""Ocwen Loan Servicing"":http://www.ocwen.com has acquired the residential mortgage servicing rights on 38,000 loans with an aggregate unpaid principal balance of $6.9 billion,[IMAGE]according to a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing made by the Florida-based special servicer. Sources confirm ""Saxon Mortgage Services"":https://www.saxononline.com, the Texas-based subsidiary of Morgan Stanley, as the seller.
The transfer of the servicing rights will occur later this month. The bulk of the loans included in the agreement
[COLUMN_BREAK]are reportedly subprime mortgages. Ocwen is known for its work in bringing highly distressed loans back to performing status through the use of behavioral science and targeted borrower communication technologies.
Back in March, Saxon signaled that it was repositioning itself into the residential subservicing space, specializing in distressed asset servicing. Company officials say the transaction with Ocwen is in line with this strategy.
Both Saxon and Ocwen are setting the bar high when it comes to restructuring troubled mortgages under the administration's Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP).
According to the Treasury's latest progress report, as of the end of February, Saxon had placed 41 percent of its eligible loans into the HAMP program, and converted nearly 20 percent of its trial mods to permanent status.
Twenty-four percent of Ocwen's eligible portfolio had been modified under HAMP, with nearly 60 percent of those made permanent. The company says it is converting trial mods to permanent status at a rate that is 10 to 20 times higher than some of the biggest banks.