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November 30, 2007

Subprime/CDO Losses

Posted by S. Germain at 09:50 AM | Comments (0)

First American CoreLogic Announces ListSource

First American CoreLogic announced the release of ListSource™, an easy-to-use Web-based solution for creating and managing marketing lists.

ListSource represents the next generation of online property and ownership list tools from First American CoreLogic, enabling consumer marketers, property and casualty insurers and mortgage and real estate professionals to better target prospects more closely matched with the products or services they offer. ListSource includes the most up-to-date and accurate demographic, property and ownership information available on more than 118 million properties nationwide, covering 90 percent of the U.S. population and growing.

Posted by S. Germain at 09:46 AM | Comments (0)

First Amer Corp, Unit Ask US Judge To Dismiss NY AG Lawsuit

First American and its home-appraisal unit have asked a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit by New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo for allegedly colluding with Washington Mutual Inc. to use a list of preferred appraisers to inflate mortgage appraisals.

In a motion filed late Monday, the Santa Ana, Calif., company and its eAppraiseIT unit asked U.S. District Laura Taylor Swain in Manhattan to dismiss the attorney general's complaint, saying he lacks authority to pursue a case because all federal savings and loan activities are regulated by the U.S. Office of Thrift Supervision.

Posted by S. Germain at 09:45 AM | Comments (0)

The First American Corporation Announces Expanded Diversity and Inclusion Initiative and Three Related Appointments

The First American Corporation announced that it has expanded its efforts to ensure greater diversity and inclusion throughout its organization. The company also announced the appointments of Karen J. Collins as vice president, chief diversity and inclusion officer; Michelle Cheney Donaldson as corporate director of diversity and inclusion; and Stephanie M. Swenseid as corporate director of supplier diversity, who will each oversee different aspects of the company's centralized diversity and inclusion programs.

Posted by S. Germain at 09:43 AM | Comments (0)

First American CREDCO'S Anthem is Compliant with Freddie Mac's Updated Guidelines for Non-Traditional Credit

First American CREDCO announced that its Anthem(TM) RMCR product -- also known as the Anthem Report -- meets or exceeds Freddie Mac's updated guidelines for non- traditional credit. Part of the Anthem Suite(TM) of Services, Anthem RMCR is a solution for verifying Noncredit Payment References (NCPRs) and documenting those references on a Residential Mortgage Credit Report (RMCR), as noted in Freddie Mac's recent news release clarifying portions of their Single-Family Seller/Servicer Guide.

Available to mortgage professionals since 2004, the Anthem RMCR is a specialized Residential Mortgage Credit Report offering a cost-effective credit reporting solution for underserved consumers. Designed to help lenders qualify more borrowers who lack credit, it is fully compliant with mortgage loan underwriting and due diligence requirements for Government Sponsored Entities, including Freddie Mac.

Posted by S. Germain at 09:42 AM | Comments (0)

First Title expands in Turkey

First Title P.L.C., a U.K.-based provider of title insurance for real estate transactions, continues to expand in Europe with its Turkish subsidiary, First Title Istanbul, recently opening new offices in Istanbul's financial district.

The move, which follows the insurer's expansion last month into Hungary, is the latest in a series of new office openings across Europe, the company said. First Title, a subsidiary of The First American Corp., has nine offices throughout Europe — five in the United Kingdom, as well as offices in Germany, Poland, Hungary and now Turkey.

Posted by S. Germain at 09:41 AM | Comments (0)

Thomas H. Lee Partners and Fidelity National Financial Complete Acquisition of Ceridian

Ceridian Corporation, Thomas H. Lee Partners, L.P. and Fidelity National Financial, Inc. today announced that THL Partners and FNF have completed the acquisition of Ceridian for approximately $5.3 billion.

Posted by S. Germain at 09:40 AM | Comments (0)

Vendor Offers POS Reverse Automation

Origination vendor Mortgage Cadence Inc., Denver, has launched Mortgage Cadence Prelude, a point-of-sale tool designed for use by lenders moving into the growing reverse mortgage lending channel. With four of the top five reverse lenders in the country already using its Mortgage Cadence Orchestrator application, the company says there is a desperate need for reverse lending POS software that is easy to use and interfaces well with origination platforms at the nation's largest reverse mortgage lending firms.

Posted by S. Germain at 09:38 AM | Comments (0)

Compass Buys Tuttle From Lion

Compass Analytics LLC, has announced the acquisition of LION Inc.'s Tuttle Risk Management Services unit and related assets. The terms of the deal were not disclosed. According to the announcement, the combination creates "the largest outsourced risk management provider in the industry." A company spokesman said the two entities would continue to operate independently until a common platform is created.

Posted by S. Germain at 09:36 AM | Comments (0)

CBC, DataVerify Merge

CBC Cos., a provider of credit and risk management solutions based in Columbus, Ohio, has merged with DataVerify, a provider of mortgage risk assessment and fraud prevention systems based in Chesterfield, Mo. CBC said it will leverage DataVerify's fraud and data integrity analytics, rules, and scoring to help solve mortgage risk problems faced by financial markets and institutions. DataVerify's solutions automate most of the data validation steps in the lending process.

Posted by S. Germain at 09:35 AM | Comments (0)

Loan-Score Uses DU to Access FHA

Loan-Score Decisioning Systems LLC, has announced the integration of its automated underwriting platform with Fannie Mae's Desktop Underwriter. The company said the integration offers instant and accurate determination of "product eligibility, pricing, and complex underwriting for all types of loan products." Particularly noteworthy, the company said, is that the DU integration also allows lenders to access the Federal Housing Administration's AU system, TOTAL Mortgage Scorecard for the underwriting of FHA loans. Because Loan-Score's AUS retrieves and stores the actual DU findings data, along with the unique Fannie Mae Casefile ID, Loan-Score said its clients are enabled to sell to Fannie Mae-approved seller-servicers.

