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More mortgage migraines
By Judy Martel · Bankrate.com
Friday, February 8, 2013
Posted: 6 pm ET

Accusations of wrongdoing during the housing crisis are not going away anytime soon. On Tuesday, Attorney General Eric Holder announced that the U.S. government is bringing a civil lawsuit for more than $5 billion against Standard & Poor’s over mortgage bond ratings.

Expectations of the lawsuit caused shares of McGraw-Hill, Standard & Poor’s parent company, to experience its biggest one-day percentage drop since 1987 on Monday. The stock fell 13.8 percent, according to CNBC.

Holder is charging that Standard & Poor’s misled investors with its bond ratings and ignored questions raised by analysts. This is the first federal charge against a ratings agency, but investors apparently believe it might not be the last. According to CNBC, shares of another ratings agency, Moody’s, dropped 10.7 percent Monday on news of the suit against Standard & Poor’s.

Read more via More mortgage migraines « Bankrate, Inc..

CoreLogics December HPI report has found that home prices nationwide, including distressed sales, increased on a year-over-year basis by 8.3 percent in December 2012 compared to December 2011. This change represents the biggest increase since May 2006 and the 10th consecutive monthly increase in home prices nationally. On a month-over-month basis, including distressed sales, home prices increased by 0.4 percent in December 2012 compared to November 2012. The HPI analysis shows that all but four states are experiencing year-over-year price gains.

Read the full article via CoreLogic Reports Home Prices on the Rise for 10th Consecutive Month | Mortgage News | Daily National and State Headlines.

Guaranteed Rate, a home loan company, opened shop in 2000 in Chicago with a single office. Now it is one of the 20 biggest U.S. mortgage lenders, with more than 140 offices.

Most of that growth has come in the last two years and Chief Executive Victor Ciardelli said in an interview he is not planning to slow down.

Read the full article via Small Lenders Ride US Mortgage Wave as Big Banks Cut Back.

With the housing market pacing a rebound, financial analysts are anxious to gauge the pulse of the property sector and determine exactly when real estate investment might become ‘safe’ again. Ever since the value of American property took a nosedive in 2008, analysts have used comparison to pre-crash values as a means to determine market health. While we want to ensure conditions that lead to the crash are avoided, it would still be a relief to see property values recuperate near to what was maintained before the recession.

Read the full article via Has the Housing Market Halfway Recovered? | The Niche Report.

Posted by Steve Cook

Changes in mortgage origination, including a changeover from refinancing transactions to purchases transactions and industry consolidation, will reduce the number of jobs but increase the opportunities for younger workers, according to Hammerhouse , a national recruiting firm for financial services.

“2013 will see the mortgage industry continue to evolve and the job of originators will continue to become more professional,” stated Drew Waterhouse, Managing Director of Hammerhouse.  “The industry will continue to stabilize and the companies that are properly structured, with strong leaders, quality-focused, balanced production, technologically advanced, geographically oriented and financially strong, will find 2013 to be the year they excel versus their peers.”

The advent of higher rates along with the move away from a refinance-transaction orientation to a purchase-transaction orientation, 2013 will see the pool of refinancing jobs will continue to grow smaller. There will be fewer people and companies needed in such an environment, the firm predicted.

With less volume comes the need for less and more efficient resources to generate production.  There will be a consolidation among independent mortgage producers.  Some will simply find it too difficult to maintain their independence in the new market environment.  Those that were too dependent on refinances will either merge or disappear, Hammerhouse said today.

Originators with transferrable, balanced, referral-based books of business will be in high demand and will find that they have significant leverage with employers. Younger workers will be in demand.  One of the consequences of the housing sector collapse was a loss of younger and mid-career originators.    Now, with the market preparing to move to a purchase-orientation, the need for younger originators to provide the hustle needed to succeed with Realtors® and to target younger, first-time buyers is readily apparent.

via Mortgage Industry to Contract in 2013 | The Niche Report.

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The North Texas Association of Mortgage Professionals actively promotes the interests of Mortgage Professionals on local, and national levels. The Associations affiliation with the national association is critical to the passing and fighting of legislative issues which impact your ability to conduct your business!

The Association provides education, certification, and government affairs representation for you, the Mortgage Professional..

