« May 2006 | Main | July 2006 »
June 23, 2006
Originations by Property Type
Posted by S. Germain at 09:54 AM | Comments (0)
The First American Corporation Expands Title Operations In Poland
The First American Corporation (NYSE: FAF - News), the largest provider of business information in United States and the leading provider of title insurance services internationally, today announced the launch of operations in Poland. First Title Poland, a limited liability company, will offer title insurance solutions for lenders, investors and developers.
Read the entire story here.
Posted by S. Germain at 09:53 AM | Comments (0)
Stewart Title on Buying Spree, May Complete $100M in Acquisitions
Stewart Information Services Corp. (NYSE: STC), a Houston-based real estate information and transaction management company, has been acquiring local title companies in foreclosure-prone markets at a noticeable clip this year.
Reached for comment on the company’s recent activity, company spokesperson Ted Jones told DS News that Stewart has strategic plans to aggressively grow their business through acquisitions. “Our goal is to complete $50 to $100 million in acquisitions this year,” he said.
Read the entire story here.
Posted by S. Germain at 09:50 AM | Comments (0)
GlobeXplorer(R) Adds 200th DigitalGlobe(R) CitySphere(TM) International Satellite Imagery Market to Its Web Services
GlobeXplorer announced the successful loading of its 200th DigitalGlobe CitySphere market to its suite of online data services for mapping/GIS users and Web developers.
Dated from 2002 to 2006, the CitySphere collection includes high-resolution satellite imagery of 200 of the largest cities across the globe, including the Americas, Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia.
DigitalGlobe's CitySphere collection features orthorectified 2-foot color imagery The resolution and industry-leading accuracy of CitySphere make it ideal for use as a basemap in Web mapping, GIS, and other applications.
Posted by S. Germain at 09:49 AM | Comments (0)
Stewart Title of Detroit Acquires Lapeer County Abstract and Title Co.
Stewart Title of Detroit Inc. has acquired Lapeer County Abstract and Title Co. of Lapeer, Mich. Existing staff will remain with the company, and former president Don Schultz will serve as an advisor and consultant to the company.
Posted by S. Germain at 09:48 AM | Comments (0)
Fiserv CBS Worldwide Core Banking Solutions Chosen by 1st Source Bank
Fiserv CBS Worldwide, a unit of Fiserv, Inc. (Nasdaq:FISV - News), announced that 1st Source Bank has chosen a suite of Fiserv solutions to replace its core processing system and enable the bank's custom lending process. The suite includes CBS Desktop, CBS Communicator, CAMplus and Fiserv Aperio, Fiserv CBS Worldwide's process-centric customer information management solution.
1st Source Bank currently has $3.5 billion in assets and operates 65 banking centers in 15 counties, as well as 24 locations nationwide for the 1st Source Specialty Finance Group, making it the largest locally controlled financial institution serving northern Indiana and southwestern Michigan. Fiserv CBS Worldwide offered the bank, whose current system was reaching capacity, a scalable, proven solution that allows for 1st Source's growth. The Fiserv system also enables the bank's technology vision, which is to "use systems to simplify the customer banking experience and business unit execution."
Posted by S. Germain at 09:47 AM | Comments (0)
Ocwen and NYLX Form Strategic Alliance to Offer Integrated Solution
Ocwen Financial Corporation announced today a strategic alliance with NYLX, Inc., the leading provider of ``on-demand'' point-of-sale product eligibility and pricing technology systems for the mortgage industry. Engaged in a variety of businesses including mortgage servicing, mortgage fulfillment and technology, Ocwen continues its pursuit of being an industry-leader in the residential mortgage fulfillment arena. By capitalizing on its global workforce and infrastructure, round-the-clock capabilities and streamlined technology platform, Ocwen is able to provide its clients with a seamless, comprehensive solution to their fulfillment needs.
Posted by S. Germain at 09:46 AM | Comments (0)
LeadPoint to Reach Over 130,000 U.S. Mortgage Brokers Through Partnership With Ellie Mae
LeadPoint*, the premier platform for buying and selling leads in a free market environment, announced today that Ellie Mae, an award-winning provider of innovative software and services for the mortgage industry, has integrated LeadPoint into its Encompass Mortgage Automation System.
Posted by S. Germain at 09:44 AM | Comments (0)
NetBank Funding Services Introduces New Tools to Streamline Loan Submission Process and Simplify Closing Packages
NetBank Funding Services recently introduced two new web-based tools for brokers and correspondents on its website at http://www.netbankfunding.com.
A new automated underwriting engine enables brokers and correspondents to qualify borrowers for Alt A products at the point of sale. Users simply go to the NetBank Funding website, upload their loan file and then submit it to the automated underwriting engine. It evaluates credit and loan data on Alt A products and instantly provides a recommendation of Eligible, Ineligible or Refer with a detailed findings report.
Posted by S. Germain at 09:42 AM | Comments (0)
Fremont Bank Implements the Encomia eMortgage Solution
Encomia, a provider of end-to-end eMortgage technology, is providing electronic mortgage technology to Fremont, Calif.-based Fremont Bank, a full service community bank with more than 20 branches.
