The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Office of Inspector General’s Semiannual Report to Congress is out.
An audit showed that lenders who failed to complete servicing actions for defaulted loans on time caused HUD to pay $413 million extra in interest.
Read on to see what the report uncovered regarding disaster funding, lead-based paint reporting and the Indian Home Loan Guarantee Program.
The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) has asked all approved mortgagees and lenders to be sensitive to the financial hardships experienced by borrowers as a result of the partial government shutdown, including those borrowers subject to furlough, layoff, or a reduction in income.
The FHA reminded FHA-approved lenders of their ongoing obligation to offer special forbearance to borrowers experiencing loss of income.
Read on for details from a letter sent by FHA Commissioner Brian Montgomery.
The judiciary originally announced it could sustain paid operations by using court fee balances and other funds not dependent on a new appropriation through Jan. 11. The Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts now has revised its original estimate to Jan. 18.
Read on for more details.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is asking landlords affected by the partial government shutdown to use reverse funds to pay for units rather than kick tenants out.
The agency recently sent letters to 1,500 landlords to prevent thousands of tenants from being evicted.
Read on for details from the letters, which affect tenants who live in units covered by a HUD program that expired Jan. 1.
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) has signed an amicus brief supporting the U.S. Department of Labor’s authority to issue its final association health plan (AHP) regulations.
The regulations, which became effective Jan. 1, will enable member-based organizations to offer comprehensive health coverage to millions of employees and self-employed individuals at an affordable price.
Read on to see what NAR President John Smaby had to say about the news.
Nine out of 10 mortgage servicing professionals are “very or somewhat” likely to consider a single-vendor approach for multiple services, according to a new report.
Altisource Portfolio Solutions S.A. has released the results of its third annual Default Servicing Survey, which examined recent economic indicators suggesting the housing market is experiencing a significant change.
Read on for highlights of Altisource’s survey, which also predicted increases in respondents’ Federal Housing Authority loan portfolios.
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) reached out to federal employees affected by the government shutdown, providing sample letters in which the employees could ask their mortgage servicers for the ability to pay less than their traditional mortgage payment during the shutdown.
The letters suggest that borrowers contact their servicers before writing their request.
Read on for more details about how OPM hopes to help furloughed employees.
In an unexpected reversal during the partial shutdown of the federal government, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) said it would issue and renew flood insurance policies after all.
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) called the decision a critical win for home sales.
Read on for more from NAR, one of the agencies that helped urge FEMA to re-evaluate its decision not to allow insurers to issue and renew federal policies during the shutdown.
The second quarter of 2018 saw continued defects typically resulting from lender downsizing and understaffing, according to a new report from ACES Risk Management (ARMCO).
In its Q2 Trends Report, ARMCO found a significant quarter-over-quarter increase (23.8 percent over the previous quarter) in defects related to loan package documentation, a trend that began in the first quarter.
Read on for details from the report, which also found a slight decrease in the critical defect rate.
What costs lenders thousands of dollars a year and annoys borrowers? Asking for the same document multiple times.
That’s according to the December Stratmor Group Insights report, “The Borrower Experience: Is this Simple Mistake Costing You $200,000 a Year?”
Read on for details from the report, which shows the average lender doing 5,000 loans annually is losing $243,000 in lost referrals and repeat business because of the problem.
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