President Obama on Thursday announced his intent to nominate Carol J. Galante to lead the federal agency that insures mortgages against default. If confirmed, Galante would take on the role of assistant HUD secretary and commissioner of the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). Galante stepped up as acting FHA commissioner in April, when David Stevens vacated the post to take the head spot at the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Sales of previously owned homes slipped 3 percent between August and September, according to data released by the National Association of Realtors (NAR) Thursday. That follows a jump of nearly 19 percent between July and August. The decline was widely expected as sales activity follows the typical seasonal cycle and heads lower with the mercury in the thermometer. Distressed homes accounted for 30 percent of sales in September. Eighteen percent were foreclosed homes and 12 percent were pre-foreclosure short sales.

The Federal Reserve released a new rendition of its market-gauging Beige Book Wednesday, which provides an assessment of regional conditions from those outside the Fed system and in the field. Reports from the 12 districts indicate that overall economic activity continued to expand in September. On the real estate front, though, home sales remained weak with prices either flat or declining across the entire country. Although commercial construction increased at a slow pace, that sector too was described as ""weak.""

The foreclosure tide has yet to ebb, and the massive supply of bank-owned homes building over the last half-decade has taken its toll on market fundamentals. What's become of all those properties seized by banks? CoreLogic delved into the stats to find out. Looking at the outcomes of 355,000 properties foreclosed on in 2006, the company found that 105,000 were liquidated as REO sales to third-party buyers in six months or less, while more than 20,000 remain part of the industry's REO inventory.

The Collingwood Group announced Tuesday that it has retained Ray Romano as senior advisor. Romano previously served as EVP and chief credit officer at Freddie Mac. At the Collingwood Group, Romano will provide executive leadership in the areas of risk management for consumer and multi-family mortgage products. His work will help clients navigate the business opportunities that exist in Washington, D.C. as a result of the housing crisis.

Bank of America reported Tuesday that it saw a profit of $6.2 billion during the third quarter of this year, compared to a loss of $7.3 billion a year ago. Perhaps the biggest headline-grabber gleaned from BofA's third-quarter numbers is that the company lost its position as the largest U.S. bank by assets. On the mortgage side of the business, BofA says it has successfully implemented the rollout of a single point of contact for default servicing. Provisions for credit losses declined 37 percent from the year-ago quarter.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has directed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to transition away from their current foreclosure attorney network programs, and move to a system where mortgage servicers will select law firms based on minimum qualifications and uniform criteria. Currently, each GSE designates eligible law firms for individual states, and servicers choose a firm from these lists to handle their foreclosure work. FHFA says the new approach is an extension of the Servicing Alignment Initiative and will lead to greater transparency.

The mortgage banking law firm of Butler and Hosch, P.A. has announced the appointment of Amber Paxton as its new SVP of operations and Tyrutte Kimbrell as VP of vendor relations for the Southern region. Paxton joins Butler and Hosch with more than 15 years' experience that includes managing mortgage default operations in compliance with both GSE and non-GSE guidelines. Kimbrell brings 10 years of experience in default servicing to the firm.

Help for underwater homeowners has moved from principal writedowns to refinancing in the settlement negotiations between state attorneys general and the nation's five largest mortgage servicers. According to a widely circulated report, the proposal made its way into the talks last week. Borrowers who are current on their mortgage payments but owe more than their home is worth would be able to refinance at today's lower rates. The main caveat is that the loan must be owned, not just serviced, by one of the five banks.

ServiceLink announced Tuesday that Greg Whitworth has joined the company as EVP of servicing solutions. Whitworth will help develop ServiceLink's overall default and servicing business strategy, and will focus on building a consulting practice. ServiceLink is a Fidelity National Financial company and currently provides its solutions to 15 of the top 20 mortgage lenders and servicers. ServiceLink's flagship workflow and content management technology, Commerce Velocity, will be a key area of focus for Whitworth.