Fremont plans to originate fully electronic mortgages soon through the Encomia eMortgage solution, which provides financial institutions with a comprehensive tool kit that features the creation of SMART Docs, electronic signature capability and secure document archival. As more of the bank's institutional investors continue to accept these loans, it plans to increase the size of its eMortgage portfolio.
Posted by S. Germain at 09:41 AM | Comments (0)
PushMX BOXOFFIX Productivity Appliance for Mortgage Brokers and Bankers Unveiled
PushMX(TM) Software has announced PushMX BOXOFFIX(TM), an easy-to-implement productivity and workflow management appliance for mortgage professionals who use Calyx Point® loan origination software.
Posted by S. Germain at 09:38 AM | Comments (0)
Alterian, Intellidyn Form Partnership
Leveraging the powerful Alterian Engine and database, Alterian has announced a partnership with the Intellidyn marketing firm to offer mortgage industry customers a "hands-on" analytics platform that lets them manage marketing campaigns onsite. Through the Alterian Marketing Suite, Intellidyn's financial services customers will be able to access data "on more than 112 million households as well as Intellidyn's proprietary derived variables, gaining deeper insights into banking, lending, and insurance segments," Alterian said. Customers will also be able to implement multichannel campaigns "straight from their desktops" while keeping their data behind secure firewalls, the company added. Intellidyn bills itself as a provider of advanced analytics and multichannel and database marketing services for customer acquisition and retention strategies in the banking, lending, and mortgage industries.
Posted by S. Germain at 09:35 AM | Comments (0)
Oxley 'Confident' GSE Reform Will Pass
House Financial Services Committee Chairman Michael Oxley, R-Ohio, says he is confident that Congress will pass a GSE regulatory reform bill this year to create a "world-class regulator" to oversee Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. "I am very confident that sometime before the Congress adjourns for the year, the president will be signing the historic and landmark legislation," Rep. Oxley said during a speech to the Exchequer Club in Washington. The House has already passed a bill to strengthen regulation of the two government-sponsored enterprises. He said he expects Senate Banking Committee Chairman Richard Shelby, R-Ala., to bring a GSE bill to the floor of the Senate for a vote this summer. "I am very confident he is going to get that job done and get us to conference," Rep. Oxley said. Chairman Oxley also said the House is scheduled to vote next week on a flood insurance bill that would increase insurance premiums for second homes and commercial properties.
Posted by S. Germain at 09:33 AM | Comments (0)
Wachovia Sells Off Leftover Money Store Service Unit
Wachovia Corp. has reached a deal to sell its HomeEq Servicing Corp. unit to Barclays Bank of London for $469 million. Barclays says it plans to build up HomeEq, a Sacramento, Calif.-based mortgage servicing outfit with about 1,300 employees that collects payments on $43 billion in subprime home loans. Wachovia continues to face criticism for saddling borrowers with high-cost loans that they may be unable to repay, but the deal is not a sign that the Charlotte, N.C., bank is leaving the subprime business. "While subprime mortgages are not a focus, we're still committed to our existing businesses and will grow them where appropriate," said Wachovia spokeswoman Mary Beth Navarro.
Posted by S. Germain at 09:03 AM | Comments (0)
FHA Changes Make Appraisals, Financing More Buyer-Friendly
Mortgages backed by the Federal Housing Administration accounted for just 3 percent of all home loans last year, down from 11 percent in 1997. The decline can be largely attributed to the agency's rigorous appraisal process, which involved five pages of items to be reviewed and often delayed the home-sale process. In an effort to reduce buyers' dependence on subprime and other alternative mortgages, FHA has scaled back its appraisal requirements. Rather than focus on minor repairs such as leaky faucets and cracked window panes, the agency will concentrate only on big items such as leaky roofs, standing water and structural defects beginning in January 2007. FHA also is tweaking its financing guidelines; for example, it is removing caps on closing costs charged to buyers, which had made many sellers reluctant to accept FHA-ba! cked bids.
Posted by S. Germain at 09:01 AM | Comments (0)
Builders' Confidence Lowest in 11 Years
The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo's gauge of builder confidence fell to 42 this month from 46 in May, its lowest level since the spring of 1995. Economists note that this index has not registered a month-to-month increase for the past eight months--the longest such stretch since 1994. Any reading below 50 in the index means that more builders have a negative outlook than a positive outlook as far as the housing market is concerned. Economists say the drop in confidence--the National Association of Realtors recently predicted that home sales will fall in 2006 after five consecutive record years--is proof that 16 straight interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve are having a cooling effect on the nation's! economy.
Posted by S. Germain at 08:59 AM | Comments (0)
Delinquencies, Foreclosures Fell in First Quarter
The Mortgage Bankers Association reports a drop in the residential delinquency rate to 4.41 percent in the first quarter from 4.70 percent in the fourth quarter of last year. The decline is attributed to robust economic growth and a strong job market. However, MBA chief economist Doug Duncan anticipates slight gains in delinquency and foreclosure rates during the coming months due to higher energy prices and short-term interest rates. The report also shows that 0.98 percent of delinquent loans were in the foreclosure process, compared to 0.99 percent in the final quarter of 2005.
