News

Although the Independent Foreclosure Review (IFC) has concluded after regulators reached an $8.5 billion foreclosure settlement with 10 banks, questions still remain concerning the abandoned foreclosure review process and the terms for the current settlement. In the search for more answers, three lawmakers recently wrote letters to the Office of the Comptroller (OCC) and the Federal Reserve. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts) and Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Maryland) sent a joint letter dated January 31 to the OCC and the Fed requesting specific information, including the results of all performance reviews.

The recent housing crisis and the broader economic climate have led to a strong multifamily housing market nationwide. Marcus & Millichap's recently released National Apartment Report promises another year of expansion in the multifamily market as ""the alignment of powerful demographic and economic trends continues to fortify nationwide apartment performance."" The firm ranks 44 markets based on several forward-looking indicators. Nationally, the firm expects rents to increase between 4 and 5 percent this year as the national vacancy rate reaches 4.3 percent.

In December, the number of homes in some stage of the foreclosure process continued to shrink, and fewer homes were lost to foreclosure, according to the National Foreclosure Report from Corelogic. Foreclosure inventory saw a 19.5 percent decrease from a year ago as foreclosure inventory was reduced to 1.2 million homes, down from 1.5 million in December 2011. The number of mortgages in some stage of the foreclosure process was also down month-over-month, decreasing by about 4.2 percent from November. Completed foreclosures also fell on a yearly and monthly basis by 21 percent and 3 percent, respectively.

If businesses had any reluctance to hire in December because of fiscal cliff concerns, they didn't make up for it in January: Payrolls expanded by 157,000, down from December, but the unemployment rate moved to 7.9 percent from 7.8 percent a month earlier, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported Friday. Job growth for December, originally reported at 155,000, was revised upward to 196,000. November's growth was revised to 247,000 from 161,000.

More than half of the nation's largest metros experienced an upturn in foreclosure activity in 2012 compared to 2011, according to a report from RealtyTrac. RealtyTrac observed foreclosure trends in 212 markets with a population of 200,000 or more and found 120 markets, or 57 percent, displayed an increase in foreclosure activity from 2011. Meanwhile, out of the 20 largest metros, 12 experienced a slowdown in foreclosure activity.

In a newly-released white paper, Sperlonga--a division of Matt Martin Real Estate Management that serves the mortgage industry through its homeowner association (HOA) database and services--details the monetary threat delinquent HOA accounts can pose to the industry and outlines its own solutions to the problem. HOAs can cause significant monetary losses to investors in cases of default. In 16 states and the District of Columbia, HOAs hold ""super-lien"" status, meaning their lien outweighs all other liens--even that of the investor.

Homeowners in foreclosure who were also impacted by Hurricane Sandy will get another 90 days of relief from a foreclosure sale or pending eviction, announced Federal Housing Administration (FHA), Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac.

Capital Economics expects home prices to increase about 5 percent over the year at a national level. However, housing markets across the nation are markedly different, and this 5 percent will not be a constant in all regions. At the two far ends of the spectrum, the Northeast and the West will experience far different market climates this year, according to Capital Economics. The Northeast is much more likely to see no price growth at all than anything close to the 5 percent national average this year, the analytics firm stated in a recent outlook.

Fixed mortgage rates took a major leap up this week amid news of a growing economy led in part by the recovering housing market. According to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) rate averaged 3.53 percent (0.7 point) for the final week of January, up from 3.42 percent last week. The last time the 30-year fixed rate averaged above 3.5 percent was in September 2012. The 15-year fixed average also increased significantly, rising 10 basis points to 2.81 percent (0.7 point).

Forty-six state attorneys general and the District of Columbia reached a settlement agreement with Lender Processing Services, Inc. and its subsidiaries—LPS Default Solutions and DocX—to resolve allegations concerning the company’s foreclosure practices. As part of the multistate settlement, LPS agreed to pay $127 million. LPS previously resolved similar claims in Missouri, Delaware, and Colorado, leaving the company with one unresolved claim from Nevada.