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Senate Approves Extension of Homebuyer Tax Credit Closing Deadline

It looks like some would-be homebuyer tax credit recipients who were unable to secure a closing by the original deadline of June 30 may be in luck. Wednesday evening, just hours before the closing deadline for the widely popular tax credit was set to expire, the Senate unanimously approved legislation that pushes the closing date out an extra three months. If the bill is signed into law by President Obama, qualified buyers will have until September 30, 2010 to complete their closing.

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Financial Reform Legislation Calls for HVCC Replacement

The Home Valuation Code of Conduct (HVCC) instituted by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in May of last year has been a topic of heated debate and driven a wedge between industry players since it took form. The controversial HVCC is scheduled to sunset in November. But the sweeping financial reform legislation currently awaiting a final vote in Congress could terminate the GSEs' appraisal edict two months early and establish new industry-wide standards for property valuations.

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Morgan Stanley to Pay $102M in Massachusetts Subprime Settlement

Morgan Stanley will pay $102 million to Massachusetts homeowners and taxpayers, following an investigation by state Attorney General Martha Coakley into the firm's securitization and financing of subprime loans. Coakley says the settlement provides ""substantial relief"" to help hundreds of Massachusetts homeowners keep their homes. It also requires Morgan Stanley to change its business practices in the state and to hand over additional materials for the attorney general's ongoing investigation of subprime securitizations.

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Fannie Mae’s Delinquencies Drop, Portfolio Expands with Buybacks

Fannie Mae says delinquencies on home loans it guarantees declined again in April, marking the second consecutive month that past dues have fallen. The GSE's 90-plus-day delinquency rate fell 17 basis points to 5.30 percent. That follows a drop of 12 basis points in March, which was the first decline in three years. Fannie also reported that its mortgage holdings grew for the third straight month, as it continued to buy back loans from investors that were 120 days or more past due.

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House Moves to Extend Tax Credit Closing Deadline

The House passed a bill Tuesday that would give homebuyers who are eligible for a federal tax credit three extra months to close on their loans. As it stands now, qualifying homebuyers have until Wednesday to complete the transaction in order to qualify for the federal tax break. The House bill would extend that deadline to September 30. It now goes to the Senate, where a similar measure was defeated last week. Industry estimates warn that 180,000 qualified buyers could lose out on the tax credit if Congress does not extend the closing deadline.

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Florida Reps. Introduce Bill to Protect Gulf Residents from Foreclosure

U.S. Reps. Jeff Miller (R-Florida) and Adam Putnam (R-Florida) have introduced legislation to provide mortgage forbearance to homeowners in the areas affected by the BP oil spill. This bill will allow for HUD to provide forbearance for those sustaining economic losses due to the oil spill. In addition, it will give HUD the opportunity to evaluate the resources and programs available within the agency that could provide further assistance to communities along the Gulf Coast.

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Government Agencies Hold 46% of REO Inventory…and More Is Coming

As the GSEs and other federal agencies sell their collective inventory of repossessed homes, they will generate significant pressure on prices, according to Radar Logic. The company's analysis shows that the government's REO inventory now accounts for 46 percent of the nation's total bank-owned supply, which equates to 219,060 foreclosed homes. Add to that its share of non-performing loans heading to foreclosure, and the government's REO holdings could balloon to 3.1 million properties.

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Fannie Mae Adopts New Rules for Pre-Mod Income Verification

A general practice of servicers today is to consider borrowers for a standard Fannie Mae mortgage modification based solely on the homeowners' verbal statement of their financial information. But that's about to change. The GSE has issued new servicing guidelines stating that effective July 15, 2010, all servicers must verify the borrower's income, liabilities, and monthly expenses to determine that a financial hardship does exist, before a loan modification can be offered.

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Regulators Seize Control of Three More Community Banks

Banks in Florida, Georgia, and New Mexico were shut down over the weekend, bringing the number of failed FDIC-insured institutions to 86 for the year. That's nearly twice the number of closings at this time last year. The FDIC says it expects bank failures to peak in the latter half of 2010. The agency has earmarked $40 billion to cover institutional closings between March 2010 and March 2011 as community banks continue to fold under the weight of bad real estate loans made during the boom.

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Bill Extending Tax Credit Closing Deadline Falls Through in Senate

An amendment that would have extended the closing deadline for the homebuyer tax credit by three months failed on the Senate floor this week. The amendment itself was approved by a large margin last week as an add-on to the larger American Jobs and Tax Loopholes Act. Republican senators, though, defeated the full measure on Thursday, for the third and final time. Industry estimates warn that some 180,000 eligible homebuyers will not be able to make the June 30 closing deadline.

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