Posted by S. Germain at 09:34 AM | Comments (0)

Beige Book Reports Glut of Unsold Homes

A "glut" of unsold homes is putting downward pressure on prices and construction, while mortgage delinquencies have "increased significantly" in many areas, according to the Federal Reserve Board's Beige Book. The November survey also noted that local contacts generally don't expect a pickup in home construction until well into next year at the earliest. Meanwhile, "residential mortgage lending continued its downward slide," the Beige Book says.

Posted by S. Germain at 09:32 AM | Comments (0)

RealtyTrac: Foreclosures Rose in October

More than 224,000 foreclosure filings were reported nationwide in October, up 2% from the level recorded in September and up 94% from that of a year earlier, according to RealtyTrac. The nation's foreclosure rate stood at one foreclosure filing for every 555 households, the company said in its October 2007 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report. (Foreclosure filings include default notices, auction sale notices, and bank repossessions.)

Posted by S. Germain at 09:31 AM | Comments (0)

Calyx Software Now Offers Automated Verification of Employment and Income

Calyx Software® announced a verification of employment and income (VOE/VOI) category within the Calyx Network, connecting users of Calyx Point® loan origination software to participating employment and income verification vendors.

Posted by S. Germain at 09:24 AM | Comments (0)

Abu Dhabi to invest $7.5 billion in Citigroup

Wall Street rebounded Tuesday after the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority said it will invest $7.5 billion in Citigroup Inc. -- a vote of confidence for the nation's largest bank, which has suffered severe losses amid the ongoing crisis in the mortgage market.

Major financial institutions, including Citi and its competitors, have had to book some $80 billion of writedowns on holdings -- a trend that has left the markets nervous about the full extent of the damage from soured loans. Citi's ability to secure a capital injection raised hope others might be able to do the same.

Posted by S. Germain at 09:18 AM | Comments (0)

BofA: No comment on Citi merger speculation

Bank of America Corp. declines to comment on a published report that says Citigroup Inc. recently rejected a suggested merger with the Charlotte-based bank.

On Wednesday, The Wall Street Journal reported a "prominent investment banker," whom the paper did not name, pitched the idea a few months ago of a Citigroup-BofA merger to Citigroup. But the New York-based bank's board dismissed the idea as "totally out of hand."

According to The Journal, BofA said it did not authorize a formal approach to Citigroup.

Posted by S. Germain at 09:15 AM | Comments (0)

Schwarzenegger, Servicers Agree To Foreclosure Prevention Plan

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has teamed with loan servicers from Countrywide, GMAC, Litton and HomeEq to agree to streamline fast-track procedures designed to help keep more subprime borrowers in their homes. Together, the four firms service more than 25% of issued subprime mortgage loans.

The agreement Schwarzenegger negotiated with the servicers builds off a proposal put forward by Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. chairwoman Sheila Bair that encourages lending agencies to keep subprime mortgage borrowers at their initial interest rate if they are living in their home, making timely payments, but cannot afford the loan rate reset. A half-million Californians have subprime loans that will jump to higher rates in the next two years, the governor’s office adds.

Posted by S. Germain at 09:10 AM | Comments (0)

Bank of America Expands Government Lending Fulfillment Operations

Bank of America plans to open a second fulfillment center for government loan processing due to the robust demand for its FHA and VA loan products. The bank says applications for government loan programs now account for about 18 percent of total volume in its retail sales channel, compared to the low single digits in 2006; and its production volume for FHA and VA loans is projected to reach nearly $2 billion this year, more than double the volume from last year.

Posted by S. Germain at 09:04 AM | Comments (0)

Bracing for Home Loan Losses, Wells Fargo to Take Big Charge

Losses on home equity loans will force Wells Fargo & Co. to take a $1.4 billion charge for the fourth quarter. The second-largest mortgage lender in the country, which also expects to write off $1 billion next year and in 2009, has been able to avoid many of the problems in the credit and capital markets until now. Wells Fargo also announced that it would no longer use indirect channels to originate or acquire home equity loans and that $11.9 billion, or about 3 percent of total loans outstanding, will be placed in a special liquidating portfolio.

Posted by S. Germain at 09:02 AM | Comments (0)

OFHEO: No Change to Conforming Limit

The Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight has announced that the conforming loan limit will remain at its current level of $417,000 in 2008. In light of ongoing home-price declines, the agency decided not to raise the maximum amount on mortgages that can be purchased by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The limit was last changed three years ago.

Posted by S. Germain at 09:02 AM | Comments (0)

Fed to Inject $8 Billion to Lubricate Economy

The Federal Reserve on Nov. 28 will issue an $8 billion, low-interest loan to the nation's banks, which must be repaid on Jan. 10. Although the infusion of cash is larger than normal and comes earlier in the fourth quarter than usual, economists say the move is justified because concerns about the credit market has banks even more reluctant to provide peer institutions with overnight loans at this time of year. Market pressure to lower the federal funds rate next month could also ease as a result of the central bank's decision to pump up liquidity in the financial system.

Posted by S. Germain at 09:00 AM | Comments (0)

Bank of America Takes Lead in Backing 'SuperSIV' Fund

Bank of America Corp. has agreed to spearhead efforts by Citigroup Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. to convince smaller rivals to help finance the "SuperSIV fund," which essentially is an $80 billion bailout of short-term debt markets. Championed by Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, the fund's mission would be to purchase assets from structured investment vehicles (SIVs), whose $300 billion of holdings include corporate and mortgage debt in danger of default. Some analysts, though, have blasted the proposal for its potential to mire new participants in losses created by their larger competitors.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:58 AM | Comments (0)

Greenspan: Home Prices Still Falling

The housing market has yet to bottom out, and home prices nationwide will continue to fall, predicts former Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan. He does not foresee a recession, however, due to economic flexibility created as a result of bipartisan deregulation of the financial markets, among other factors. Greenspan says he does not regret the stance he took on housing while at the helm of the central bank, even though some observers believe he helped to create a housing bubble by holding interest rates down for an extended period.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:57 AM | Comments (0)

November 16, 2007

Countrywide Delinquencies

Posted by S. Germain at 09:08 AM | Comments (0)

First American CoreLogic Unveils Loan Workflow Management Tool

First American CoreLogic has introduced Atone, a secure Web-based workflow management tool that is designed to streamline loan decisions and reduce costs by providing a single meeting place and document repository for all parties involved in each mortgage loan.

