Foreclosure

The market has been battered by reports of continuing home price depreciation with both the Clear Capital and S&P/Case-Shiller indices confirming that national readings have fallen below the double-dip mark. But data released Wednesday by CoreLogic provided a flicker of improvement - at least from the short-term view. The company says its index shows home prices in the U.S. rose 0.7 percent between March and April. It's the first such increase since the homebuyer tax credit expired in mid-2010, and that reading includes distressed sales.

Wells Fargo will host a free workshop Thursday for Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, Wells Fargo Financial, Wachovia Mortgage, and Wells Fargo Home Equity customers facing financial hardships. Hundreds of South Carolina homeowners are invited to the event in Columbia, South Carolina. About 50 home retention team members will be on hand to work one-on-one with customers to explore options such as workouts and loan modifications.

Both new foreclosure actions and completed foreclosure sales took a dive in April after rising sharply the month before, according to industry data released Wednesday. Foreclosure starts nationwide totaled approximately 163,000 in April, while foreclosure sales dropped to 73,000, reports the industry alliance HOPE NOW. At the same time, though, proprietary loan modifications also declined. HOPE NOW says the performance of these loan mods has remained ""steady,"" with a re-default rate of 20 percent.

Freddie Mac borrowers whose homes were damaged or destroyed by the recent storms in the Midwest can now take advantage of the GSE's full menu of relief policies. Homeowners residing in counties declared major disaster areas by President Obama are eligible for assistance. Freddie Mac's disaster relief policies allow servicers the discretion to reduce or suspend mortgage payments for up to 12 months.

The Justice Department announced a settlement with Bank of America and Saxon Mortgage to resolve allegations that the companies wrongfully foreclosed on active duty service members without obtaining court orders, a violation of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA). The combined settlements represent more than $22 million in monetary victim relief. Both companies have also agreed to repair negative credit reporting related to the foreclosures and will not pursue remaining amounts owed under the mortgages.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have both reported another drop in the share of single-family home mortgages they hold that are 90 or more days delinquent. Fannie's serious delinquency rate declined 17 basis points to 4.27 percent. Freddie's fell 6 basis points to 3.57 percent. Except for one blip of an increase last September for Freddie, the GSEs have seen their serious delinquencies fall for 12 months. The servicing alignment initiative announced by the two companies is expected to speed the resolution process for past-due loans.

CitiMortgage and Neighborhood Housing Services of South Florida will host a free homeowner outreach event in Miami for distressed homeowners on Wednesday. Part of the Citi Road to Recovery Homeowner Assistance Series, the event is open to all homeowners who are struggling with mortgage payments.

Modified mortgages held by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac could go up for sale at some point, according to the companies' regulator. Since the GSEs were seized by the government, they have completed modifications on 849,000 mortgages. The sale of these assets is one option being discussed as part of a strategy to shrink their portfolios. The head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency told lawmakers that they are looking at a range of possible structures for disposing of certain assets, which could include non-performing and modified loans.

Four senators have drafted a letter they intend to send to key policymakers advocating for the return of federal dollars to HUD's housing counselor program. Congress eliminated funding slated for the federal program, which supports counseling efforts for foreclosure prevention, back in April as part of the 2011 budget resolution. Sens. Akaka, Menendez, Snowe, and Rockefeller are asking that $87.5 million be included in the 2012 budget to fund the HUD program, and they're soliciting their Senate colleagues for additional support.

While home sales have slowed from the typical pace seen at the start of the spring buying season, Radar Logic says the foreclosure market is performing better than the market for all other homes. The company's count of motivated transactions - which includes sales at foreclosure auctions and subsequent bank-owned properties - has posted significantly stronger gains during the first part of this year than traditional home sales when compared to each market's historical performance. Radar Logic credits investment buyers for the foreclosure market's boost.