-equivalent (FTE)^A basis rose 3 percent to $22.9 billion from $22.2 billion a year ago.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - July 16, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Homeownership Preservation Foundation (HPF), an independent national nonprofit dedicated to helping distressed homeowners navigate financial challenges and avoid mortgage foreclosure through its HOPE™ Hotline at 888-995-HOPE™, announced today that the Bank of America Charitable Foundation awarded the organization a $250,000 grant.

Atlanta, Georgia - July 16, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- On July 15, 2013, an Order to Cease and Desist issued by the Georgia Department of Banking and Finance (“Department”) to Senior Reverse Mortgage Advisors, LLC dba reverserewards.com dba reversemortgagechoice.com, located at 2632 W 237th Street, Suite 201 Torrance, California 90505, became final

WASHINGTON, D.C. - July 15, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Senators Bob Corker (R-TN) and Mark Warner (D-VA) introduced bipartisan legislation last month to address the nation’s troubled housing finance system. They will discuss the details of the proposal and prospects for housing finance reform at the Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC) this Wednesday, July 17, at 8:30AM.

Dover, DE - July 12, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Delaware State Housing Authority (DSHA) announced last month that it will be taking the lead in a new outreach project designed to expand the relief options available to homeowners who are struggling with their mortgages. The Making Home Affordable Outreach and Intake Project aims to help homeowners avoid mortgage default by seeking resolutions through the Making Home Affordable (MHA) Program, the cornerstone of President Obama’s plan to offer lasting relief to homeowners in financial distress.