The product eliminates expensive customization and long IT lead times typically required, running in parallel with any existing loan origination system. Users log on to a secure Web site, and loan records can be uploaded or created based on results of First American CoreLogic’s risk analysis products.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:56 AM | Comments (0)

First American First Lien Outsourcing Partners with National Bankruptcy Services, LLC for End-to-End Default Management Solutions

First American First Lien Outsourcing, a member of The First American Corporation (NYSE:FAF) family of companies, announced today that it has partnered with National Bankruptcy Services (NBS), the nation’s premier provider of bankruptcy administration and vendor management services, to jointly provide default management and administrative outsourcing services to mortgage lenders and servicers.

Read the entire story here.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:53 AM | Comments (0)

Marketlinx® and Most Home Real Estate Services Renew Agreement

MarketLinx, Inc., a leading provider of information technology to the residential real estate industry and Most Home Real Estate Services, a wholly owned subsidiary of Most Home Corp. (OTCBB: MHME), today announced the renewal of their reseller and original equipment manufacturer agreement. Through this agreement, MarketLinx offers Most Home’s leading wireless multiple listing service (MLS) solution to its more than 140 MLS customers through the MarketLinx MLS Wireless product.

Read the entire story here.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:52 AM | Comments (0)

First American Mortgage Information Services Group Awarded Best Regional Corporate Diversity Program by The Mortgage Bankers Association

The First American Corporation announced that its Mortgage Information Services Group’s diversity program has been selected as the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) 2007 Best Overall Regional Corporate Diversity Program. In addition, division President Barry Sando has been selected as the MBA’s 2007 Diversity Champion of the Year.

Read the entire story here.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:51 AM | Comments (0)

FIS expands relationship with The Bankers Bank

Fidelity National Information Services Inc. has reached an agreement that expands its relationship with The Bankers Bank, which provides services to community banks across the country.

The Bankers Bank will remarket FIS' payment processing and network services to its clients, which include more than 1,400 community financial institutions.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:47 AM | Comments (0)

Fidelity National Information Services Is Named Top Financial Services Technology Provider

Fidelity National Information Services, Inc. has been recognized as the number one financial services technology provider worldwide in the "FinTech 100" report. This annual report, published by American Banker and the research firm Financial Insights, ranks the world's leading technology providers to the financial services industry.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:46 AM | Comments (0)

Fidelity Announces the Release of its Redesigned, Enhanced LAMPS Version 2.10

Fidelity National Real Estate Solutions Inc. has announced the release of LAMPSTM v2.10, a redesigned and enhanced upgrade of its association management solution. The release, currently being deployed to more than 175,000 LAMPS users, includes both new capabilities and improved functionality in existing features.

Launched by Bravepoint in 2004, the company says that LAMPS was the first Web-based system to offer real-time integration with the National Association of REALTORS® database. It has two entirely Web-based modules that allow 24/7 access: an Intranet module for the association’s administrative team and an Internet module by which REALTORS® can submit, retrieve and update their information at any time.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:45 AM | Comments (0)

Fidelity National launches new real estate Web site

The real estate division of Fidelity National Financial formally launched www.cyberhomes.com, a Web site tested for the last year.

The site offers users the usual home value estimates and listings, but adds information about schools in the neighborhood of interest, the economy and population, and the quality of life potential buyers can expect.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:43 AM | Comments (0)

PropertyInfo Corporation, a Stewart Company, Announces SureClose Personal Edition(TM), the Next Generation in REALTOR(R) Transaction Management

SureClose Personal Edition gives real estate professionals the ability to manage their business online to increase productivity, expand service offerings, improve communication and the customer experience.

SureClose Personal Edition is accessible to real estate professionals and their clients 24/7 via the Internet. The system provides an integrated toolkit to: Manage documents online, Track the status of transactions, Brand real estate agency and services, Edit images from within the system, Invite parties into the transaction for peer-to-peer collaboration and Order title and closing services.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:41 AM | Comments (0)

Stewart Title Announces Green Title Insurance Initiative

Stewart's Green Title Policy enables environmentally sensitive customers to electronically order their title and escrow services, have their title commitment and closing statement sent electronically, read their closing documents online and close their home electronically. These offices will be paperless in their title and escrow process.

Stewart's Green Title Policy will use Stewart's online SureClose(R) transaction management and eClosingRoom(TM) technologies.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:38 AM | Comments (0)

NAR: 1 in 3 Homebuyers Put Up No Cash

Nearly one in three buyers between June 2006 and June 2007 had no skin in their deals, according to new research that represents further evidence of the poor quality of loans that helped fuel the rising tide of delinquencies and foreclosures. Though the study of nearly 10,000 transactions by the National Association of Realtors did not note whether the loans were prime or subprime, it found that 29% of all buyers -- and 45% of all first-timers -- financed the entire purchase price. Somewhat surprisingly, considering that they usually have money from the sale of their previous residence to put into the transaction, 18% of repeat buyers also put up none of their own money. In addition, the study found that more existing-home buyers than new-home purchasers used 100% financing, 30% vs. 25%. More than half -- 53% -- of all buyers made downpayments of 10% or less, and almost three out of four -- 72% -- financed 80% or more of what they paid. As for the source of their downpayments, 10% of all buyers used money from gifts, 8% sold stocks or bonds, 6% raided their retirement accounts, and 3% got a loan from a relative or a friend.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:34 AM | Comments (0)

