Regulation

The Justice Department announced Wednesday that it has reached a $335 million settlement with Countrywide, now owned by Bank of America, in the largest fair lending action in history.

Now that the Office of Thrift Supervision has been eliminated, First Federal Savings and Loan Association in Charleston, S.C., does not see much reason to retain its federal charter.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's quarterly mortgage metrics report found that new foreclosures increased 21% in the third quarter, and will remain at the current levels as servicers work through a large overhang of seriously delinquent mortgages.

Occupy Wall Street will enlist the aid and support of B, C, and D-list celebrities in numerous REO takeovers around the country. And other bold predictions.

The most wonderful time of the year is always followed by the practice of resolving to improve in the new year. So in the spirit of the season, here are five suggested 2012 resolutions for federal policymakers.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency is considering a plan that would enable underwater homeowners who have filed for Chapter 13 bankruptcy protection to make only principal payments — and no interest — on a Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac mortgage for five years.

Roger S. Berkowitz, the chief executive of Legal Sea Foods, has been elected to the board of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.

Knee-jerk reactions by investors to news about the European debt crisis and the shrinking value of the euro have sent stock markets on a roller coaster ride globally. And a new treaty signed by euro zone countries giving the European Union authority to reject a country’s national budget and order a redraft if it does not meet targets designed to ease the debt crisis has heightened their apprehension.

The number of new foreclosures increased 21.1% in the third quarter as mortgage servicers lifted voluntary moratoria implemented late last year, according to a report released Wednesday by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency has again delayed implementation of an initiative to update and streamline the loan and appraisal data collected by the government-sponsored enterprises.