Tag Archives: Attorneys & Title Companies

Do appraisal forms and documents need more transparency? At least one trade group says yes. The Appraisal Institute joined together with other organizations to petition the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau for stronger buyer communication when it comes to information about appraisal costs and settlement forms. Specifically, the letter delivered to the government group asked for the separation of appraisal fees from administration and processing fees on settlement forms given to consumers when purchasing a property.

Mortgage rates continue to drop and recent statistics show that the price of long-term lending is approaching historically low numbers. Results of this week's survey from Freddie Mac show that an unexpected rise in home sales coupled with low rates have brought the cost of borrowing to its second-lowest level ever recorded. Percentages for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage loan fell to 3.98 percent off of 4 percent from the previous week, and the averages for 15-year fixed rate mortgages hit 3.3 percent, down from 3.31 percent.

If a new bill becomes law, it would establish a central appeals hub for financial institutions with concerns about actions taken by bank examiners, corralling the activities of several regulatory agencies for review. Reps. Shelley Moore Capito and Carolyn Maloney recently co-sponsored the Financial Institutions Examination Fairness and Reform Act, or H.R. 3461, which aims to create an Office of Examination Ombudsman responsible for any complaints from financial institutions about examiners.

Adding a new leadership position to a company division, Carrington Mortgage Services, LLC, has hired Brad Nease as its SVP of capital markets.

Lender Processing Services is under examination from the Nevada Attorney General for issues encompassing specific incidents with the company's document processing and practices. The state's Attorney General recently indicted two employees within LPS on 606 counts of fraud, alleging that the two forged signatures and notarization on mortgage-related paperwork.

Defying forecasts for a slowdown, the national tally for bank failures this year hit 90 as two financial institutions went under in Iowa and Louisiana. State regulators shuttered Johnston, Iowa-based Polk County Bank and Lacombe, Louisiana-based Central Progressive Bank, appointing the FDIC receiver. Grinnell-based Grinnell State Bank and New Orleans-based First NBC Bank scooped up branches, assets, and deposits in purchase-and-assumption agreements. Century-old Polk County closed its doors.

One online lender is handling the refinancing rush by targeting borrowers who are eligible for the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP).

After several weeks of intense deliberation, with backers and supporters on both sides, Congress again raised limits for Federal Housing Administration conforming loans to $729,750, which President Barack Obama signed off on Friday. House lawmakers included an amendment to raise the limits in a stopgap spending measure cobbled together by both houses to keep the government running through December this year. The House voted for the bill by a 298-121 margin, which the Senate followed with 70 yeas and 30 nays. Trade groups rushed to extol the raised limits.

The Senate Banking Committee pressed nominees for the nation├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós major financial services and housing agencies over a myriad of recent issues Thursday, with insolvency for the Federal Housing Administration and an increasing number of bank failures prevailing in discussions. The nomination hearing for the three Obama administration prospects ├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔé¼┼ô FHA commissioner-nominee Carol Galante, FDIC vice-chairman nominee Thomas Hoenig, and HUD deputy secretary-nominee Maurice Jones ├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔé¼┼ô quickly transitioned from congratulatory to tense and at times awkward.

South Carolina is gaining nearly 1,600 new jobs courtesy of TD Bank's corporate expansion. The company recently announced that it will create a campus for the bank in Greenville, adding jobs in in the city as well as in nearby Lexington.