Nationstar Exits Subprime

Subprime lender Nationstar Mortgage says it is no longer funding A-minus to D loans. In March 2006, a unit of Fortress Investment Group agreed to purchase Centex Home Equity Co., Dallas, in a deal valued at about $575 million. After the sale, Fortress changed CHEC's name to Nationstar. At the time of the deal, CHEC was the nation's 28th-largest subprime lender.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:32 AM | Comments (0)

MRG's Miracle DocPrep Used by 1,250th Subscriber

MRG Document Technologies (MRG), a provider of document preparation services for the financial industry, announced that its Miracle DocPrep product has reached a milestone of 1,250 subscribers.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:22 AM | Comments (0)

Fair Isaac and PRBC Team Up to Enhance Credit Risk Tools Used by Mortgage Industry

Fair Isaac Corporation and Payment Reporting Builds Credit® (PRBC®), a credit information repository that collects, verifies and scores rental and bill payment data, today announced a new collaboration. They will deliver PRBC Credit Report with FICO® Expansion® Score, a comprehensive credit risk management tool that U.S. mortgage lenders can use when assessing the risk of applicants who have little or no traditional credit history.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:21 AM | Comments (0)

IBM Mortgage Unit Accelerates Market Presence

IBM Lender Business Process Services, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of IBM specializing in mortgage origination services, announced today that it was recently approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to conduct mortgage origination services for federally insured Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans. It has also obtained regulatory approvals and licenses to provide these services in the vast majority of states, and intends to complete the state licensing process by the end of this year.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:20 AM | Comments (0)

IMM's TotaleAtlas Interfaced With Equifax APPRO

Integrated Media Management has interfaced its TotaleAtlas solution with the Equifax APPRO platform for an end-to-end automated document delivery solution that speeds up the lending process, according to the companies.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:11 AM | Comments (0)

Informative Research Announces Mortgage Info Application

Credit information provider Informative Research has developed OriginatorDirect - a new Web-based mortgage information application that is intended to give credit reporting agencies and wholesale lenders an alternative to costly technology connections and out-of-the-box software packages.

OriginatorDirect will give subscribing CRAs their own private-label credit portals, affording them direct access to the Informative Research Web-based credit system, as well as tradeline verifications, flood determinations, mortgage fraud insurance, automated property valuation and other mortgage-related services. The CRAs can then provide their broker customers direct access to these products and services.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:09 AM | Comments (0)

Mortgage Contracting Services Redesigns Web Site

Mortgage Contracting Services (MCS), a provider of property preservation and inspection services to the mortgage industry, has launched a newly designed version of its Web site.

The site now includes interactive content and community features, in addition to being populated daily with relevant industry news. There is also a portal to log in to MCS360, the company’s automated workflow application that enables the transfer of information between MCS, its vendor network and its customers in real time.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:08 AM | Comments (0)

Bank Of America Expands Reverse Mortgage Business

Bank of America has made its Senior Equity Reverse Mortgage suite of products available in Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina. Later this month, the bank will expand into Florida and northern California.

The company notes that this expansion into the Southeast follows its recent reverse mortgage acquisition from Seattle Mortgage Co., which marketed its products under Reverse Mortgage of America.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:06 AM | Comments (0)

Mortgage Cadence Plans New Reverse Mortgage POS System

Mortgage Cadence Inc. has announced that it will provide a new point of sale (POS) technology - Mortgage Cadence Prelude - specifically designed for use by lenders working with reverse mortgages.

Mortgage Cadence Prelude will not be a pre-configured version of Mortgage Cadence Orchestrator. Rather, the new product is a true POS software specifically written for the reverse mortgage market.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:05 AM | Comments (0)

Zoot Develops Custom Application User Interface

Zoot, a provider of advanced credit decisioning and loan origination solutions, has internally released a new development tool - the Zoot User Interface (ZUI), which enables financial institutions to rapidly deploy custom applications.

ZUI facilitates the creation of loan origination interface screens and the database interaction layer necessary to provide banks with the application entry and manual underwriting functionality needed to issue credit.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:04 AM | Comments (0)

Countrywide: Loan Fundings Drop in October

Calabasas, California-based Countrywide Financial Corp. reported Tuesday that mortgage loan fundings for the month of October, as well as the company's average daily mortgage loan application activity, fell last month when compared to the same period in 2006.

More specifically, the lending giant said mortgage loan fundings in October hit $22 billion—a 48-percent decline from October of last year. Meanwhile, average daily mortgage loan application activity hit $1.8 billion—a 34-percent decrease from October of 2006. And, the company says, "The mortgage loan pipeline was $41 billion at October 31, 2007, as compared to $61 billion for the same period last year."

Posted by S. Germain at 08:02 AM | Comments (0)

Controversial H.R. 3915 Hits the House Floor

A house reform bill that has raised a few eyebrows in the mortgage banking industry is scheduled to hit the house floor. Reform bill H.R. 3915 -- otherwise known as the Mortgage Reform and Anti-Predatory Act -- aims to implement new lending standards that are designed to protect borrowers while also curtailing predatory lending in the mortgage market.

To date, the bill has its fair share of critics—including prominent industry organizations like the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) and the National Association of Mortgage Brokers (NAMB)—who have criticized the bill for proposing regulations that will end up hurting borrowers on the front end by eliminating yield spread premiums that help homeowners avoid higher costs during loan origination. DSNews.com will provide full coverage when the voting results of H.R. 3915 are released.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:00 AM | Comments (0)

HSBC and Bear Stearns Increase Loan Write-Downs

HSBC Holdings says the "broader deterioration" of the U.S. housing market has forced it to set aside $3.4 billion to cover bad loans and adds that its housing losses are starting to spread to credit cards and other consumer loans. The investment bank has to earmark $1.4 billion more than it anticipated and says it could take three years to resolve its subprime mortgage problems.

