Origination

n Utah, Celtic Bank has hired a mortgage industry veteran as the company's new vice president of business development. The bank recently announced the appointment of Steven L. Mathews to the leadership role.

Taylor Capital Group, Inc., is initiating a major expansion of its mortgage division. The group recently announced plans to double the number of branches for Cole Taylor Mortgage, which serves as the company's lending unit through Taylor Capital subsidiary, Cole Taylor Bank.

Realestalker.com is reporting that a major property acquisition is underway for Oracle founder, Larry Ellison. According to the website, the billionaire technology entrepreneur is set to purchase the Hawaiian island of Lanai for between $500 and $600 million.

An analysis of government data by the National Association of Home Builders revealed another issue that can be added to the list of economic changes caused by the housing slump: Rising student loan debt. Data shows that the onset of the housing crisis brought with it an increase in students taking out loans for higher education. Since the third quarter of 2008, student loan debt has increased by 47.9 percent ($293 million). This increase is attributed to the drop in the availability of home equity loans, according to the NAHB.

Demand for mortgages increased in May, according to a report released by Ellie Mae Wednesday. The Origination Insight Report for May 2012 showed that the average loan-to-value on closed loans jumped up above the 80 percent mark for the first time since the company began tracking in August 2011. Ellie Mae attributed the increase to an easing of LTVs on conventional refinances. The average LTV on conventional refinance in May was 72 percent, a slide up from April's 69 percent. Closed conventional refinances with LTVs of 95 percent or higher jumped up to 11 percent in May.

HomeStreet Bank is expanding its employer-assisted benefit options to a new region of Washington state. The community bank has announced the extension of its Hometown Home Loan Program to the Spokane area.

Potential homebuyers looking to capture the spirit of the swinging 60s still have a chance to snag a piece of history in Beverly Hills. The former home of Patty Duke remains on the market for $5.395 million, after having been originally listed in March of 2011 for $6.

Mortgage servicers received new guidance Thursday addressing protocol for dealing with military members who receive permanent change of station orders. The joint guidance was released by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in concert with the Federal Reserve, FDIC, National Credit Union Administration, and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. About one-third of the nation├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós military members receive non-negotiable permanent change of station orders each year, and the new servicer guidance is intended to ensure compliance with applicable consumer laws and regulations.

Existing home sales dropped to 4.55 million in May while the median price of an existing home rose to $182,600, the National Association of realtors reported Thursday. The decline in the seasonally adjusted annual rate of sales was the third in the last four months and steeper than expected. Despite the month-over-month decline, existing-home sales continue a steady, longer-term increase. Sales have averaged 4.574 million in the last five months, compared with 4.358 million in the previous five months and 4.274 million last year.

First time claims for unemployment insurance fell to 387,000 for the week ended June 16, from the prior week├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós 389,000, (revised from the originally reported 387,000) the Labor Department reported Thursday. Economists had expected the report would show 3863,000 initial claims.