February 24, 2011 (Chris Moore) In what some might misconstrue as blackmail, the Wall Street Journal is reporting that the Obama Administration is trying to push through a settlement over mortgage-servicing breakdowns that would force America’s largest banks to pay for principal writedowns in mortgage loans or face penalties of over $20 billion. Read more...
February 24, 2011 (Jeff Alan) Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland economist O. Emre Ergungor is advancing the theory that the government can increase long-term housing sustainability by implementing a homebuyer down payment assistance program as opposed to interest rate subsidies. Read more...
February 24, 2011 (Chris Moore) Recent research and studies are calling into question whether or not the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 (BAPCPA) was a contributor to the ensuing mortgage crisis and economic recession. Researchers in the study claim that immediately following the implementation of the bankruptcy reform, the number of [...]
February 24, 2011 (Chris Moore) RealtyTrac released its Year End and Q4 U.S. Foreclosure Sales Report which disclosed that foreclosures accounted for nearly 26 percent of all residential sales nationwide last year. That was a decrease of 29 percent from the year before and 23 percent lower than 2008. The decrease was attributed to the [...]
February 23, 2011 (Shirley Allen) According to the data collected on February 22, 2010, for LendingTree’s Weekly Mortgage Rate Pulse, average home loan rates offered by network lenders was 5.16 percent (5.39% APR) for 30-year fixed mortgages, which is down from 5.25 percent the week before, 4.37 percent (4.70% APR) for 15-year fixed mortgages, which [...]
February 23, 2011 (Chris Moore) The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) today released its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending February 18, 2011. The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, increased 13.2 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from last week. Read more...
February 23, 2011 (Jeff Alan) Wells Fargo & Co. has agreed to settle a lawsuit that alleges the bank harmed veterans by charging improperly high fees on mortgages. Wells Fargo has agreed to refund up to $10 million in fees to eligible military veterans who refinanced their mortgage with the bank. Wells Fargo has now [...]
February 23, 2011 (Shirley Allen) The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) released its December Monthly Report which showed that the agencies Real Estate Owned (REO) inventory was at 60,739 at the end of December, up 9.5 percent from 55,488 in November, and up 47.5 percent from December 2009. The report estimates the current value of its [...]
February 23, 2011 (Chris Moore) Calling the latest data released in its January report “an ominous sign,” Campbell/Inside Mortgage Finance reports in this month’s HousingPulse Tracking Survey that a staggering 49.6 percent of home purchase transactions were distressed properties, the highest level in nearly a year. Read more...