Posted by S. Germain at 07:59 AM | Comments (0)

Foreclosures Hit a Snag for Lenders

The inability of Deutsche Bank National Trust Co. to prove to a federal judge in Ohio that it owned properties it was trying to seize in 14 foreclosure cases could cause problems for lenders seeking to reclaim properties from delinquent borrowers. Consumer advocates have complained that it has become more difficult for borrowers to work out their troubled mortgages because they are often unable to determine who holds the mortgage note once the home loan has been pooled into securities. "This is the miracle of not having securities mapped to the underlying loans," says Josh Rosner, a specialist in mortgage securities.

Posted by S. Germain at 07:58 AM | Comments (0)

Better Odds Seen for New RESPA Rewrite

With the national housing slump deepening, HUD has prepared yet another proposal to modernize the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) and has forwarded it to the Office of Management and Budget for review. While the new version of RESPA reform is fundamentally the same as the last one, killed three years ago, insiders who have had an early peek at the measure say it is likely to win over more parties than its predecessor--largely because it will not promote bundling of settlement services.

One point of contention appears to be the length of the good-faith estimate that borrowers would receive spelling out the details of their loan terms. HUD is planning a four-page document, which it says is easier for consumers to comprehend; while the National Association of Mortgage Brokers--the proposal's primary critic at this point--wants the estimate kept to a single page.

Posted by S. Germain at 07:56 AM | Comments (0)

Commercial/Multifamily Originations Dip in 3Q, MBA Says

Commercial/multifamily mortgage banker loan originations dipped in the third quarter, with originations 4 percent lower than during the same period last year, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Quarterly Survey of Commercial/Multifamily Mortgage Bankers Originations. The year-over-year decrease was seen across most property types and investor groups.

Posted by S. Germain at 07:55 AM | Comments (0)

BofA May Write Down $3 Billion

A write-down of $3 billion could be on the horizon for Bank of America, officials with the country's second-biggest bank have warned. Defaults on subprime mortgages have eroded the value of related debt securities at BofA, which CFO Joseph Price said may pay out as much as $600 million to funds that purchased the debt. BofA joins Citigroup, Morgan Stanley and Merrill Lynch & Co. in writing down assets tied to the slumping housing market. When all is said and done, according to Deutsche Bank AG analyst Mike Mayo, the biggest banks and brokers on Wall Street will have to write down as much as $130 billion--including up to $70 billion in 2007 alone.

Posted by S. Germain at 07:53 AM | Comments (0)

November 09, 2007

New Home Sales Sept. 07

Posted by S. Germain at 08:53 AM | Comments (0)

MarketLinx Launches MLXchange 4.0 Featuring Microsoft Virtual Earth

MarketLinx, Inc. announced the launch of the latest version of its popular Multiple Listing Service (MLS) system, MLXchange 4.0, which supports Microsoft Virtual Earth mapping software.

MarketLinx has signed an agreement with Microsoft Corp. to support Virtual Earth technology in its MLXchange™, TEMPO™ and InnoVia™ Multiple Listing Service (MLS) systems, which currently serve more than 620,000 real estate professionals in the United States and Canada.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:52 AM | Comments (0)

First American CoreLogic Named to FinTech List of Top 100 Financial Technology Providers

First American CoreLogic, a member of The First American Corporation family of companies, announced today that it has been named a top financial technology provider, ranking 82 out of 100, on the FinTech 100 list for 2007. The FinTech list is an annual international listing of the top financial technology companies published by American Banker and the research firm Financial Insights(TM).

The ranking of the top 100 technology providers is categorized and evaluated based on fiscal year-end revenues and the percentage of revenues attributed to financial services. Data is gathered from surveys completed by providers, as well as original research and market analysis conducted by Financial Insights

Posted by S. Germain at 08:50 AM | Comments (0)

Fidelity National Financial, Inc. Announces the Closing of the Ceridian Acquisition

Fidelity National Financial, Inc., along with its partner Thomas H. Lee Partners, announce the completion of the acquisition of Ceridian Corporation for approximately $5.3 billion. FNF contributed approximately $525 million of the total $1.6 billion equity funding for the acquisition, resulting in a 33% ownership stake for FNF in Ceridian. The majority of FNF's equity contribution was funded through a borrowing under its existing bank credit facility.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:49 AM | Comments (0)

Fidelity Expands Product Lines to Further Paperless Revolution

SoCalMLS, the second largest Multiple Listing Service in the United States, announced that it is launching DocCentralTM, a new document management system from Fidelity National Real Estate Solutions.

DocCentral has been designed as a simple, intuitive and cost-effective tool that allows real estate professionals to manage and organize their documents. Documents are stored on secure servers and accessible online 24/7 by agents and the clients and vendors they authorize. By taking transaction documentation off agent laptops and out of filing cabinets, DocCentral eliminates redundancy, safeguards information, and ensures there will always be enough space for even the largest document files.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:48 AM | Comments (0)

AppraiserLoft.com, a Nationwide Real Estate Appraisal Portal, Debuts with Proprietary Technology

AppraiserLoft.com is a nationwide appraisal company with the highest standards in finding the true value of your property. AppraiserLoft.com utilizes a nationwide network of over 4,000 appraisers in every state and zip code in the U.S., including Hawaii and Alaska, as well as FHA and VA appraisers. All appraisers are pre-screened and state certified professionals with verifiable track records. AppraiserLoft is for any individual or company that needs a real estate appraisal.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:45 AM | Comments (0)

