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New York AG Looks to Link Financial Crisis and Mortgage Securities

Industry analysts, economists, even lawmakers generally concede that the pooling of risky subprime mortgages into secondary market securities fueled the economic collapse that almost brought the nation's financial system to its knees. But New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is looking for proof that major financial institutions were hocking these dicey mortgage-backed securities during the days leading up to the collapse of the housing market, knowing that these transactions would result in billions of dollars in mortgage losses.

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Orlando’s Home Inventory Shrinks to Level of Six Years Ago

According to the Orlando Regional Realtor Association (ORRA), the Florida city's once-monolithic housing inventory was down to 11,480 homes available for purchase last month, a level not seen since 2005. Foreclosures and short sales represented a lion's share 65.49 percent of all home sales in April, although that figure is down 5 percent from March.

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Mortgage Fraud Up 44% in First Quarter: Report

The first three months of 2011 saw a 44 percent increase in the volume of mortgage fraud case activity, according to industry data released this week. The cases reported represent fraud on an estimated $1.2 billion in real estate loans, rising from $0.9 billion in the final period of last year. The report notes that loan repurchases are largely responsible for the increase, with smaller firms forced to buy back loans from housing agencies or correspondent lenders conducting their own investigations and uncovering more fraudulent activity.

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Fannie Mae Approves Genworth Subsidiary for Mortgage Insurance

Fannie Mae sent a notice to its lenders and servicers Tuesday announcing that the GSE has approved a unit of Genworth Mortgage Insurance Corporation to provide mortgage insurance for conventional first mortgage loans. Yhe subsidiary, Genworth Residential Mortgage Assurance Corporation, is approved to write coverage on Fannie Mae loans in a limited number of states, which the GSE says may change over time.

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West Coast Foreclosures Counterintuitive After Robo-Signing Fixes

Foreclosure activity slowed in April in states along the country's West Coast, but a local firm that tracks every foreclosure action in the area is having trouble making sense of what it says is an unexpected trend. According to ForeclosureRadar, filings last month were down in Arizona, California, Nevada, and Washington. Cancellations were up significantly across the board, leaving fewer properties scheduled for trustee sale. ForeclosureRadar says banks have had time to resolve robo-signing issues, so we should be seeing exactly the opposite results.

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Mortgage Contracting Services Names New AVP of Operations

Mortgage Contracting Services LLC (MCS) announced Tuesday the addition of Charles Mangan as assistant vice president of operations. Working out of the Dallas office, Mangan will oversee property preservation activity of the company's REO clients and contribute to MCS' overall strategy for preserving the country's communities while also minimizing servicers' risks and costs to do so, according to a statement from the firm.

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Ohio Files Suit Against Mortgage Modification Firm

Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine has filed a lawsuit against The Modification Group LLC, a Cleveland business that offered to help homeowners avoid foreclosure in exchange for upfront fees. The lawsuit alleges multiple violations of Ohio consumer law, including failure to deliver. The attorney general's office currently has 70 complaints against the company dating back to December 2009. DeWine is seeking civil penalties and full restitution for consumers.

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Mortgage Delinquencies Improve for Fifth Straight Quarter: TransUnion

The share of mortgage borrowers in the United States 60 or more days behind on their payments dropped to 6.19 percent at the end of the first quarter of 2011, according to data released Monday by the credit bureau TransUnion. That's down from 6.41 percent at the close of 2010 and marks the fifth consecutive quarter that TransUnion has reported an improvement in the national delinquency rate. The firm says as home prices have declined further, delinquencies were expected to remain flat or at least slow in their decline, but that hasn't been the case.

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RealtyTrac Adds Feature to Show Potential Appreciation on Foreclosures

RealtyTrac recently integrated the property-rating system HomeScore on nearly 2 million foreclosure and for-sale properties on its Web site. Created by SmartZip Analytics, HomeScore is designed to allow users to pinpoint properties with the best potential for appreciation over time. The higher the HomeScore rating, the greater the home's investment potential. While properties scored above 50 are expected to outperform the market, those scored below 50 are expected to underperform.

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Freddie Mac Offering Selling Agent Bonuses to Move REOs

Freddie Mac announced Monday the launch of a nationwide sales promotion for its inventory of foreclosed homes. Selling agents will receive a bonus of $1,200 for initial offers received between May 16th and July 31st with escrows closed on or before the final day of September. The extra incentive applies to Freddie Mac's HomeSteps properties sold to owner-occupant buyers. As of the end of the first quarter, Freddie Mac held 65,174 REO homes.

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