The National Mortgage Servicing Association (NMSA) announced the appointment of Jim Taylor, SVP of Property Preservation with Wells Fargo Home Mortgage Asset Management, to lead the organization’s effort to mitigate the threat that vacant and abandoned properties pose to homeowners and communities. Taylor, a 30-year industry veteran, leads asset management and preservation of Wells Fargo’s residential servicing portfolio while caring for the interests of the communities it serves. His first order of business will be partnering with his peers and regulatory agencies to develop a comprehensive national definition for what constitutes a vacant and abandoned property and honing a strategy for the harmonization of procedure for their treatment.

By Rick DeBlasis, Lerner, Sampson & Rothfuss The FHA promissory note and mortgage widely in use today limit a lender’s right to accelerate by first requiring compliance with HUD regulations.  The FHA Note provides, “In many circumstances regulations issued by ...

A glimmer of hope for owners of tenant occupied foreclosed properties as a Cook County Trial Court found the Keep Chicago Renting Ordinance is preempted by the Illinois Rent Control Preemption Act and ruled in favor of the mortgagee who ...

Leading Off looks at the news, events and reports coming this week that shape the servicing, mortgage and housing industry.

Leading Off looks at the news, events and reports coming this week that shape the servicing, mortgage and housing industry.

As is true in several other sections of the industry, regulatory compliance was a hot button issue. Several discussions at the Servicer Summit were centered on the question of how to adapt to constant regulatory changes and avoid the adverse effects of non-compliance. The evolving business landscape was another major theme of discussion at the Servicer Summit. With foreclosures on the decline in the last two to three years, many default servicing firms have struggled to maintain their position in the industry.

According to multiple reports, Benjamin Lawsky, Superintendent of the New York Department of Financial Services is considering stepping down from his post and entering the private sector in 2015.

The executive board of directors for the National Appraisal Congress (NAC) came together on Tuesday in Washington D.C. to discuss pressing issues facing the residential valuation and appraisal industry. The meeting was brought to order by NAC chair and Chief Appraiser at TSI Appraisal, Jordan Petkovski. Petkovski gave attendees a brief overview of the state of the property appraisal industry. He also articulated his vision for how the NAC will supply direction for residential appraisal companies and lead the industry in a time of change.

Mortgage Contracting Services, LLC (MCS), a nationwide provider of property preservation, inspections and REO property maintenance to the financial services industry, announced today that it has broadened its client offerings to include appraisals, Broker Price Opinions, and other valuations-related products through its acquisition of the Collateral Solutions and Field Services business units of Irvine, California-based CoreLogic. The acquisition expands the MCS suite of mortgage services to include valuation products in both the default and loan origination sectors and also represents a significant expansion of its already strong representation in the property preservation industry.

The key players from the housing and real estate industry will descend on Dallas, Texas, September 14-16 for the annual Five Star Conference and Expo.