Tag Archives: Foreclosure Prevention

With the mortgage industry reeling from foreclosure documentation problems, specialty servicers are in greater demand than ever to keep homes from entering the foreclosure process in the first place. Increasing demand requires greater efficiency to free up overwhelmed staffs, and specialty servicers like Wingspan Portfolio Advisors, are finding technology essential for maximizing both time and human resources. The company is employing DRI Management System's new Rincon solution to automate workflow tasks and handle more loans.

The Treasury Department released its monthly progress report on the administration's flagship foreclosure-prevention program Monday, and the results show that the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) is continuing to lose steam. Servicers completed just 28,000 permanent HAMP mods during the month of September - 16 percent fewer than the previous month. More than half of all mortgage mods initiated under HAMP have been terminated, but officials say the program's ""rigorous standards"" mean better post-mod performance.

On Monday, the Florida Housing Finance Corporation will launch a pilot program to help unemployed and underemployed homeowners with their mortgage payments. The pilot will test the waters for the state's planned use of its federal dollars allocated through the Treasury's Hardest Hit Fund. Assistance is only available to Lee County homeowners during the 90-day pilot period, but officials say they plan to go statewide during the first part of 2011.

IndiSoft announced Wednesday that Residential Credit Solutions (RCS) has deployed the company's RxOffice Loss Mitigation module. RCS is an integrated investment and servicing company focused on credit-sensitive residential mortgage loans. According to IndiSoft, the module streamlines RCS's processes while improving operating efficiencies for supporting loans in default.

The House Subcommittee on Housing and Community Opportunity will hold a hearing on the industry's foreclosure paperwork errors when Congress reconvenes next month. Congresswoman Maxine Waters, who chairs the subcommittee, expressed disappointment in Bank of America and GMAC Mortgage for lifting their foreclosure freezes this week. Waters has introduced legislation that would prohibit a bank from initiating foreclosure proceedings without offering the homeowner loss mitigation.

ServiceLink has unveiled a comprehensive, end-to-end default solution that allows servicers to bridge their current technology to the company's optimized loss mitigation and default technology and outsourcing services. ServiceLink says the goal is to help servicers and investors make the optimal workout decision while maximizing asset value and remaining in compliance with changing regulatory rules.

The Homeownership Preservation Foundation has partnered with NeighborWorks America, HUD, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law to help prevent foreclosure-rescue scams. The coalition is positioning the Homeowner's HOPE Hotline (1-888-995-HOPE) as a central point of contact for homeowners who think they may be victim of a scam. Information provided to the hotline is used by local, state, and federal agencies to shut down predatory companies victimizing distressed homeowners.

The Congressional Oversight Panel has ""significant concerns"" related to accountability and conflicts of interest because of Treasury's extensive use of private contractors to carry out functions for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), particularly foreclosure prevention efforts. The largest TARP contracts were awarded to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Fannie alone employs 600 workers on TARP's foreclosure programs, while Treasury has only 220 staffers working on all TARP programs combined.

JPMorgan Chase kicked off the third-quarter earnings season Wednesday, and the company says profits are up 23 percent from a year ago. JPMorgan brought in $4.4 billion in net income during the quarter, beating analysts' expectations. During a conference call with investors, CEO Jamie Dimon announced that the company has expanded its foreclosure review to 41 states and 115,000 loan files. He also said the bank will stop using the Mortgage Electronic Registration System (MERS).

It's no secret that the housing market in Southern Florida is bleak, but a new report from Condo Vultures, LCC reveals that things are looking up for the Sunshine State. The locally based tracking firm says lenders filed foreclosure actions on $3.5 billion in outstanding loans in South Florida during the third quarter, which is a 38 percent decrease compared to a year earlier. According to Condo Vultures, it looks as if 2009 could turn out to be the worst year for foreclosures in South Florida.