Posted by S. Germain at 08:59 AM | Comments (0)
June 16, 2006
Percent Change in Originations
Posted by S. Germain at 08:11 AM | Comments (0)
Michael A. Goyne Named Senior Vice President of Specialized Sales for First American's Client Relations Division
The First American Corporation (NYSE: FAF), America’s largest provider of business information, announced today that Michael A. Goyne has joined the company’s Client Relations division as senior vice president of specialized sales.
In his new position, Goyne will work closely with members of First American’s Client Relations sales team to identify and engage new lines of business, while expanding relationships with existing clients.
“Michael’s experience and drive will help to ensure that First American is able to maximize our current and future opportunities in product development, new business and in assisting the lender community,” said Larry Hudnall, executive vice president and national sales director.
Goyne, who has more than 18 years of experience in business-to-business sales management, joined First American in 1997 with the acquisition of Evans Title Co., where he held the position of sales manager. During his tenure with First American he has served in increasing roles of responsibilities, including his most recent position as senior vice president with First American’s Centralized Services division.
Posted by S. Germain at 08:09 AM | Comments (0)
RE3W Launches a New Set of Real Estate Transaction and Collaboration Tools
RE3W announced today a major update to its commercial real estate software application that further streamlines a multi-step transaction process and enhances collaboration and communication of real estate professionals. By customizing Microsoft's Virtual Earth platform with such proprietary features as property boundary overlays linked to owner, tax and transaction information, building measurement, area calculation, and custom annotation tools, RE3W has developed an integrated, robust real estate transaction management and collaboration application.
Read the entire story here.
Posted by S. Germain at 08:08 AM | Comments (0)
Dan Berman Named Chief Operating Officer of LoanPerformance
LoanPerformance, a subsidiary of First American Real Estate Solutions (RES®) and a leader in residential mortgage data and analytics for the mortgage industry and Wall Street, today announced that Dan Berman has been named chief operating officer.
Berman joined LoanPerformance in 2005 after serving as vice president, mortgage information technology, national accounts, for the western region at First American RES, where he cultivated relationships with key clients and translated customer feedback into product enhancements and new product development.
Posted by S. Germain at 08:06 AM | Comments (0)
Latest Issue of LoanPerformance MarketPulse(TM) Features New Loss Severity Whitepaper from Countrywide Securities
LoanPerformance, a subsidiary of First American Real Estate Solutions (RES®) and a leader in residential mortgage data and analytics for the mortgage industry and Wall Street, today announced that the latest issue of its MarketPulse report is available for download at www.loanperformance.com.
Read the entire story here.
Posted by S. Germain at 08:04 AM | Comments (0)
Fidelity National Information Services to Provide Flood Certification and Tracking Services to National City Corporation
Fidelity National Information Services, Inc. today announced that it has reached an agreement with National City Corporation to provide flood certification and tracking services to the retail banking, National Home Equity, National City Mortgage and First Franklin Financial lines of business.
Read the entire story here.
Posted by S. Germain at 08:03 AM | Comments (0)
Sedgwick CMS and Fidelity National Financial Announce Acquisition of CompManagement
Sedgwick CMS Holdings, Inc. has signed a definitive agreement to acquire CompManagement, Inc. (CMI) and its affiliated companies through a merger of a subsidiary of Sedgwick CMS Holdings with CMI's parent company, Security Capital Corporation for a cash purchase price of approximately $191.5 million. Today's announcement comes jointly from Sedgwick CMS and from Fidelity National Financial, Inc. a principal equity holder of Sedgwick CMS Holdings, Inc. along with Thomas H. Lee Partners, L.P. and Evercore Capital Partners.
Read the entire story here.
Posted by S. Germain at 08:01 AM | Comments (0)
ING Netherlands Selects Outsourcing Application Management Solution from Fidelity National Information Services
Fidelity National Information Services, Inc. today announced a multi-year outsourcing agreement to provide application support and development services for ING Netherlands' savings products.
Read the entire story here.
Posted by S. Germain at 08:00 AM | Comments (0)
LandAmerica Acquires Developer of BackInTheBlack(R) Leading Mortgage Default Servicing Software
LandAmerica Financial Group, Inc. announces the purchase of MSTD, Inc., a pioneer in providing web- based business solutions for the mortgage servicing industry. Based in Baltimore, Maryland, the company's flagship product, BackInTheBlack®, is the industry's most comprehensive, end-to-end default servicing technology platform.
Read the entire story here.
Posted by S. Germain at 07:59 AM | Comments (0)
Gary Ort to Lead Coordinated Sales Effort of New Stewart Lender Services as Senior Vice President, National Sales Manager
Gary Ort has joined Stewart Lender Services, a new operating division of Stewart Mortgage Information (SMI), as senior vice president, national and regional lender sales manager for title and settlement.
Read the entire story here.
Posted by S. Germain at 07:58 AM | Comments (0)
Stewart Title, First Republic Mortgage and Trustcorp Mortgage Revolutionize the Real Estate Transaction Process with First e-closings in Indiana
It took a simple "click-to-sign" process for several Indiana consumers to close their mortgage loans on June 6 and 7, as Stewart Title teamed up with First Republic Mortgage Corp. and Trustcorp Mortgage Co. for three electronic closings using Stewart's SureClose® online transaction management system and eClosingRoom(TM).