Membership provides you with all of the products and services that individual member associations typically offer, along with other services specially tailored to the mortgage industry – such as our Mortgage Loan Originator referral program, consumer education outreach efforts, targeted legislative advocacy programs and up-to-the-minute news updates.

Best of all, many members can take advantage of two memberships for the price of one – local (NTXAMP), and national (NAMB). NAMB, the leader in fighting for Loan Originators, currently maintains 43 separate state affiliates with more than 13,000 members, providing you with additional products, services and networking opportunities between NAMB / TAMP / and Local Chapter Associations.

If you’re operating as a Mortgage Professional, please know that it is only through your membership and support of these associations that they can continue to fight legislative issues on your behalf.

CLICK HERE TO JOIN NOW

via NTXAMP New Year Kick-Off Happy Hour on Jan 24th – RSVP today!.

As a mortgage broker, chances are you are intimately knowledgeable about the Appraisal Independence Requirement AIR as part of sound underwriting for financial institutions. And though you may be familiar with the provisions for gaining information to safely loan on a property, be careful not to take for granted that buyers are aware of the legislation or the purpose and process of the appraisal overall.

Read the full article via The Top Myths and Misconceptions in the Appraisal Process Dispelled for Clients | The Niche Report.

Breaking News – Government Affairs Update

via GA Update – The Qualified Mortgage is Here!.

The CFPB released over 1,300 pages of documents today including the 804 page Qualified Mortgage Rule, also known as the Ability to Repay. Read the CFPB rule here. In short, the QM will abolish loans with “risky features” such as no doc loans and pay-option ARMs as will as implement a max 43% back end ratio for non-GSE, non-FHA, non-VA, non-USDA loans at this time. The QM also includes a cap on “points and fees” of 3% which will include LO compensation and affiliated fees. The Rule is effective January 10, 2014. The CFPB is seeking comment on how exactly the LO compensation piece will work. NAMB looks forward to working with the CFPB to work on the details. NAMB officially is requesting the CFPB to convene a SBREFA Panel to specifically discuss the impact the rule will have on not only small business mortgage professionals, but the consumers they serve. Read the NAMB Press Release. Copy of NAMB’s testimony to the House Financial Services Committee from July which spells out the concerns with the 3% cap on points and fees can be found here. Bottom Line: Don’t Panic!…yet. Your Government Affairs team at NAMB is already hard at work. We represented mortgage professionals at the CFPB hearing in Balimore today and are already working with other trade associations to determine the best course of action with the new rules. Stay tuned and support those thaty support you!   2013 NAMB Legislative and Regulatory Conference will be March 10, 11, 12 in Washington, D.C.. This is a “must attend” event. Last year, 10,000 Realtors attended NAR’s Lobby Day. We would love to see if we can get 1,000 mortgage professionals there to help us lobby on Capital Hill. Join us as we rally to fight for consumers, small business and mortgage professionals everywhere. Stay tuned for more details!!! NAMB Government Affairs Committee meeting this week. If you would like to volunteer and participate with your GA Team, please let me know at jhudson@pnlending.com Now, give us your feedback, ask us your questions, and share your commentary. Please email us at governmentaffairs@namb.org.     We need your participation and support…get involved today. NAMB is a non-profit trade association made up of volunteers that are passionate about the preservation and promotion of consumer choice, small business, and the well-being of ALL mortgage industry professionals. We have been fighting for the mortgage industry since 1973….Join us in our efforts. Support YOUR Industry, Fight Back, Join NAMB Here            SUPPORT NAMBPAC – As we vigorously fight for you in Washington, we do need help supporting those legislators that support us – please visit NAMBPAC to learn more!           Please pass this message along to your referral sources and let them know how they can help. Protect Our Industry – Forward This Message

John H. P. Hudson 2012 NAMB Government Affairs Chair   Premier Nationwide Lending  1202 W. Bitters Rd., Bldg 1, Ste. 1205 San Antonio, TX 78216 817-247-4766-Mobile 210-428-6379-Fax jhudson@pnlending.com

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

Federal officials unveiled new mortgage rules on Thursday meant to reduce risky lending and make it easier for borrowers to know exactly what they are getting into.

Read the full article via New CFPB rules aim to make qualified mortgages safer – Jan. 10, 2013.