Mortgage defaults

Rushing to copy the Amazon experience, banks and fintechs are focused on simplifying financial services online. A Georgia Tech researcher says that approach is risky.

An agency report said servicing portfolios have shrunk by nearly half in 10 years as much of the mortgage market has shifted to nonbanks.

Growing home prices plus rising interest rates are putting a damper on mortgage lending, which pushes the market to seek out less qualified borrowers and increases the risk of fraud.

An AI-powered virtual assistant could be used in a variety of ways, including helping customers to prequalify for mortgages, easing compliance and detecting problems.

Debates on the issue often focus on how lending decisions affect certain demographic groups, but those analyses tend to ignore an important factor: default rates.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac may need to tap into U.S. Treasury funds when they adopt CECL, a new accounting rule that makes companies set aside money upfront for expected loan losses.

Despite soaring home prices, other factors needed to inflate a housing bubble are absent from the real estate market. But experts warn falling home values and rising mortgage defaults are inevitable, even if conditions naturally cool off.

PHH Corp. agreed to a $45 million settlement to resolve allegations from 49 states and the District of Columbia that it engaged in "foreclosure process abuses" involving "inconsistent signatures" in its servicing business from 2009 to 2012. The settlement comes as the nonbank mortgage company continues its legal challenge to a separate regulatory action by the CFPB.

The seven largest national banks held less than 5% of loans that were delinquent at the end of the third quarter, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency said Friday.

Cutting payments helps stave off default, but principal reduction on underwater loans and lower consumer debt levels are less effective, according to JPMorgan Chase Institute's new study of post-crisis modifications.

The Federal Housing Administration's recent actuarial report has added more fuel to the fire over concerns about reverse mortgages, including their effect on the overall FHA insurance fund and a rise in foreclosures.

The Federal Housing Administration was battered by losses this year from reverse mortgages, casting doubt on whether the agency will adopt an Obama-era proposal to reduce mortgage insurance premiums.

Fannie Mae servicers are facing pressure from the recent hurricanes, but so far are bearing up under the strain.

HUD Secretary Ben Carson said he's held off making any decision on premium cuts until the confirmation of key appointments. "It has been a real ordeal getting people in place," he said.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau may face an unsteady political environment, but a new report on CFPB supervisory priorities has experts warning financial institutions not to rest on their laurels.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau may face an unsteady political environment, but a new report on CFPB supervisory priorities has experts warning banks not to rest on their laurels.

The bank agrees to pay $6 million to a California couple a judge said was illegally foreclosed on; do rewards programs help or hurt card issuers?

Down payment standards should be relaxed to just 10% to spur homebuying among millennials, Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan said this week.

Years after the worst of the housing crisis, states still dealing with high foreclosure activity are weighing laws to speed the process on vacant or abandoned properties.

New research from the New York Fed confirms a lingering worry for the banking industry: More prime-age, college-educated borrowers are delaying the decision to take out their first mortgage as they focus instead on paying off their student loans.