Wolters Kluwer Financial Services announced Tuesday that the Alabama Bankers Association (ABA) has endorsed the company’s mortgage lending compliance solutions. The company explained that its mortgage compliance documentation solutions help institutions reduce regulatory and operational risk, increase speed-to-market, and close loans more efficiently.

Mortgage interest rates were mixed this past week with fixed-rate loans somewhat higher and adjustable-rate mortgages lower, according to numbers compiled by mortgage financier Freddie Mac. Still, housing affordability is the highest it’s been in many years, with significantly reduced rates and housing prices.

During two days of congressional hearings this week, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told lawmakers he expects foreclosures to head higher still. He added that Fed officials anticipate an economic recovery to start off slowly, primarily because consumers are struggling with high debt and declining housing prices.

As unemployment and home foreclosures continue to rise and threaten the economic recovery, the mortgage insurance industry is stepping up its ongoing efforts to keep families in their homes. According to a statement from the Mortgage Insurance Companies of America (MICA) the industry has been at the forefront in developing systems and procedures to support the administration’s Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) and Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP).

A recent study published by the New York Federal Reserve says that lax lending standards were not the air that inflated the market’s latest housing bubble and propelled the nation into an economic tailspin.

Pomona, California-based PCV Murcor, a national real estate valuation company, has expanded its corporate staff with the addition of two financial services veterans. Nolan Turner has been named VP of business development at PCV Murcor.

Integrated Mortgage Solutions (IMS), a collateral protection resource for the mortgage servicing industry, has been named one of Houston’s Fastest Growing Woman-Owned Businesses by the Houston Business Journal for two years running.

Dallas-based Barrett Daffin Frappier Turner & Engel LLP, a national law firm dedicated exclusively to the mortgage banking industry, recently announced the firm’s continued financial support of NeighborWorks America and the organization’s programs to assist homeowners facing foreclosure.

Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick unveiled a statewide program last week that will allow first-time homebuyers to get an advance on the $8,000 federal tax credit to use toward downpayments and closing costs.

Florida-based JVI Appraisal Division, LLC announced Tuesday that its chief appraiser, Herbert L. Jourdan, Jr., MAI, SRA, has been elected to the board of trustees of the Appraisal Foundation. As the organization’s governing body, the board is charged with providing financial support for the work of the Appraiser Qualifications Board (AQB) and the Appraisal Standards Board (ASB), appointing members to the AQB and the ASB, and oversight of the two groups’ activities.