Short-term Delinquencies Fall to Pre-Recession Levels, Loans in Foreclosure Tie All-Time Record in Latest MBA National Delinquency Survey

Testimony of John Walsh Acting Compcontroller of the Currency Before the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs

Big Banks Face Fines on Role of Servicers

MERS

Today’s News Synopsis:

The Federal Reserve will require borrowers who get their mortgages through a broker to receive the lowest  possible interest rate. LPS claims the national delinquency rate increased to 8.9% in January. A lawyer was held in contempt of court for helping his clients break back into their house after the foreclosure was ruled legitimate. RadarLogic said national home prices decreased 1.6% in December.

In The News:

New York Times – “New Fed Rule for Mortgage Brokers” (2-17-11)

“STARTING April 1, under a new compensation rule from the Federal Reserve, borrowers who get their mortgages through brokers will most likely pay less for their services and must be offered the lowest possible interest rate and fees for which they qualify.”

Housing Wire – “Fort Myers attorney indicted in mortgage fraud scheme” (2-18-11)

“A disbarred Florida attorney is facing three decades behind bars for lying on a mortgage application as part of a much larger $4.2 million scheme.”

Housing Wire – “Homeowner attorney found in contempt for breaking into foreclosed home” (2-18-11)

“The Ventura County Superior Court in California found attorney Michael T. Pines in contempt of court Wednesday for helping his clients Jim and Danielle Earl break back into their home after the foreclosure was ruled legitimate.”

Housing Wire – “January delinquencies decline over year-ago period: LPS” (2-18-11)

“The national delinquency rate stood at 8.9% in January, up 0.8% from the month prior, but down 18.8% over the year-ago period, according to the ‘First Look’ report from Lender Processing Services (LPS: 33.37 +0.30%).”

Housing Wire – “RE/MAX: US home sales returned to positive territory in January” (2-18-11)

“the RE/MAX National Housing Report also reported a 3.6% month-over-month drop in housing inventory and a 5.6% decline in inventory on a year-over-year basis.”

Housing Wire – “Critics say MERS foreclosure halt shows broken business model” (2-18-11)

“He said a New York bankruptcy judge already held that MERS cannot assign a mortgage, so Pennell explains, if they can’t make the assignment, they are not going to be able to legally assign the mortgage out of MERS and back to servicers as part of this recent change, he said.”

Housing Wire – “RadarLogic home prices revert downward” (2-18-11)

“For December, RadarLogic reported a 1.6% decrease compared to the month prior, as well as a 3.6% drop compared to 2009.”

Bloomberg - “Apartment Construction Climbs in U.S. as Switch to Renting Crimps Supply” (2-18-11)

“‘There will be a spike in rents over the next one to three years,’ Parker said in an interview at the company’s U.S. headquarters in Seattle.”

Bloomberg - “Lennar Bets on Ex-Officer Housing `Party’ as Calif. Rebounds” (2-18-11)

“Emile Haddad, a former Lennar Corp. executive, sold 12,000 acres in California for a $277 million profit at the housing market’s peak four years ago. He and his partners then reacquired it at half the price in 2009. Now, Haddad says, it’s time to build.”

Looking Back:

One year ago, Freddie Mac’s weekly survey showed that mortgage rates dropped this week. 4,853 new and resale houses and condos closed escrow within a month in the Bay Area. The U.S. Treasury claimed that its foreclosure prevention program had cut mortgage payments for approximately 947,000 homeowners. S&P estimated there were approximately 947,000 houses in shadow inventory, which would take nearly 3 years to sell.

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