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Republicans Push for Consumer Protection Changes in Reform Bill

Senator Bob Corker (R-Tennessee) says he plans to offer up an amendment to the Wall Street reform bill this week that will make ""surgical"" changes to consumer protection laws. Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-Georgia) is joining Corker in his push. Among the items on their agenda are establishing minimum underwriting standards for mortgages, and striking the proposed 5 percent risk retention requirement for mortgages sold as securities.

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U.S. Economy Adds 290,000 Jobs in April

Despite the fact that the economy added 290,000 jobs last month, the nation's unemployment rate rose to 9.9 percent in April. But the job gains were more than analysts were expecting and a positive for the housing market since unemployment has become one of the strongest default triggers for borrowers.

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McCain Amendment Would Take GSEs off Taxpayer Support

Sen. John McCain and two other Republicans have introduced an amendment to the Senate's reform package that would wean mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac off of federal funding over the next five years and completely dissolve them after 15 years. McCain called the two GSEs ""synonymous with mismanagement and waste"" and the epitome of too big to fail. ""The time has come to end Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's taxpayer-backed slush fund and require them to operate on a level playing field,"" McCain said.

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Freddie Mac Posts $6.7 Billion Loss in Q1

Mortgage giant Freddie Mac said Wednesday that it lost $6.7 billion during the first three months of this year. The quarterly results helped pushed the GSE's net worth to negative $10.5 billion at the end of March, compared to a positive net worth of $4.4 billion at the end of last year. With the GSE's finances severely in the red, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) plans to submit a request to the Treasury Department on Freddie Mac's behalf for a draw of $10.6 billion in taxpayer funds.

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Credit Still Tight Among U.S. Lenders: Fed Survey

Banks have yet to loosen their tight grip on credit. The Federal Reserve's latest survey of senior loan officers found that most banks maintained stringent lending standards in the first quarter, while some tightened lending terms further. Compared with the previous quarter, a larger percentage of banks indicated that demand for first lien mortgages and home equity loans had weakened further. On the commercial side, a significant portion of lenders said they have increased their use of extensions for loans at or near maturity.

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Justice Department Investigating Discrimination in HAMP

The U.S. Department of Justice says in light of the mortgage crisis, it has made fair lending a top priority and will be reviewing the Treasury's Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) for possible violations. Assistant Attorney General Thomas E. Perez told lawmakers that the Justice Department is focusing on potential fair lending violations ""where much of the lending activity is occurring today - in mortgage modifications."" With HAMP being the largest loan modification undertaking in history, that makes it a prime target for scrutiny.

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Freddie Mac Reports First Delinquency Decline in Three Years

Delinquencies on single-family loans guaranteed by Freddie Mac fell to 4.13 percent in March, down from 4.20 percent in February. It's the first monthly decline reported by the mortgage giant since April 2007, and some say a sign that efforts to improve loan performance are finally gaining ground. Freddie Mac attributed the drop in delinquencies to a higher volume of mortgage modifications and completed short sales.

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Administration Picks up Push for TARP Tax on Big Banks

President Obama's proposal to tax the nation's largest banks is back on the table, and stirring up quite a debate. On Tuesday, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner urged members of Congress to approve the president's levy on big banks, which is expected to generate $90 billion over a 10-year period to cover the costs of the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP). But some lawmakers are concerned that the fee could lead to tighter credit. Even community banks are siding with the big guys in this fight.

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Top Treasury Official Visits Cleveland to Find Foreclosure Solutions

Hoping to obtain advice on how to improve government foreclosure prevention programs, the Department of Treasury's Assistant Secretary for Financial Stability, Herb Allison, made an unprecedented stop in Cleveland on Monday to hold a roundtable and hear from local homeowners and housing advocates first-hand. Allison, who is second to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, oversees both the Troubled Asset Relief Program and the Hardest Hit Fund program that is providing more than $2.1 billion to address the foreclosure crisis in 10 states. Ohio is receiving $172 million through this program, the sixth highest allocation.

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Foreclosure Law Firm Faces State Probe in Florida

Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum has launched a civil investigation into one of the state's largest foreclosure law firms. McCollum says Florida Default Law Group, P.L. in Tampa appears to be fabricating and presenting false and misleading documents in thousands of foreclosure cases per month. The case highlights flaws in the documentation of loan ownership that is impeding a number of foreclosure proceedings across the country.

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