Byte Software Releases BytePro 2.1

This latest edition to Byte Software's suite of products boasts enhanced management reports, Web Services and an all-new Software Development Kit (SDK). Additional features include interfaces to new credit and marketing partners as well as added support for ARM and interest-only loans.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:43 AM | Comments (0)

ICBA Teams With Wolters Kluwer Financial Services to Offer Community Banks BSA and AML Technology Solutions

Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) announced today that the organization has expanded its Preferred Service Provider relationship with Wolters Kluwer Financial Services to include the company's Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) and anti- money laundering (AML) solutions, which are part of Wolters Kluwer Financial Services PCi line of compliance analytics solutions.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:38 AM | Comments (0)

Investors Title profit swells on investments, premiumsTriangle Business Journal

The Chapel Hill company, which sells title insurance to mortgage banks and homeowners, said Tuesday that income was $3.86 million, or $1.54 per diluted share, in the quarter. A year prior, it was $3.6 million, or $1.44 per diluted share. Revenue increased to $23.1 million from $21.7 million.

Investors Title (Nasdaq: ITIC) said investment income increased 25 percent, to $1.3 million, in the quarter. Net premiums written, which account for the great majority of the company's revenue, jumped 4 percent, to $19 million, after slipping in the second quarter in the midst of a weak real-estate market.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:36 AM | Comments (0)

20 Mortgage Service Providers Added to Calyx Software Network

Calyx Software®, the mortgage industry’s leading provider of loan marketing, originating and processing software, has expanded the Calyx Network® with a new network interface update. The November Calyx Network Interface update contains connections to 20 mortgage service providers and includes the first commercial lender, Silver Hill Financial.

Read the entire story here.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:31 AM | Comments (0)

Fed chief shakes up market

The nation's top banker drew a dreary sketch of the economy Thursday, telling Congress that growth is slowing "noticeably" while risks of inflation continue.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said a surge in mortgage delinquencies has contributed to "financial market volatility and strains" at a time when rising oil and commodity prices and a weaker dollar are adding to the problems.

Read the entire story here.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:27 AM | Comments (0)

Wachovia Corp. takes $1.1 billion more in credit losses

Wachovia Corp. took $1.1 billion more in credit losses in October, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Wachovia also expects to record a loan-loss provision in the fourth quarter of $500 million to $600 million in excess of charge-offs for the quarter.

The news follows the Charlotte, N.C.-based bank's disclosure last month that it had written down $1.3 billion in the third quarter for mortgage-backed securities and loans from leveraged buyouts. Wachovia (NYSE: WB) quadrupled its loan-loss provisions in the latest quarter to $408 million.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:25 AM | Comments (0)

ReverseMortgageAppraisers.com Set To Launch

A nationwide group of appraisers has created a reverse mortgage appraiser cooperative - www.ReverseMortgageAppraisers.com - that is designed to promote ethical appraisal practices and assist customers in finding qualified appraisers.

The online cooperative will accept only appraisers who subscribe to a code of ethics, the group says, adding that the reverse mortgage industry is currently growing by almost 100% per year. The cooperative encourages lenders to save their borrowers money by using the new Web site - rather than appraisal management companies - to directly locate appraisers.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:19 AM | Comments (0)

Proposed House Bill Introduces New Servicing Requirements

The Escrow, Appraisal and Mortgage Servicing Improvements Act (H.R.2837) would amend several previous mortgage servicing laws and require certain new practices of servicers.

According to the bill’s text, the purposes of this legislation are "to require escrows for certain mortgage loans, to improve mortgage servicing, to promote sustainable homeownership opportunities, to enhance appraisal quality and standards, to better appraisal oversight, to mitigate appraiser pressure" and to achieve additional unspecified goals. Among the areas of focus are practices related to default, late fees and foreclosure, and the bill instructs the secretary of Housing and Urban Development to study and report to relevant congressional committees on mortgage servicing fraud.

H.R.2837 would specifically amend the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act of 1974 to "proscribe specified practices by the servicer of a federally related mortgage, including obtaining force-placed hazard insurance coverage to protect the mortgagee’s interest in the property," and amend the Truth in Lending Act to "require a creditor, in a consumer credit transaction secured by the consumer’s principal dwelling, to establish an escrow or impound account to pay taxes and hazard insurance, and, if applicable, flood insurance, mortgage insurance, ground rents, and any other required periodic payments or premiums."

Posted by S. Germain at 08:17 AM | Comments (0)

BoA Picks Clarifire to Automate Processes

eMason Inc. has announced Bank of America's implementation of the eMason Clarifire enterprise-level application to automate workflow processes and communications with vendors and enable managing by exception. The company said that within 30 days of implementing Clarifire, 3,600 Bank of America internal and external users had reduced paper, phone calls, and e-mail by more than 90%; increased end-to-end process efficiency; and realized a 25% reduction in the cost of business. First implemented on the mortgage side to handle foreclosures, bankruptcies, and loss mitigation, Clarifire is now being implemented in the bank's consumer-lending division to automate handling of car loans and other consumer products.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:12 AM | Comments (0)

Cogent Road Automates Credit, Pricing for Brokers

Cogent Road, a provider of Internet-based applications headquartered in San Diego, has launched Funding Suite, a redesigned database architecture underlying the credit report that allows new opportunities and products for brokers. Included in Funding Suite are the following features: Intelligent Credit Report with X-Ray technology; dynamic reimbursement; PaySaver loan officer billing option; automatic discounting; and universal credit file reissuing.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:10 AM | Comments (0)

Cuomo Subpoenas GSEs in Loan Probe

New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said Wednesday that his office will subpoena Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as part of a widening probe of the residential mortgage industry. Among other things, the subpoenas seek information on mortgages purchased by the government-sponsored enterprises from their seller/servicers, including Washington Mutual of Seattle. The GSEs also agreed to a demand by the New York AG that they hire an independent examiner to conduct a review of all WaMu appraisals on mortgages they purchased.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:09 AM | Comments (0)