Read the entire story here.
Posted by S. Germain at 07:57 AM | Comments (0)
Del Mar Database Unit of Fiserv Offers MERS Integration to DataTrac
Del Mar Database (DMD), a unit of Fiserv, Inc. (Nasdaq: FISV - News), has introduced the integration of MERS (Mortgage Electronic Registration System) to its flagship software program, DataTrac®. Del Mar Database provides software solutions that enable small- and medium-sized lenders to drive up production while reducing risk, increasing productivity, and streamlining their overall efficiency. MERS enables mortgage lenders to record it as the mortgagee of record (as nominee for the lender) in county land records, and thereafter to electronically track changes in servicing and beneficial ownership rights over the life of the loan.
Posted by S. Germain at 07:54 AM | Comments (0)
CFCU Community Credit Union Implements FICS' Systems to Consolidate Mortgage Loan Origination and Servicing
Financial Industry Computer Systems, Inc. (FICS), a mortgage technology specialist that provides in-house residential origination and servicing technology to the mortgage industry, announced that Ithaca, NY-based CFCU Community Credit Union has successfully implemented Loan Producer®, FICS' mortgage loan origination system, and Mortgage Servicer(TM), the company's residential mortgage servicing system. The credit union closes approximately $50-100 million in residential mortgage loans per year.
Posted by S. Germain at 07:54 AM | Comments (0)
CoreLogic Introduces PreQualPro(TM) to Help Mortgage Originators Streamline Front-End Decision Making
At the request of mortgage lenders, CoreLogic, the leading provider of mortgage risk assessment and fraud prevention solutions, has developed PreQualPro. PreQualPro is a pre-qualification value range tool designed to meet the needs of leading originators' retail and HELOC groups. PreQualPro streamlines front-end decision making on client leads by quickly "qualifying" the validity and accuracy of the client estimated value.
Posted by S. Germain at 07:52 AM | Comments (0)
Hyland Software, MortgageFlex Systems Partnership Enables Lenders to Increase Income with Advanced Loan Processing
Hyland Software Inc., developer of OnBase® enterprise content management (ECM) software, and MortgageFlex Systems Inc., a leading mortgage technology innovator, have partnered to provide lenders with advanced documentation support.
Recently recognized as two of the 2005 Mortgage Technology Top 25 Vendors, the two firms will provide MortgageFlex's LoanQuest® customers enhanced document retrieval and management from within their loan origination system. The resulting solution will enable MortgageFlex's LoanQuest customers to improve capacity, enhance customer service and expedite loan closing by giving them the ability to work within the LoanQuest system and instantly retrieve customer information, such as scanned and imported documents of any file format, from the OnBase repository.
Posted by S. Germain at 07:49 AM | Comments (0)
CharterMac to Acquire ARCap in $284.5M Deal
Leading real estate finance concern CharterMac committed to acquiring fund manager ARCap Investors L.L.C. in a transaction that values Dallas-based ARCap, a pre-eminent manager of high-yield subordinate commercial mortgage-backed securities and direct real estate loans, at $284.5 million. New York City-headquartered CharterMac's purchase of 100 percent of the ownership interests in ARCap--the company has owned a 10.7 percent economic interest in ARCap since 2000, the value of which is included in the purchase price--is on schedule to close during the third quarter.
Posted by S. Germain at 07:47 AM | Comments (0)
Critics Aside, Thrift Says Its 50-Year Loan Is Popular
Since it unveiled a 50-year mortgage in February, Riverside, Calif.-based Provident Savings Bank says it has originated $30 million of the loans. Buyers can choose from a 50-year, fixed loan with a balloon payment due at the 30-year mark or a 50-year, adjustable-rate mortgage with fixed rates for a three- or five-year period. Chula Vista, Calif.-based Pacific Trust Bank says it can top the 50-year mortgage with its innovative mortgage product called Green Account, in which money is automatically withdrawn from an associated demand account each month. Borrowers watch their principal balances and monthly finance charges decline as more money--typically funds that would have been put into savings, money market or other non-demand accounts--is deposited in the demand account.
Posted by S. Germain at 07:43 AM | Comments (0)
At Fannie, Year End Likely Target for Restatement; Director to Quit
Fannie Mae is pushing to complete a restatement of earnings for the past several years by the end of 2006, according to testimony Chief Executive Daniel Mudd and Chairman Stephen Ashley are expected to deliver to the Senate Banking Committee on Thursday. Previously, the mortgage-finance giant indicated that the massive restatement would not be ready before the second half of the year. Fannie Mae is likely to recognize $11 billion of losses on derivatives that had been deferred as a result of the correction. The testimony also is likely to reveal that Ann Korologos, a veteran outside director who led negotiations with regulators in 2004 during the accounting scandal, will leave the board on July 31.
