In recognition of National Consumer Protection Week (NCPW), Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto released a list of the top five most common mortgage fraud consumer complaints addressed by the state's Mortgage Fraud Unit (MFU). In 2012, complaints related to loan modification and loss mitigation issues were No. 1.

As the private sector struggles with regulatory uncertainty, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will continue to maintain their dominant role in the housing market, according to a report from Fitch Ratings. Since the GSEs act as key players in the market's fragile recovery, political motivation for far-reaching GSE reform has been limited, the rating agency explained. Although regulators and politicians have emphasized the need for the private sector capital to enter the mortgage market, Fitch said ""results have been disappointing.""

The housing market is seeing prices appreciate at a normal pace, with further growth expected in the next five years, according to Fiserv Inc. From Q3 2011 to Q3 2012, home prices rose by 3.6 percent, the Fiserv Case-Shiller Indexes revealed. Furthermore, Fiserv predicts a 0.6 percent increase in home prices from Q3 2012 to Q3 2013. The gains are expected to continue into the next 5 years, with prices projected to grow at an annualized rate of 3.3 percent from Q3 2012 to the Q3 2017. When excluding gains from the 2009 and 2010 home buyer tax credits, Fiserv noted 2012 was the first positive year for home prices and home sales volumes.

Mortgage debt for U.S. households was roughly unchanged quarter-over-quarter, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York's Household Debt and Credit report. Mortgage debt stood at $8.03 trillion in Q4, making up the largest component of household debt. At the same time, overall consumer debt increased by $31 billion to $11.34 trillion, a slight 0.3 percent increase from the third quarter.

Specialized Business Software announced enhancements to Docunym--a web-based document management and workflow solution. The enhancements enable mortgage servicers to manage and retrieve loan documents faster.

Keystone Asset Management promoted Phil Paci to the role of director of business development. Paci began his career at Keystone in 2008. Before his promotion, Paci managed client portfolios as REO team lead and asset manager at the company. In his new role, Paci is responsible for broadening the company's reach within the default industry and contributing to the overall expansion and growth.

Blueberry Systems, LLC, a provider of advanced technology solutions to the mortgage and financial services industries, recruited Jordan Houston to lead as business development manager. Houston brings more than 12 years of mortgage and technology experience to the company.

The volume of underperforming CMBS loans in the hands of special servicers fell to the lowest level since 2009, Fitch Ratings reported. At the end of 2012, the volume of specially serviced CMBS loans decreased to $70.6 billion after peaking at $91.7 billion in 2010, according to the rating agency. Fitch attributed the decrease to a significant drop in the number of loans transferred to special servicing in 2012 and the high number of loan resolutions.

Historically, higher-priced homes are a leading indicator of the real estate market and tend to lead the market during times of recovery, according to the Home Value Forecast (HVF) report jointly released by Pro Teck Valuation Services and Collateral Analytics. The companies assessed price changes in the Bay Area and around Los Angeles and found the high-end markets showed stronger price growth compared to lower-priced areas. The HVF report also included a list of the 10 best and worst performing metros for February based on factors such as sales/listing activity and prices, months of remaining inventory (MRI), days on market (DOM), sold-to-list price ratio, and foreclosure and REO activity.

Freddie Mac pulled in a net profit of $11 billion for 2012, significant increase from the annual net loss of $5.3 billion in 2011. In addition, Freddie Mac's fourth quarter net income climbed to $4.5 billion, up from $2.9 billion in the third quarter of last year. According to the company's earnings release, the increase reflects a decrease in delinquent single-family loans, improved national home prices, and a higher income tax benefit. ""It's clear from our earnings that the housing market has turned a corner and that our work to minimize legacy losses and build a strong new book of business is paying off,"" said Freddie Mac CEO Donald H. Layton in a release.