Loss Mitigation

Mortgage technology provider ISGN recently partnered with Interthinx, a provider of risk mitigation solutions covering mortgage fraud, collateral valuation, regulatory compliance, audit services, and loss forecasting. ISGN will add Interthinx's FraudGUARD fraud detection solution and PredProtect Compliance Suite to the MORvision loan origination system Plug-In Partner Network. ISGN says these additions will prevent fraud and ensure compliance prior to loan funding.

HomeAffordableGuide.com provides interactive software that guides borrowers through the application process for mortgage help programs, and the company now offers a 30-day satisfaction guarantee. If a homeowner is not happy with the site's abilities while applying for a loan modification or short sale, they may request a full refund within 30 days of purchase.

VantageScore 2.0, the latest credit scoring model from VantageScore Solutions, is now fully implemented at all three major credit reporting agencies - Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. VantageScore 2.0 was created in response to significant changes in consumer credit repayment behavior, and the company says it enables lenders to better mitigate risks and make more informed lending decisions.

Fitch Ratings says approximately 2,000 commercial mortgage loans are due to mature over the next 12 months, representing an outstanding balance of $22.5 billion. According to a new report released Friday by the ratings agency, the maturing loans were originated between 1996 and 2007 and are predominantly secured by retail, office, and multifamily properties. Fitch says 30 percent are not expected to pass its refinancing test.

Fannie Mae has issued a notice to its servicers, instructing them to postpone foreclosure proceedings for unemployed homeowners who are receiving help through Hardest-Hit Fund programs run by state housing finance agencies. According to the GSE's newly released directive, if a housing finance agency (HFA) notifies a servicer that a borrower has been approved for assistance, the servicer must not refer the mortgage loan to foreclosure or conduct a scheduled foreclosure sale for 45 days.

The volume of distressed residential properties in the United States is the primary factor hindering a full recovery in the country's housing market, according to Standard & Poor's (S&P). Based on data through the end of the third quarter of 2010, S&P puts the principal balance of the nation's shadow inventory of distressed homes at more than $450 billion - a log jam that will take more than three and a half years to clear from the market, and that doesn't include GSE mortgages.

Wells Fargo will provide one-on-one consultation sessions for customers facing financial hardships January 25 and 26 in Brooklyn. Thousands of area homeowners are invited to the event, which will focus on avoiding foreclosure. The company says it is committed to helping people stay in their homes, and this workshop is another way for it to reach out to homeowners and provide answers on the options available for them.

Safeguard Properties recently teamed with default servicing veteran Brandon Kirkham to launch Texas-based Compliance Connections. The newly formed company provides technology-assisted solutions and fulfillment services in the areas of code violation and compliance. Kirkham will serve as president of the new company.

Community Reinvestment Fund, USA (CRF), a national nonprofit organization that connects community development lenders with the capital resources of Wall Street, has received a $500,000 grant from the Ford Foundation. The contribution will go toward expanding CRF's organizational capacity to service a higher volume of affordable housing loans associated with foreclosure remediation programs.

FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair warned mortgage bankers that failure to take immediate and decisive action to deal with breakdowns in servicing procedures will trigger a double-dip in U.S. housing markets and keep the industry deeply mired in a cycle of credit distress. Bair's fix includes instituting new fee structures so that servicers aren't forced to cut corners and establishing a claims commission funded by servicers to compensate borrowers who've been impacted by substandard practices.