ResMae Stops Funding Again

ResMae Mortgage of LaBrea, Calif., says it has once again suspended wholesale production but will honor commitments made prior to Nov. 6. Earlier this year ResMae was bought out of bankruptcy by Citadel Investment Group LLC, a hedge fund. Citadel purchased ResMae's assets -- including its servicing operation -- for $180 million, beating out Credit Suisse in an auction. Among subprime wholesalers, ResMae ranked 14th in 2006.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:09 AM | Comments (0)

Morgan Stanley Takes Big Subprime-Linked Hit

Morgan Stanley has written down its revenue by $3.7 billion (about $2.5 billion after taxes) due to the deterioration in value of U.S. subprime mortgage-related exposures since August. The company said the writedowns would likely hurt its fixed-income business' fourth-quarter results, but that relative gains in other business lines may offset the concern.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:07 AM | Comments (0)

BB&T Buys Finances Company

Looking to expand its commercial lending operations, BB&T confirms that it has acquired Collateral Real Estate Capital for an undisclosed sum. Operating the new moniker of Grandbridge Real Estate Capital, the Charlotte-based company boasts a commercial property servicing portfolio of approximately $20 billion.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:03 AM | Comments (0)

Sub-Prime Crisis Claims Boss of Biggest Bank

Citigroup's Charles Prince announced during an emergency board meeting on Nov. 4 that he will step down as CEO because of the Wall Street firm's subprime mortgage lending problems. After an analyst predicted that Citigroup would follow up October's $5.9 billion write-off with a $4 billion hit, the nation's largest banking company announced that it could face an additional $11 billion in mortgage-related losses.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:02 AM | Comments (0)

November 02, 2007

Top Originators Q3 07

Posted by S. Germain at 08:48 AM | Comments (0)

The First American Corporation Announces Financial Results For The Third Quarter of 2007

First American's press release announcing its third quarter financial results for 2007 is available to download as a PDF by clicking the link below.

Read the entire story here.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:43 AM | Comments (0)

RP Data and First American CoreLogic Announce Automated Valuation Model (AVM) Agreement with Genworth Financial

RP Data, Ltd., the largest supplier of property information services in Australia and New Zealand, and First American CoreLogic, Inc. nnounced that Genworth Financial has signed an agreement to license RP Data’s advanced set of automated valuation models (AVMs) for use in the Australian residential property market.

Genworth Financial, a leading provider of lenders mortgage insurance and credit enhancement product solutions in Australia and New Zealand, is the first customer to benefit from RP Data’s recent introduction of enhanced automated valuation models using the proprietary algorithms and advanced analytics available from First American CoreLogic.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:42 AM | Comments (0)

First American LoanPerformance Announces Availability of Riskmodel™ 4.0 Analytics Solution

First American LoanPerformance announced the availability of RiskModel 4.0, its industry-leading analytics solution which forecasts future mortgage prepayments, defaults, losses and projected cash flows.

Read the entire story here.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:40 AM | Comments (0)

Latest Issue of First American LoanPerformance MarketPulse Report Features Deutsche Bank Study

First American LoanPerformance announced that the latest issue of its MarketPulse report is available for download at www.loanperformance.com.

This latest report features a new white paper titled, “The Impact of Underwriting Subprime ARMs at the Fully Indexed Rate: An Analysis of Debt-to-income Ratios,” by Karen Weaver, managing director, global head of securitization research and regional research head for the Americas; and Katie Reeves, director, global securitization research for Deutsche Bank.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:39 AM | Comments (0)

First American Title Insurance Company Offers Assistance to Homeowner Fire Victims in Southern California

First American Title Insurance Company announced today that it will replace recorded mortgage documents, property tax information, recorded deeds and tax assessor maps at no charge for homeowners who lost their homes in the recent fires in Southern California.

In addition to complimentary document replacement, First American is offering a 40 percent discount on title insurance for fire victims securing a new deed of trust or a construction loan on those lost properties.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:38 AM | Comments (0)

LandAmerica posts quarterly loss

LandAmerica Financial Group Inc posted a quarterly loss on Tuesday, hurt by a decline in the U.S. residential real estate market. The Richmond, Virginia-based company posted a third-quarter loss of $20.8 million, or $1.28 a share, compared with net income of $15.2 million, or 89 cents a share, a year earlier.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:32 AM | Comments (0)

Countrywide Reports a Net Loss of $1.2 Billion

The lender said its losses in the third quarter totaled $1.2 billion, or $2.85 per diluted share, compared to a net income of $648 million, or $1.03 per diluted share, for the third quarter of 2006.

“Countrywide's results for the third quarter of 2007reflect the impact of unprecedented disruptions in the U.S. mortgage market and the global capital markets, as well as continued weakening in the housing market,” said Angelo R. Mozilo, chairman and chief executive officer of Countrywide. “However, during the period we also laid the foundation for a return to profitability in the fourth quarter. Countrywide has responded decisively and taken the steps we believe are necessary to address the current challenging market environment.”

Posted by S. Germain at 08:27 AM | Comments (0)

Countrywide & Nonprofit Focus on Loss Mit

Countrywide Financial Corp. is offering its struggling borrowers a way out of trouble by partnering with the Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America (NACA)--a nonprofit that offers home retention programs and individual counseling for struggling homeowners.

Using its traditional Home Save approach, NACA will reach out to distressed Countrywide borrowers by offering individual counseling and loss mitigation plans, that with Countrywide's approval, can take effect and save the life of a loan.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:27 AM | Comments (0)

Software provides lenders with at-a-glance risk assessment.