Posted by S. Germain at 07:42 AM | Comments (0)
Realtors Bullish on Commercial Property
A new National Association of Realtors report forecasts that commercial real estate will be a source of strength for the country's economy in the second half of 2006, with the market for residential properties applying the brakes. The organization predicts that office-vacancy rates are likely to decline to 12.7 percent in the last three months of this year compared to 13.6 percent a year earlier. Furthermore, the survey projects that industrial-property vacancies will dip to an average 9.5 percent in the last six months of the year versus 9.9 percent in the fourth quarter of 2005. In other markets, apartment vacancies are projected to fall to 5.7 percent later in the year; and retail vacancies are on track t! o average 7.6 percent, up from 7.2 percent in the year-earlier period.
Posted by S. Germain at 07:41 AM | Comments (0)
'So-Called Bubble' Likely to Deflate, Not Burst
A new report from Harvard University's Joint Center for Housing Studies reveals that an economic downturn precipitated by rising unemployment, overbuilding and population outflows could result in significant drops in home prices, but the center notes that declines of 10 percent or more are not likely. In "The State of the Nation's Housing 2006," the center states that "when and if house prices do fall, the so-called bubble is more likely to deflate slowly rather than burst suddenly." There are concerns that falling prices could lead to higher mortgage default rates, as cash-strapped homeowners would have a difficult time unloading their properties to avoid foreclosure. The report shows that subprime mortgages accounted for 20 percent of the dollar value of originations last year, while interest-only and payment-option loans accounted for 20 percent and close to 10 percent, respectively.
Posted by S. Germain at 07:40 AM | Comments (0)
Wells Fargo Home Loan Plan: More Nonprime
Wells Fargo & Co.'s home loan business will remain competitive in the marketplace in the years to come even as industry leader Countrywide Financial Corp. attempts to expand its market share to 30 percent by 2010, according to Cara Heiden, a co-head of Wells Fargo Home Mortgage. At a conference in Washington last week to celebrate National Homeownership Month, Heiden said Wells wants to lend more to nonprime borrowers, adding that credit-challenged borrowers could help the No. 2 home lender in the country boost its market share as housing slows. Emerging-market customers were a focus of the conference; and Wells is targeting minorities, immigrants and low- and moderate-income borrowers by allowing low down payments, addressing the issue of nontraditional credit information, offering forgiving terms and taking cultural difference into consideration. Wells plans to offer bilingual literacy, credit reports, credit counseling and banking products as part of its Steps to Success program this year, and the lender also is considering offering option adjustable-rate mortgages, the highly profitable but controversial negative-amortization ARMs.
Posted by S. Germain at 07:39 AM | Comments (0)
June 09, 2006
Interest Rate History
Posted by S. Germain at 01:01 PM | Comments (0)
First American Acquires Sonic Eagle, Inc.
First American Residential Group, a member of The First American Corporation (NYSE: FAF - News) family of companies, today announced that it has acquired privately held Sonic Eagle, Inc., a California-based provider of enterprise broker and real estate agent productivity technology. Terms of the transaction, which closed May 23, 2006, were not disclosed.
Read the entire story here.
Posted by S. Germain at 12:59 PM | Comments (0)
The Title Company of Crested Butte, Colo., is Acquired by Stewart Title of Colorado
Stewart Title of Colorado has acquired The Title Company of Crested Butte. Existing management and staff will remain with the office, with president and co-owner Jenny Knox now serving as division president of Stewart Title of Colorado, Crested Butte Division.
Posted by S. Germain at 12:57 PM | Comments (0)
PC Stamm Settlement Selects Panini My Vision X(R) for Escrow Tracking System
Panini's My Vision X® check scanner has been selected by PC Stamm Settlement, a real estate transaction service provider with headquarters in Roanoke, Virginia, for their in-house escrow tracking system. The Panini My Vision X will be used to capture high quality images of escrow checks, allowing PC Stamm Settlement to view, fax, print and email copies of their checks to escrow clients, while streamlining operations and enhancing customer service.
Posted by S. Germain at 12:53 PM | Comments (0)
HouseAmerica Puts House Valuation Technology and Sale Alerts in the Hands of Mortgage Brokers
When a "Just Sold" sign goes up in the neighborhood, so do the "antennas" of local homeowners who wonder what the house sold for -- for the simple reason that they know it affects the value of their own house. HouseAmerica, a new product from Mighty Net, Inc., provides an automated email alert solution for mortgage brokers that steers clients away from house valuation sites ... and to the mortgage broker.
Posted by S. Germain at 12:51 PM | Comments (0)
Montecito Bank & Trust Partners With MoneyLine Lending Services to Enhance Its Mortgage Capabilities
MoneyLine Lending Services is pleased to announce that Montecito Bank & Trust -- a $700 million bank headquartered in Santa Barbara, California -- has selected MoneyLine's services to enhance its residential mortgage capabilities.
Through the partnership, Montecito Bank & Trust can further strengthen its robust residential mortgage program in an increasingly competitive mortgage market and begin to offer mortgage services online. The bank is also leveraging MoneyLine's private-label outsourced mortgage services to assist in the integration of its residential mortgage offerings into its overall product line and sales structure.
