Reverse mortgages have become a popular—and sometimes controversial—way for Americans to make use of the accrued equity in their homes, especially for older homeowners. The latest controversy surrounds HUD foreclosures on homes participating in the home equity conversion mortgage (HECM) ...
Read More »U.S. Homeownership Rates Lose Ground to Other Developed Countries
The rate of homeownership in the U.S. is in the middle to lower range compared to other developed countries according to an analysis by the Urban Institute. In fact, data showed that the rate is about the same as it ...
Read More »Mortgage & LGBT Leaders Work Toward Diversity and Inclusion
On Wednesday, March 14, 2018, the American Mortgage Diversity Council (AMDC), in partnership with Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB) of Chicago, hosted a town hall discussion with leaders from the Chicago LGBT community. The meeting was the second in a series of ...
Read More »Fannie Offers Sixth Sale of Reperforming Loans
On Tuesday, Fannie Mae announced its sixth sale of reperforming loans. Reperforming loans are mortgages that had become delinquent, but which have recovered thanks to borrowers either catching up on their payments or working to secure loan modifications. This sixth ...
Read More »Reverse Mortgage Securities Market Booming—for Now
February 2018 was an excellent month for investors in reverse mortgage securities. According to New View Advisors, a financial services advisory firm located in New York, issuers of home-equity conversion mortgage-backed securities (HMBS) sold 129 pools in February, totaling $1.47 ...
Read More »Home Valuations After Disaster Strikes
Now and then, Mother Nature reminds us of her power—but 2017 was outrageous. It was a record-breaking year for disasters. According to a recent New York Times report, the combined insured losses from Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria accounted for ...
Read More »Collingwood’s Tim Rood: Moving Mortgage Forward
Tim Rood is the Co-Founder and Chairman of the Collingwood Group, a Washington, D.C.-based advocacy group for the housing and mortgage industries. Collingwood works to identify and secure business opportunities with the federal government and the GSEs; helps financial services ...
Read More »California Gubernatorial Candidates on the State’s Housing Crunch
As California approaches the election for its new governor, its candidates have to face a big problem in their home state: housing. How will the leading candidates tackle the issues of housing shortages and rising prices in their home state?
Read More »The Long Road to Recovery for Ohio and Foreclosures
Ohio was at the forefront of the housing crisis that the nation has been working to recover from for the past decade. According to a 2016 report by Policy Matters Ohio, there were 40,479 new foreclosure filings in Ohio in ...
Read More »A Universal Solution to a Universal Problem
Editor’s note: this feature originally appeared in the March issue of DS News, out now. In the past decade, decreasing volumes on both the servicer and attorney side have forced companies to tighten their belts to remain profitable. One area ...
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