Government

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger approved a bill appended to the state’s budget package last week that institutes a 90-day foreclosure moratorium throughout the Golden State. Introduced by Sen.

Neil Barofsky, special inspector general for the $700 billion federal purse formerly known as the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), told congressional leaders on Tuesday that the government’s bank rescue efforts could be vulnerable to fraud, potentially stripping taxpayers of tens, maybe hundreds of billions of dollars.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke dispelled rumors about nationalizing the U.S. banking system when he testified before congressional leaders on Capitol Hill Tuesday. Bernanke said nationalization of major financial institutions isn’t needed to ensure their viability, and could even erode their business value.

The nation’s four largest organizations of professional real estate appraisers—the Appraisal Institute, American Society of Appraisers, American Society of Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers, and the National Association of Independent Fee Appraisers urging the federal government to require that market values of homes rescued under President Obama’s Homeowner Affordability and Stability Program be determined by professional appraisers who are state certified and licensed.

Minneapolis-based Wolters Kluwer Financial Services recently announced that two members of its compliance management services team have earned the prestigious Certified Regulatory Compliance Manager (CRCM) designation from the American Bankers Association’s (ABA’s) Institute of Certified Bankers (ICB).

Home prices in the United States posted record declines in the fourth quarter of 2008, according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s (FHFA’s) House Price Index (HPI). The agency’s purchase-only HPI, based on data from home sales, was 3.

Ninety-seven percent of prime borrowers who originally had a conforming adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) chose a new conforming fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) when they refinanced in the fourth quarter of 2008, according to a report released today by Freddie Mac analyzing refinancings funded by the GSE.

After Citigroup’s stock tumbled last week – now trading below $3 share – bank executives have asked the federal government for additional assistance in strengthening the company. According to a Wall Street Journal:http://www.

Clearwater, Florida-based eMASON, Inc. has announced key product upgrades to its Clarifire application that the company says will provide increased flexibility and expanded capabilities. Clarifire now features certified Fannie Mae loss mitigation business rules for HomeSaver Advance and pre-foreclosure sale workout types, as well as a direct connection to Fannie Mae’s system of record, Home Saver Solutions Network (HSSN).

James B. Lockhart III, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) overseeing GSEs Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, recently spoke with members of the American Securitization Forum (ASF) about the role the secondary mortgage market must play in the nation’s housing recovery.