Posted by S. Germain at 12:49 PM | Comments (0)
SwiftView, Netupdate Join Forces
SwiftView Inc., Portland, Ore., and Netupdate Inc., Bellevue, Wash., have partnered to enable borrowers to use SwiftView's SwiftSend InBound service to send documents to lenders electronically. A borrower who uses Netupdate's Originator Pro online point-of-sale system to apply for a loan and check loan status will now be able to securely fax or upload loan documentation directly into an eLoanFolder. "We're making electronic submission of documents to lenders very simple," explained Diane Holmstrom, Netupdate's chief executive. Within each borrower's website, borrowers can upload documents or print fax cover sheets that are bar-coded to route documents automatically into the correct eLoanFolder, she said. "Scanning documents post-closing will soon be a thing of the past for documents that can be created or received electronically," added Steve Bachelder, president of SwiftView. "Using our technology, lenders can then share documents electronically throughout the entire loan process, including underwriting, post-closing, investor delivery, and final long-term archiving."
Posted by S. Germain at 12:47 PM | Comments (0)
Ellie Mae Touts Encompass Enhancements
Dublin, Calif.-based Ellie Mae has launched a new edition of its mortgage automation system, Encompass Professional Edition, geared toward giving mortgage brokers more marketing functionality. Encompass Professional Edition is a multi-user program that adds marketing and productivity tools beyond those included in Encompass Standard Edition. Unlike other Encompass loan origination products, the new product features a marketing campaign manager, contact synchronization with Outlook and ACT!, and a software development toolkit enabling users to develop custom applications around Encompass, Ellie Mae said. All the added features of Encompass Professional will also be rolled into Encompass Anywhere, Ellie Mae's Web-based application.
Posted by S. Germain at 12:47 PM | Comments (0)
Indecomm Buys Mortgage Dynamics
Indecomm Global Services has signed an agreement to acquire McLean, Va.-based Mortgage Dynamics Inc., a mortgage banking management consulting and outsource services firm. The 18-year-old company was sold for a combination of cash and stock, but the financial details were not disclosed. Indecomm said it will adopt the Mortgage Dynamics brand name for its U.S. mortgage outsourcing operations. Mortgage Dynamics will continue under the leadership of Mary Bruce Batte and Dan Measell, Indecomm said. The parties said they expect to complete the transaction by June 30. Indecomm is an international business process services firm with headquarters in Bangalore, India, and operating centers in the United States.
Posted by S. Germain at 12:46 PM | Comments (0)
PreQualPal Automates Broker Loan Searches
A new player has entered the ring to vie with Calyx, Ellie Mae, Lenders Insight, LION, and others to serve brokers by automating loan qualification and lender referral. With technology coming from a successful real estate company, Highland, Calif.-based PreQualPal Inc. offers mortgage brokers and loan officers a suite of online tools that dramatically reduces the time they spend searching through rate sheets and keying in data. A key feature is simultaneous real-time rate and pricing that includes quotes from multiple lenders. Taking 17 variables in getting a quote from a lender, the system automatically arrives at an adjusted rate and compares and maximizes lender rebates. The company particularly touts its tools for building relationships with real estate agents in a shrinking mortgage market. http://www.prequalpal.com
Posted by S. Germain at 12:46 PM | Comments (0)
RAIT Acquiring Taberna
RAIT Investment Trust, a Philadelphia-based commercial real estate lender, is acquiring Taberna Realty Finance Trust, a private Philadelphia CRE lender, for 0.5389 of a RAIT share per Taberna common share. Taberna -- whose chairman and chief executive officer, Daniel G. Cohen, is the son of RAIT chairman and CEO Betsy Z. Cohen -- will become a subsidiary of RAIT. The exchange ratio is based upon the relative book value of the companies, RAIT said. Taberna is a provider of long-term subordinated debt and trust preferred securities financing. RAIT provides structured financing and also acquires real estate for its own account. Ms. Cohen said the combined company would meet the needs of real estate companies for both secured and unsecured structured finance. And Mr. Cohen said they expect to combine Taberna's collateralized debt obligation funding capacity with RAIT's origination platform. The combined company will continue to trade on the New York Stock Exchange and have total shareholders' equity of about $1.2 billion, with RAIT shareholders owning about 54% of the equity, RAIT reported. Ms. Cohen will be chairman and Mr. Cohen will be CEO of the combined company.
Posted by S. Germain at 12:45 PM | Comments (0)
Home Sales Settling Down and Appreciation Slowing--NAR
The housing market will continue to slow this year, but home sales are still expected to reach the third-best pace on record, according to the National Association of Realtors. "In this case, experiencing a slowing from a hot market is a good thing because we need a solid housing sector to provide an underlying base to the economy, and slower appreciation will help to preserve long-term affordability," explains NAR chief economist David Lereah. He believes the Federal Reserve should take a break on raising rates because now is not a good time for housing markets that are sensitive to interest rates, and NAR expects 30-year fixed-rate mortgages to average 6.9 percent over the second half of the year. The group forecasts a 6.8-percent decline in existing-home sales to 6.60 million units this year from a record 7.08 million units a year ago and! a 13.4-percent decline in new-home sales to 1.11 million units in 2006 from a record 1.28 million last year.
