News

Fixed mortgage rates fell to all-time record lows this week following the Federal Reserve's announcement of ""Operation Twist."" Data released by Freddie Mac Thursday puts the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage at 4.01 percent for the week ending September 29, and the 15-year fixed-rate at 3.28 percent. Interest rates for adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs), however, were virtually unchanged. The 5-year ARM averaged 3.02 percent and the 1-year ARM came in at 2.83 percent.

Rick Sharga has been the voice of RealtyTrac for more than seven years, serving as SVP at the foreclosure tracking and research firm since 2004. But effective this week, he has left RealtyTrac to join Carrington Mortgage Holdings. Sharga has taken on the role of EVP at Carrington and will serve as its primary industry spokesman. Sharga will be responsible for developing branding and marketing strategies for the entire Carrington Family of Companies.

The delinquency rate on loans held in U.S. commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) fell 23 basis points in August to 9.01 percent, according to Moody's Investors Service. Even with a slip in the numbers, Moody's notes that August was the eighth consecutive month that delinquencies have been above the 9 percent mark. The resolutions of delinquent loans continued to exceed new delinquencies last month, with $4.1 billion in resolutions versus $2.6 billion in newly delinquent CMBS loans.

Wells Fargo says it will increase its commitment to credit counseling nonprofits by $5.4 million to a total of $12.4 million in 2011 - a 35 percent increase over the $9.2 million in 2010 - for national and local credit counseling agencies. The company notes that public funding for credit counseling is becoming more scarce, while demand for such services is growing. Wells Fargo's $5.4 million in new commitments this year will be provided in the form of grant money directly to nonprofit agencies and support foreclosure prevention counseling services and training.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has signed off on several headline-grabbing arrangements between major lenders and the GSEs to reconcile loan repurchase claims. The results of an investigation released this week, however, indicate approval was made in haste. In response, FHFA has put the brakes on any future repurchase settlements pending further examination of the process in place to assess the true cost of such deals for taxpayer-funded Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

The amount of suspicious activity reports related to mortgage fraud filed in the second quarter of this year is 88 percent greater than the amount filed in the second quarter of 2010. Financial institutions sent in nearly 30,000 reports of suspected mortgage fraud over the April-to-June period this year, according to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. More than three-fourths involved suspicious activity that occurred before 2008, but officials say they're seeing evidence of ongoing fraud.

Servicers completed about 56,000 proprietary permanent loan modifications in the month of August - similar to their July efforts. Most of these modifications included reduced principal and interest payments and fixed interest rates for five years or more, according to HOPE NOW data released Wednesday. While proprietary loan modifications remained level, foreclosure starts increased 18 percent, rising from 185,000 in July to 218,000 in August.

First Guaranty Mortgage Corp. (FGMC) has promoted Andrew Peters to be its new CEO. Peters has been with FGMC for over 10 years, serving most recently as its SVP and national business director. Peters' recent focus has been on REO lending initiatives, including FGMC's ""Rebuild the Dream"" effort, which was designed to facilitate renovation lending in combination with REO sales.

Green River Capital (GRC) announced Wednesday that the company has enhanced its rental and property management program. GRC says its program serves as an REO alternative to help lenders preserve and maintain their properties by taking on tenants. The company's rental program enhancements come at a time in which the Obama administration has requested proposals for new rental strategies for foreclosed properties.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) is seeking public comment on two new compensation structures for mortgage servicing. The agency says the current model was not designed for today's market conditions. After meetings and discussions with various stakeholders, FHFA has put forth two alternatives. One proposal would establish a reserve account within the current servicing compensation structure. The other proposal would create a new ""Fee for Service"" model.