From Housingwire, MHProNews.com learns that MetLife recently closed its forward home loan business. The company will continue to originate reverse mortgages, however. MetLife had had been trying to sell the division since October due to what the report says the company considered excessive regulations post-banking crisis. The insurance giant also …
CNBC tells MHProNews.com the Obama administration’s plan to speed-up the housing recovery process may be to sell government-owned foreclosed real estate in bulk to investors who will then rent the properties. Since banks may be reluctant to finance the purchases, the government may offer a subsidy to the investors by …
MhproNews.com has learned from the HuffingtonPost that Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke says foreclosure is not a good way to deal with delinquent mortgage holders because it leads to deteriorating houses and depression of area home prices. In a report sent to the housing affairs and banking services committees of …
MHProNews.com has learned from NationalMortgageNews the minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting Dec. 13 reveal disappointment that attempts by the government to stimulate a housing recovery, combined with low interest rates and increasing employment, has had little effect. Response to the expansion of the Home Affordable Refinance …
Congress and Republican Presidential hopefuls may be calling for an end to the mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, but a new White Paper from the Federal Reserve says a larger role is what’s needed. MHProNews.com has learned from CNBC.com that the Fed released the document suggesting Fannie and …
RealtorMag quotes Frank Northaft, chief economist at Freddie Mac, as saying, “”Mortgage rates ended the year hovering near historic lows in an already affordable housing market,” noting the 3.95 percent mortgage rate for the 30-year FRM. The rate only crossed the five percent line twice in 2011. He says a …
The Telegram reports from Worcester, Massachusetts, that building permits for single and multifamily dwellings were down 55 percent for the first ten months of 2011. Timothy M. Warren, chief executive of the Warren Group, which publishes Banker and Tradesman, tells MHProNews.com he expects home sales to increase slightly in 2012, …
MHProNews.com has learned that Clayton Homes founder Jim Clayton has chosen Alabama banker Eric Hamilton as president and CEO of Clayton Bank and Trust of Knoxville, Tennessee. Clayton, 77, stepped back into the role after Matt Daniels left in 2007, and had hoped to fill the position the following year, …
MHProNews.com has learned from OriginationNews that according to Freddie Mac, mortgage rates are well below comparable rates from a year ago even though they edged up a little from last week. The average rate for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage (FRM) rose four basis points to 3.95 from last week, …
NationalMortgageNews tells MHProNews.com a survey by mortgage lender Lending Tree reveals Americans who can afford to buy homes are putting 12 percent down on average, even more where the property is more expensive. While some regulatory proposals push for down payments of 20 percent in order to be exempt from …
CEO of StreetTalk Advisors Lance Roberts sees home prices continuing to fall another 10-15 percent, and overall economic growth will be about one percent, lass than half of other analysts who are predicting 2-2.5 percent growth. In an interview with HousingWire he says, “ There is a current belief that …
SeekingAlpha tells MHProNews.com the backbone of Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway investment strategy is the float from his insurance and reinsurance businesses, most notably GEICO and commercial insurance, including malpractice and workmen’s compensation. The float refers to premiums paid, like life insurance, that may take decades before the payout. At year’s …
An October 30, 1981 article published by Knight-Ridder which came up on a Google search today says boldly that Manufactured Housing may be the only way consumers can afford the American Dream. The reason: sky-high interest rates. The article professes that “if builder’s can lower construction costs by 50 percent, …
Mortgage company PHH Corp. watched its stock fall nearly 15 percent last week after Standard and Poor’s Rating Services downgraded the company’s credit and unsecured debt from BB+ to BB-, according to HousingWire. S & P does not think PHH can repay the $423 million in debt due in March …
OriginationNews tells MHProNews that after a two-year study, a Columbus, Ohio-based insurance company has introduced the Home Value Protection(HVP) plan to offer a modicum of protection to homeowners interested in refinancing or taking on a new mortgage. In light of the negative equity many homeowners face, Home Value Insurance Co. …
The Mortgage Bankers Association reported Wednesday that Mortgage applications decreased 2.6 percent from one week earlier in its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending December 16. The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 2.6 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week …
NationalMortgageNews reports the battle over President Obama’s nomination of Richard Cordray to head the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has stymied three uncontroversial confirmations in related areas. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kent.) has put a hold on Martin Gruenberg’s nomination to head the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC), Thomas …
Partisan Battle Continues to Dog Richard Cordray as Head of CFPB Read More
BostonGlobe reports three potential candidates have been identified as possible monitors to make sure banks comply with any settlement of a nationwide foreclosure probe. In the wake of disclosures that mortgage companies were using faulty documents to seize homes during the foreclosure process, all 50 states began investigations. The monitor …
Candidates Being Considered to Monitor Foreclosure Probe Read More
MHProNews has learned that theMHARR Board officials and staff met on December 14, 2011 with Government National Mortgage Association (GNMA) President Theodore W. Tozer to discuss the securitization requirements that have limited FHA (Federal Housing Administration) Title I manufactured housing loans. Currently, GNMA requires a minimum net worth of $10 …
NationalMortgageNews reports Republican Senators want the Obama administration to more forcefully strengthen the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) before confirming Carol Galante to head the agency. They also seek a plan for dealing with GSEs (government -sponsored enterprises) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Sen. Jim Demint, (R-SC), leveling charges at Ms. …
Galante’s Nomination to Head FHA Sent to Full Senate Read More