Compatible with scoring models for all 3 bureaus, CreditXpert AU Filter(TM) helps lenders assess impact of authorized user accounts on borrower's credit. Solution compares credit files, including and excluding authorized user accounts, enabling lenders to take true risk impact into consideration when underwriting loans. Solution also provides reason codes that could be used in declining loans, written in consumer-friendly manner for applicant comprehension.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:20 AM | Comments (0)

Wolters Kluwer and Ellie Mae integrate closing and document preparation products

Wolters Kluwer Financial Services and Ellie Mae have announced a partnership agreement that will create a seamless integration between Desert Document Services, Wolters Kluwer Financial Services' document preparation solution, and Encompass Closer, Ellie Mae's comprehensive closing solution that enables users to complete the entire closing process all in one system.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:19 AM | Comments (0)

Interthinx(R) Integrates FEMA Alerts Into FraudGuard(R) Providing Lenders With More Accurate Property Valuations

Interthinx®, Inc., the leading provider of proven risk mitigation, mortgage fraud prevention and regulatory compliance tools for the mortgage industry, has announced the immediate integration of FEMA Alerts into its FraudGuard® product. This enhancement automatically provides lenders with supplemental information when the subject property is located in an area where FEMA has issued an alert.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:18 AM | Comments (0)

PMI Group posts first loss in 17 years

PMI Group Inc., the second-largest U.S. mortgage insurer, posted its first quarterly loss since its 1995 public offering as borrower defaults rose in September, forcing the company to pay more to bail out lenders from bad loans. The company told investors Oct. 18 that it would lose about $1.05 a share after the default rate "significantly worsened" last month.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:16 AM | Comments (0)

Calyx Software Integrates Product and Pricing Engine Providers Into Point

Calyx Software® announced the addition of a product and pricing engine category to the Calyx Network, connecting users of Calyx Point® loan origination software to participating product and pricing engine (PPE) vendors. The new category is accessed within Calyx Point’s interfaces menu and includes six new companies offering PPE services.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:14 AM | Comments (0)

TietoEnator releases mortgage origination software

Mortgage Origination Suite is a completely new, end-to-end mortgage origination solution to manage the entire process of mortgage origination from point of sale to completion. Through online integration with credit reference agencies and AVM providers, intelligent product matching to meet customer preferences and a consistent adherence to lending and business rules, mortgage providers will be in a position to confirm unconditional offers in less than 30 minutes.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:12 AM | Comments (0)

First e-Recording in Northeast Pennsylvania, Filed by Abstract Resources via Landata e-Link(TM) Software

Mary Dysleski, Luzerne County Recorder of Deeds in Wilkes-Barre, has accepted the first electronic recording in Northeastern Pennsylvania. Abstract Resources submitted the real estate documents into the county’s LANDEX land records management system using Landata e-Link software.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:09 AM | Comments (0)

Chase Boosts Mortgage Lending

Chase has announced that it originated $39.2 billion in mortgages in the third quarter, an increase of 35% from the level recorded a year earlier. The company reported that its originations totaled $119 billion for the first nine months, a 33.6% increase, despite pullbacks by competitors.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:06 AM | Comments (0)

Radian Reports Big 3Q Loss

Radian Group Inc. has reported a net loss of $704 million for the third quarter, compared with net profits of $112 million ($1.36 per share) a year earlier. Among the factors contributing to the loss were an impairment for C-BASS, which accounted for $3.78 per share; marking to market net-interest-margin securities on its balance sheet, $2.96 per share; marking to market its financial guaranty business, $2.06 per share; a second-lien premium deficiency, $1.26 per share; and a reserve for a collateralized debt obligation, $0.41 per share. These were partially offset by a gain on part of its stake in Sherman, which resulted in a $1.47-per-share benefit and an "all-other" benefit of $0.22 per share.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:05 AM | Comments (0)

BB&T Buys Collateral RE, Forms Grandbridge RE

BB&T Corp., Winston-Salem, N.C., has completed its acquisition of Collateral Real Estate Capital, Birmingham, Ala., combined it with its commercial mortgage banking arm, Laureate Capital LLC, and renamed the combined company Grandbridge Real Estate Capital LLC.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:04 AM | Comments (0)

Foreclosures Skyrocket in 3Q

Residential properties that are in some state of foreclosure rose 30% in the third quarter and doubled on a year-over-year basis, to 446,726 units, according to new figures released by RealtyTrac, Irvine, Calif. Nevada had the highest foreclosure rate in the nation, with one filing for every 61 households, according to RealtyTrac, a mortgage information company.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:03 AM | Comments (0)

Mortgage Refi Applications Soar

Demand for home loans jumped 3.8 percent during the week ended Oct. 26, buoyed by a 9.2 percent surge in requests for refinance, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. Both refi and overall loan application activity were at the highest levels seen in seven months. Despite a continued downward trend in borrowing costs that has boosted application volume, requests for purchase loans slipped 0.7 percent and approached a six-month low.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:01 AM | Comments (0)

Fed Cuts Key Interest Rate a Quarter-Point

The Federal Reserve reduced its benchmark interest rate for the second time in as many months, but suggested that the cut is likely to be the last one for some time. Falling home prices and tightening credit due to problems in the subprime mortgage market were key factors in the central bank's decision to lower the key interest rate by a quarter of a point to 4.5 percent on Oct. 31.

Posted by S. Germain at 08:00 AM | Comments (0)

Equifax Program Provides Lenders ARM Reset Alerts

Equifax Inc.'s new ARM Predictor aims to help mortgage, credit card and automobile lenders improve their loss-mitigation strategies by letting them know the likelihood that adjustable-rate mortgages obtained by their borrowers through other lenders will reset. ARM Predictor issues a score of 1 to 5 for each borrower, with 1 meaning that the borrower will not experience an ARM reset and 5 signifying an 80-percent chance of an ARM reset.

Posted by S. Germain at 07:57 AM | Comments (0)