Lender Processing Services Inc. (LPS), a provider of integrated technology, data and analytics to the mortgage and real estate industries, has announced that its LPS Applied Analytics division has released a new product to provide default servicers with an alternative to broker price opinions (BPOs) for evaluating residential real estate in their portfolios. LPS' Distressed Asset Review will combine the accuracy and consistency of an automated valuation model (AVM) with property condition information.Click to continue

Commerce Velocity, a member of the Fidelity National Financial (FNF) family of companies and a provider of default technology has enhanced their Optimizer solution to help achieve the new requirements for Fannie Mae's Quality Right Party Contact (QRPC) initiative. The new enhancements are designed to arm servicers with technology to document, as required by QRPC, the varied forms of communication to the borrower regarding the resolution of their delinquent mortgage.Click to continue

A new report released by the Aite Group examines the home loan market from the perspective of regulated financial institutions—namely banks and credit unions. It analyzes the value proposition of the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs), Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, explores the existing home mortgage portfolio and bond market, considers alternatives to existing structural and regulatory environments, and presents recommendations to lenders and vendors alike.Click to continue

Ginnie Mae has announced that it is expanding the parameters regarding loans eligible for repurchase from Ginnie Mae Mortgage-Backed Securities (MBS). Under the new policy, any modified loan may be repurchased after successfully completing a three-month trial payment period, if a trial period is required. This change aligns Ginnie Mae’s repurchase policy for the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) non-Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) high-risk loans with the current policy for FHA-HAMP loans.Click to continue

Resolving claims of unfair and discriminatory lending practices, Sand Canyon, formerly known as Option One Mortgage Corporation, will modify thousands of Massachusetts homeowners’ loans and make a significant payment to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts as part of a settlement valued at $125 million, Attorney General Martha Coakley announced. The settlement with AG Coakley’s Office was filed in Suffolk Superior Court.Click to continue

The U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Department of the Treasury have released the July edition of the Obama Administration's Housing Scorecard—a comprehensive report on the nation’s housing market. The latest housing data offer continued mixed signals as home prices improved slightly, but showed continued strain from foreclosures and distressed homes. Also, as more homeowners secure mortgage relief, fewer borrowers entered the foreclosure pipeline in June.Click to continue

Fannie Mae reported a net loss of $2.9 billion in the second quarter of 2011, compared to a net loss of $6.5 billion in the first quarter of the year. The company’s net loss in the second quarter reflected $6.1 billion in credit-related expenses, substantially all of which were related to the company’s legacy (pre-2009) book of business.Click to continue

U.S. mortgage insurance (MI) operations for The PMI Group Inc. had a net loss of $338.4 million for the second quarter of 2011, compared to a net loss of $115.6 million for the second quarter of 2010. The loss in the second quarter of 2011 was driven by elevated losses and loss adjustment expenses, the lack of any material tax benefits and, to a lesser extent, lower premiums earned.Click to continue

On the heels of the first anniversary of the Dodd-Frank Act, the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) released its 2011 Annual Report, the first of its kind issued by the U.S. government. The report was produced collaboratively by the members of the FSOC and their staff, and unanimously approved by the Council. One of the major recommendations of the FSOC in its report was continued progress on the U.S.Click to continue

Genworth Financial Inc. has made available the results of an independent study conducted by Promontory Financial Group which found that, among loans originated prior to the collapse of the housing bubble, low downpayment mortgages with mortgage insurance (MI) were significantly less likely to default during and after the housing crisis than uninsured low downpayment loans with a “piggyback” second mortgage.Click to continue