FHA Commissioner Dave Stevens told industry participants at a conference in San Diego this month that under his watch, the agency will tighten its risk management practices and crack down on problem lenders. The FHA is close to hiring an additional risk management expert to oversee this beefed-up operation. However, some industry experts said the suspension and subsequent collapse of major...
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The ultimate failure of HOPE for Homeowners has seemed almost inevitable for months now, and what last year was a major government push to stave off foreclosures is now nothing more than an afterthought. At last check, the Office of Management and Budget is still sitting on two notices – one that would transfer the program’s authority to the Department of Housing and Urban Development and...
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The FHA is making a serious push to replace its TOTAL Scorecard loan scoring system, which has several drawbacks and can alienate smaller lenders, with a fully automated underwriting system, officials said. But the problems that often plague the agency, like budget shortfalls and resources, could hinder the effort. FHA Commissioner Dave Stevens said one of his main goals is to create “a fully-automated...
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Representatives from the National Association of Mortgage Brokers met with FHA Commissioner Dave Stevens last week to discuss their participation in the FHA sector as well as other market changes. NAMB is not divulging the details of the meeting, but NAMB President Jim Pair said it was an informative meeting for both parties.
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FHA loans followed the general trend of rising delinquency rates in the entire mortgage market, as the percentage of loans at least 90 days past due or in default reached all-time highs for the fourth consecutive quarter. Data from the Department of Housing and Urban Development show a modest jump, but the Mortgage Bankers Association saw a pronounced spike in the foreclosure start rate as well as the delinquency rate for FHA loans. The seriously delinquent…
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The government’s major financial regulators proposed changes in how information on FHA Home Equity Conversion Mortgages is reported on banks’ call reports. In the Aug. 19 Federal Register, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Federal Reserve, Treasury Department, and Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. noted that “reverse mortgages are complex loan products” and agencies “are currently unable to...
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The volume of FHA loans larger than $417,000 shot up from the first quarter to the second quarter this year, and “jumbo” lending in the FHA sector is on pace to storm past the 2008 total, according to a new ranking and analysis by Inside FHA Lending. Through the first six months of 2009, FHA lenders have originated $9.31 billion in jumbo FHA loans, only 10 percent lower than the mark level set over the...
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