Posted by S. Germain at 12:43 PM | Comments (0)
Freddie Mac Faces Potential Limits on Loan Portfolios
Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight acting director James Lockhart III says Freddie Mac could see the same portfolio limits that the agency recently imposed on Fannie Mae. The watchdog has barred Fannie Mae from expanding its portfolio beyond the current level without approval from OFHEO. Though Freddie Mac spokesman David Palombi insists that Freddie Mac should be treated differently than Fannie Mae because it already has made improvements in its accounting and financial reporting, Rep. Richard Baker, R-La., insists they should be handled similarly. Freddie Mac's mortgage portfolio rose 11 percent to $724 billion between December 2004 and April 2006, while Fannie Mae's declined 19 percent to $730 billion.
Posted by S. Germain at 10:00 AM | Comments (0)
Bernanke Jolts Markets Over Inflation
Market analysts believe the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates a 17th consecutive time later in the month, following comments made by Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke in which he expressed concern about rising inflation. At an international monetary conference on Monday, the economist said the central bank "will be vigilant to ensure that the recent pattern of elevated monthly core inflation readings is not sustained," as he noted that one gauge has core inflation rising at an annual rate of 3.2 percent and another has it increasing at 3 percent. Many economists were anticipating a pause in June but, in light of Bernanke's remarks, they now believe the Fed could raise interest rates not only this month but in August as well. An increase in interest rates would result in higher borrowing costs for home buyers.
Posted by S. Germain at 09:59 AM | Comments (0)
June 02, 2006
New Residential Construction
Posted by S. Germain at 09:12 AM | Comments (0)
James W. Young Named National Account Director of The First American Corporation's Client Relations Division
The First American Corporation (NYSE: FAF), America’s largest provider of business information, announced today that James W. Young has been named national account director within the company’s Client Relations division.
In his new position, Young will be integral to First American’s national sales strategies and the further expansion of its product development and delivery to the mortgage lending community.
Read the entire story here.
Posted by S. Germain at 09:10 AM | Comments (0)
Nationwide Bank Signs Outsourcing Services Agreement With Fidelity National Information Services
Fidelity National Information Services, Inc. today announced the signing of a multi-year outsourcing agreement with the new Nationwide Bank, a subsidiary of Nationwide Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE: NFS - News), to support the expansion of the company's banking products and services.
Posted by S. Germain at 09:07 AM | Comments (0)
Fidelity National Title Group's Chicago Title Insurance Division Launches Chinese, Spanish and Vietnamese Web Sites to Increase Homeownership
Fidelity National Title Group, Inc. announced today that its Chicago Title Insurance division has launched three Web sites in traditional Chinese, Spanish and Vietnamese. The Web sites were developed so American customers of these three nationalities can easily access information about real estate, title insurance and escrow information in their native languages.
Posted by S. Germain at 09:07 AM | Comments (0)
LandAmerica and Nevada Division of Insurance to Develop Consumer Education Program
LandAmerica Financial Group, Inc. has reached an agreement resolving captive reinsurance practices with the Nevada Division of Insurance (DOI) under which the Company will partner with the Nevada DOI to create a customized consumer education program to help Nevada consumers understand title insurance and highlight choices available to them. In addition, the agreement includes discounted refunds to Nevada homebuyers of ceded premiums and a $560,280 administrative fine. This settlement is included within the reserves established by the Company in June 2005 to cover anticipated exposure to regulatory matters.
Posted by S. Germain at 09:06 AM | Comments (0)
Stewart Title of Island County, Wash., Serves Whidbey and Camano Islands
Stewart Title of Island County has opened in Oak Harbor, Wash., to serve Whidbey and Camano Islands, located in Puget Sound north of Seattle.
Posted by S. Germain at 09:05 AM | Comments (0)
Stewart Escrow & Title of Lawton Now Branch of Stewart Abstract & Title of Oklahoma
Stewart Abstract & Title of Oklahoma in Oklahoma City has acquired the remaining stock of Stewart Escrow and Title of Lawton, Okla. Existing management and staff has remained with the office, which is now a branch of the Oklahoma City company.
Posted by S. Germain at 09:05 AM | Comments (0)
Kroll Factual Data and Bluebook Announce Mortgage Technology Agreement
Kroll Factual Data, Inc. and Bluebook International, Inc. today announced an agreement that gives Kroll Factual Data clients access to Bluebook's proprietary web-based tool for estimating the replacement costs of a residential structure.
Kroll Factual Data's new service, called Estimated Replacement Cost, further expands its full suite of mortgage settlement services. Ordered directly from Kroll Factual Data's web-based platform, Estimated Replacement Cost uses the most extensive data sources available to help lower a lender's risk by verifying the client's insurance coverage. The resulting report also helps lenders meet new Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA) guidelines by providing accurate cost information based on current industry rates.
Posted by S. Germain at 09:00 AM | Comments (0)
Byte Software Expands Credit Information Partners; LOS Offers Users Additional Access to Credit Information
Byte Software, a leading provider of loan origination software (LOS), continues to actively build its credit partner interfaces. Recently, Byte announced access to four additional credit companies. This gives BytePro users throughout the nation a wider variety of accessible credit information partners to meet their specific needs.
