Tag Archives: FHFA

Mortgage servicing took center stage at a mortgage banking conference in Chicago on Monday, with industry experts making a case for reform. Panelists at a session on the future of mortgage servicing assured attendees that in five years, the servicing business ""will look nothing"" like it does today. Executives from such organizations as Freddie Mac, Amherst Securities, and the University of North Carolina advocated for national servicing standards, greater transparency, and new compensation structures.

With an estimated 250,000 foreclosed homes on Fannie Mae's and Freddie Mac's books, the government is considering inventive ways to divulge excess inventory and return stability to the housing market. The administration sent out a request for information (RFI) in August asking how a government REO rental program might work. The industry has responded with enthusiasm, submitting a slew of proposals now under consideration. Suggestions include lease-to-own options, rent-and-hold, and joint profit sharing.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) had knowledge of such foreclosure procedural abuses as robo-signing and falsified documentation years before these infractions made front-page headlines and triggered industry-wide investigations, according to the agency's own inspector general. Beyond a number of very specific red flags - including consumer complaints, media reports of foreclosure mills, and even public court filings - the inspector general says the sheer nature of market conditions should have been enough to lead FHFA to take action.

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 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.

According to the Federal Housing Finance Agency Office of Inspector General (FHFA-OIG), FHFA's examination process is not up to par. FHFA-OIG says it has identified shortfalls in the agency's examination coverage, particularly in the areas of real estate owned (REO) and default-related legal services. In fact, the inspector general says FHFA has not conducted an examination of the GSEs' management of their REO inventories, despite the surging number of foreclosures, since 2007.

Home prices rose 0.8 percent between June and July, marking the fourth consecutive monthly increase, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) said Thursday. That string of gains is coming off a streak of declines that was three times as long. Prior to April, FHFA's index had been on a slippery downward slope for 12 straight months. FHFA's numbers are calculated using sales price information from mortgages acquired by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will begin raising the fees they charge lenders for guarantees on mortgage loans next year. According to the companies' regulator, it's a step toward readying the market for private-sector reinforcements and weaning the nation's housing sector off of low-cost government support. FHFA's director says it ought to be clear at this point that the two mortgage giants will not be able to emerge from conservatorship. He argues that more progress should have been made on housing finance reform by now.

Rep. Darrell Issa of California has sent a letter to the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) expressing his concerns and requesting information about an alleged deal between Fannie Mae and Bank of America. Issa references an August 10th report detailing a deal between Fannie and the bank in which the GSE reportedly purchased the mortgage servicing rights of 400,000 troubled loans for $500 million. Issa says the transaction is ""worrisome"" and appears to have shifted risk from BofA to Fannie Mae.

John J. Mack will step down as chairman of Morgan Stanley and leave the board as expected at the end of the year. Mack also will retire from a full-time role at Morgan Stanley and become a senior advisor to the firm at that time. James P. Gorman, president and CEO, was elected by the board to also take on the role of chairman, effective January 1, 2012.