Lewisville, Texas-based EMC Mortgage Corp. (EMC), a mortgage banking company that specializes in acquisition, servicing, and disposition of residential mortgage loans, is opening a second office in Irvine, California, this May.

The chairman and chief executive officer of Pasadena, California-based IndyMac Bancorp Inc. says despite a volatile lending market, the company and its independent mortgage lender IndyMac Bank F.S.B.

Dallas-based Nationstar Mortgage LLC, a nonprime lender, has completed its acquisition of the origination platform of Parsippany, New Jersey-based Champion Mortgage, a part of Cleveland-based KeyCorp. While the transaction does not include Champion Mortgage’s $2 billion loan portfolio, which was previously sold to HSBC Holdings, Plc.

Lewisville, Texas-based EMC Mortgage Corporation announced Thursday that Carol Young has been promoted to senior vice president within the financial operations division. In her new role, Carol will manage a staff of 45 employees while also playing a major role in managing the Asset Control and Compliance areas, which include Loans Serviced By Others (LSBO), General Ledger (G/L) & Cash Controls, the up and coming Post-Transfer group, as well as Sub and Interim Servicer Oversight.

Irvine, California-based RealtyTrac, an online marketplace for foreclosure properties, is taking its technology platform to a new level by implementing Microsoft Virtual Earth mapping technology – a tool that will offer 3-D views of real-estate owned properties online.

The House Financial Institutions Subcommittee will hold a special hearing on predatory lending next week, according to the office of Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), who chairs the subcommittee. Rep. Maloney released a statement Wednesday saying the committee will discuss predatory lending practices and address the underlying causes of recent foreclosures in the marketplace.

The number of foreclosure filings in Massachusetts reached an all-time high in January, according to ForeclosuresMass.com – an online provider of foreclosure data that just released its February Massachusetts Market Analysis Report.

San Francisco-based Green Welling LLP it filed a class action lawsuit against subprime lender New Century Financial Corp on Tuesday. In a press release, the firm accused the Irvine, California-based lender of providing materially false and misleading statements in 2006 and neglecting to account for loan repurchases that were later reflected as losses in the company’s final 2006 year-end report.

Lending giant Freddie Mac it’s no longer purchasing subprime ARMs loans that have the potential to shock homeowners with escalating mortgage payments. In an announcement released Monday, the government-sponsored enterprise (GSE) said it would only buy adjustable-rate-mortgages that qualify borrowers at the fully-indexed and fully-amortizing rates.

Fannie Mae, one of the country’s largest government-sponsored enterprises, has created more internal regulatory controls by restructuring the format of its monthly summary reports while also changing its internal platform for charitable giving.