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Tag Archives: FHFA

Forty-Five Reps. Urge Obama to Replace DeMarco in Letter

The principal reduction debate resurfaced after 45 members of the House of Representatives sent a letter to President Obama, urging him to replace Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Acting Director Edward DeMarco with a permanent director. DeMarco was mainly criticized for his resistance to a loan modification pilot program that would ""examine whether a principal reduction program could reduce costs to taxpayers while helping borrowers stay in their homes.""

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FHFA, GE Reach Settlement Over Securities Sold to Freddie Mac

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) and General Electric (GE) have reached a settlement to resolve claims of misrepresented mortgage-backed securities (MBS) sold to Freddie Mac. The settlement brings to a close one of 18 legal actions filed by FHFA against various financial institutions in its capacity as conservator for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. FHFA's suit, filed in 2011, alleged GE misrepresented the quality of loans contained in $549 million of MBS sold to Freddie Mac.

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FHFA: Monthly, Yearly Price Gains Continue into November

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) reported another increase in home prices for November. On a seasonally adjusted basis, prices increased 0.6 percent from October to November and by 5.6 percent over the 12-month period ending in November, according to FHFA's calculations. FHFA has not reported a decline in monthly home prices since January 2012. The current index is 15.2 percent lower than the national peak reached in April 2007.

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Petition to Administration Seeks to Eliminate HARP Cutoff Date

While the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) has undergone some tweaks and changes to broaden eligibility, a petition is seeking to make the program available to more underwater homeowners and to allow homeowners to refinance under the program more than once. The petition specifically states, ""We Petition the Obama Administration to: Make a formal request to the FHFA to eliminate the securitization cut off date for HARP eligibility and allow re-HARPing."" As of January 21, the petition has received more than 800 signatures.

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Commentary: Let Them Eat…Nothing

The disagreement over the nation's borrowing limit took a back seat to gun control and perhaps lost some urgency when House Republicans floated the idea of a temporary extension, which would do what Washington seems to be famous for--kicking the can down the road. But, the controversy and its impact on the nation's financial credibility demands a solution that will last for more than just a few months. Just a week after unveiling new rules for mortgage originations, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau stepped up its game by turning to the other end of the mortgage business, collecting on loans.

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Fitch: Final QM Rule to Shape Future Market

While the mortgage market continues its slow trod toward recovery--with distressed liquidations and delinquencies on the decline--industry participants await the final word from lawmakers on one key issue affecting the future of their businesses. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has expressed its intent to announce its final decision on what constitutes a qualified mortgage this year. This, in turn, will give the industry some insight into what can be expected to define a qualified residential mortgage (QRM), according to Fitch Ratings.

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BofA Reaches Repurchase Claims Agreement with Fannie Mae

Bank of America and Fannie Mae reached a $10.3 billion agreement Monday to resolve repurchase claims on loans originated from 2000 through 2008. The agreement also requires BofA to pay the GSE $1.3 billion in compensatory fee obligations. BofA simultaneously announced its intent to sell the servicing rights of 2 million mortgage loans to specialty servicers.

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GSEs Complete 134K Foreclosure Prevention Actions in Q3

In Q3 2012, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac completed about 134,200 foreclosure prevention actions, according to a report from the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA). Of that total, 62,500 foreclosure prevention actions were through loan modifications, and 38,000 were from short sales and deeds-in-lieu. Overall, since the start of their conservatorship in September 2008, the GSEs have completed 2.5 million foreclosure prevention actions.

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Home Prices Drop in October; 1st Dip Since March

Home prices fell in October for the first time since March, according to the monthly Case-Shiller Home Price Index. Both the 10-city index and the 20-city index decreased 0.1 percent from September to 158.77 and 146.08 respectively. The value of the 10 city index fell 0.10 and of the 20-city index dropped 0.09. The 10-city index for October was 3.4 percent higher than it was in October 2011 and the 20-city index showed a 4.3 percent year-year gain.

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Specialty Servicers Should Expect Large Transfers

Tailwinds should continue for specialty servicers in 2013, according to a report from FBR. As large, traditional servicers become unwilling to service certain asset that require more attention, FBR says it believes about $600 billion to $700 billion in ""high-touch, credit sensitive assets"" will eventually make their way into the specialty servicing and sub-servicing sectors.

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