In a report released earlier this week by ratings agency DBRS, the firm revealed that one of the biggest and most controversial topics in the loan modification industry is playing one of the smallest actual roles. According to the report, only 2.8 percent of all loan modifications performed during the first quarter of 2011 actually involved any sort of principal Read full article »
Tag archives for Principal Reduction
Less than 3 Percent of Loan Mods Include Principal Deductions
tags: BEREL, big banks, Bryan Ellis, Bryan Ellis Real Estate Letter, carole vansickle, DBRS, Debt Forgiveness, Draft, Economy, Foreclosure, Housing Market, housing market news, Lenders, lending news, loan mod, Loan Modification, mandatory loan mod, Mortgage, mortgage modification, Mortgages, new bottom line, new bottom line report, nlb, Principal Reduction, Real Estate, Real Estate Investing, Real Estate Investing News, Real Estate Investors, real estate investors news, Real Estate Market, real estate market news, Real Estate News, Unemployement
Citizen-Led Movement in California Proposes to Outlaw Foreclosures
In Sacramento, California, one citizen is taking on the lenders directly, using his “Foreclosure Modification Act” to demand that lenders provide principal and interest rate reductions in order to keep borrowers in their homes. And according to the author of the proposal, David A. Benson, the best way to make this happen is to leave banks with no other option Read full article »
tags: BEREL, Bryan Ellis, Bryan Ellis Real Estate Letter, California Foreclosure, california real estate, carole vansickle, david benson, Draft, Foreclosure, foreclosure modification act, Foreclosures, Loan Modification, mortgage modification, outlaw foreclosures, Principal Reduction, Real Estate, Real Estate Investing, Real Estate Investing News, Real Estate Investors, real estate investors news, Real Estate News, sacramento california, sacramento foreclosure, sacramento real estate, Stop Foreclosure
Almost 5,000 HAMP Mods Carry Principal Reductions
HAMP’s principal reduction alternative (PRA) is working for nearly 5,000 homeowners, with only 27 of the 4,938 participants in the program falling out and 4,911 principal-modified loans listed by HAMP as active. An additional 16,017 HAMP PRA loans are in trial at this time. Currently, HAMP requirements state that loan servicers must evaluate homeowners applying for modifications for the PRA Read full article »
tags: Bank Of America, Bryan Ellis, Bryan Ellis Real Estate Letter, carole vansickle, Draft, Fannie Mae, Foreclosure, Foreclosures, Freddie Mac, Hamp, hamp principal reduction, home affordable foreclosure alternatives, Jp Morgan Chase, Mortgage, Mortgage Lending, Mortgages, PRA, Principal Reduction, principal reduction alternative, raphael bostic, Real Estate, Real Estate Investing, Real Estate Investing News, Real Estate Investors, real estate investors news, Real Estate News, Wells Fargo
Attorney General Foreclosure Probe Closer to Settlement
Iowa attorney general Tom Miller has announced that the 50-state foreclosure probe begun in October as a response to the robo-signer fiasco is “closer” to a settlement and that state and federal officials plan to monitor banks to ensure that they “keep their promises”. Although Miller has not disclosed the terms of the proposed agreement, he said via phone interview Read full article »
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California Rep Proposes Bill Containing Mandatory Loss Mitigation
Unsatisfied with last week’s cease and desist orders issued to major lenders last week by the Office of the Comptroller of Currency (OCC), congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA) has created a bill that she believes will be far more effective in “fixing” the mortgage servicing industry than the “light slap of the wrist” that lenders received last week. Waters’ bill has Read full article »
tags: BEREL, Bryan Ellis, Bryan Ellis Real Estate Letter, california congresswoman, carole vansickle, cease and desist letters, Draft, Financial Reform, Foreclosure, foreclosure prevention and sound mortgage servicing act, foreclosure reform, Foreclosures, hr 1567, lending industry, Loan Modification, Loss Mitigation, mandatory loan mod, maxine awaters, Mortgage Industry, mortgage reform, Mortgage Servicers, mortgage servicing industry, OCC, office of the comptroller of currency, Principal Reduction, Real Estate, Real Estate Investing, Real Estate Investing News, Real Estate Investors, real estate investors news, real estate legislation, Real Estate News, Stop Foreclosure, underwater mortgages
The Politics of Real Estate
Few industries are as profoundly impacted by the political machinations in Washington as the real estate industry. Whether it's old legislation like Jimmy Carter's Community Reinvestment Act or Barack Obama's massive mortgage bailouts, the U.S. political machine has a huge impact (usually bad) on the business of real estate.
Ideally, we could ignore politics. But here at the Bryan Ellis Real Estate Letter, we insist on seeing the world with clarity - including the reality of Washington's aggressive involvement in every facet of our business, from mortgage lending to real estate sales license; from loan modification regulations to appraisal requirements... every piece of our business is profoundly impacted by politics. So rather than stick our heads in the sand and ignore reality, readers of the Bryan Ellis Real Estate Letter choose to be informed and prepared.
Mortgage Industry News
Few things change more rapidly than the mortgage market, and with the increasing dominance of GSE's Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac over the mortgage business, it's more important than ever to keep up. Here are a few recent mortgage news updates:
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Mortgage News
- HAMP Success Tally Slowly Growing
- Western States Working Through Foreclosure Backlog Quicker than Eastern
- Biggest Down Payments in the Country Found in New Jersey
- President Bypasses Congress, Appoints Director of the Consumer Protection Bureau
- Federal Reserve Recommends Expanding GSEs to Turn Housing Market Around
- Mortgage Rates Likely to Remain Low for a While Longer
- Top Former FDIC, Wells Fargo Execs Say Fannie and Freddie Must Go
- FHA Continues to Extend Anti-Flipping Waiver
- More Homeowners Using Delaying Tactics to Slow Down Foreclosures
- Now that It’s Passed: The True Cost of the Payroll Tax Cut
About Bryan Ellis
Bryan Ellis is an Atlanta-based real estate analyst and publisher of the widely read newsletter "The Bryan Ellis Real Estate Letter". With over 200,000 subscribers - including real estate investors, agents, brokers, appraisers and other real estate professionals - the Bryan Ellis Real Estate Letter is among America's largest sources of unbiased coverage of politics and public policy for the real estate industry.
Bryan Ellis serves as editor in chief for the Bryan Ellis Real Estate Letter and is assisted by an extraordinary staff of writers, researchers and editors who are each real estate experts in their own right and who assure that the news we report is well researched, factual, and highly relevant to today's real estate industry.
Bryan is very happily married and has two wonderful daughters. He makes his home in the suburbs of Atlanta, Georgia. You can contact the team at the Bryan Ellis Real Estate Letter here.