The new companies are Advantage Credit, Birchwood Credit, Credit Plus, Inc., and First Magnus Credit.
Posted by S. Germain at 08:59 AM | Comments (0)
A Mortgage Solution for Real Estate Brokers
A newly launched online mortgage origination platform from Broker2Broker gives California real estate brokers control over the process of administering residential mortgage loans.
Broker2Broker offers 24-hour real-time status updates for brokers, realtors and clients. After enrolling in the program, real estate brokers will have access to encrypted secure online web tools, a user-friendly loan application, pipeline reporting, and all the necessary documentation to complete the loan and be RESPA-compliant. They also have an option of learning the system through a personalized one-on-one demonstration with their assigned production manager.
Posted by S. Germain at 08:58 AM | Comments (0)
eLynx Helps Boost Ditech E-Sign Conversion
Cincinnati-based eLynx Ltd. has helped Ditech.com, Costa Mesa, Calif., achieve a 35% borrower conversion from paper to e-signed disclosures in May, according to eLynx. That success was achieved by training 2,500 Ditech.com loan representatives and 2,200 processors to use a new browser-based eWelcome service that lets mortgage customers securely receive, review, and approve documents via the Internet. An eLynx spokesman said a key to the great success of the launch was that Ditech not only trained all affected staffers before the launch, but provided incentives and prizes to the sales teams achieving the highest tallies of paper-to-electronic conversions with their borrowers. Ditech.com said it expects to use the service to shrink cycle times and bring consumers closer to embracing a fully paperless loan transaction.
Posted by S. Germain at 08:54 AM | Comments (0)
1st-Quarter Home Prices Rise, But at Slower Pace
The Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight reports a 12.5-percent jump in national home prices during the first quarter, down from growth of 13.3 percent last year. However, the average residential value edged up just 2 percent to an annual appreciation rate of 8.1 percent during the January-through-March period, marking the lowest quarterly gain in two years. Weaker price gains are attributable to a slowdown in home sales, rising mortgage rates and a decline in affordability, particularly for first-time buyers. OFHEO chief economist Patrick Lawler notes that home prices have not declined despite the cooler market because sellers refuse to budge on their asking prices.
Posted by S. Germain at 08:52 AM | Comments (0)
Countrywide Affirms Profit View
Shrugging off worries that a cooldown in the housing sector could erode its profits, Countrywide Financial is standing by its 2006 earnings guidance. Although the mortgage lender's shares have declined by nearly 9 percent in recent weeks on views that mortgage defaults would flow as the residential property market ebbs, Countrywide refuses to budge on its outlook for the year. While analysts are looking for earnings to hit $4.44 per share, the company's internal forecast falls anywhere from $3.90 to $4.80 per share.
Posted by S. Germain at 08:50 AM | Comments (0)
Fed Grows Uncertain Over Rates as Inflation Concerns Multiply
Minutes from the Federal Reserve's May meeting, when the short-term interest rate was hiked a quarter of a percentage point to 5 percent, reveal that central bank officials are increasingly concerned about inflation and uncertain of how to handle interest rates. It was the first policymaking meeting since June 2004--aside from the session following Hurricane Katrina--in which officials considered holding the short-term rate steady or raising it by more than a quarter-point. In addition to inflation, officials also expressed worries that the housing market could slow at a faster rate than anticipated.
Posted by S. Germain at 08:50 AM | Comments (0)
Insurer: Oust Toll From Probe (LandAmerica)
Members of Congress have asked LandAmerica Financial Group to turn over any correspondence or summaries of any conversations involving the Colorado deputy insurance commissioner who is investigating questionable practices at the title insurer. The request by Reps. Michael Oxley, R-Ohio, and Barney Frank, D-Mass., who are considering federal legislation to ban such kickbacks, is in response to LandAmerica general counsel Michelle Gluck asking earlier in the month that Erin Toll be removed from the kickback probe because of "significant personal conflicts of interest with the title-insurance industry in general and LandAmerica in particular." LandAmerica, which is the third-largest title insurer in the country, alleges that there is a conflict of interest involving Toll because her former husband, Denver lawyer Christopher Toll, represents the Richmond, Va.-based company. Howe! ver, Christopher Toll says his cases for LandAmerica have nothing to do with Erin Toll's investigation into title insurers' illegal payments to real estate agents, lenders and builders for business referrals.
Posted by S. Germain at 08:49 AM | Comments (0)
Freddie Mac Profit Drops 28 Percent on Katrina, Accounting Costs
Freddie Mac's net income fell 28 percent to $2.13 billion in 2005 from $2.94 billion in 2004. The decline is attributable to the firm's $5 billion accounting debacle, new accounting practices and financial fallout from Hurricane Katrina. The government-sponsored enterprise reported charges of $220 million to resolve litigation filed by shareholders, $133 million tied to the storm and $265 million as a result of accounting changes. The report also revealed that its investment portfolio expanded to $710 billion last year, representing an annualized growth rate of 8.7 percent.
Posted by S. Germain at 08:48 AM | Comments (0)