Securitization

As state and federal officials struggle to reach a global settlement with the largest mortgage servicers over problems in the foreclosure process, regulators have grown frustrated with the lack of leadership on their side, saying no one is making an effort to corral the multitude of agencies involved.

In a decision issued late yesterday, P Kevin Castel, a judge in the U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, ruled against a class action suit versus Countrywide Financial Corp.

While regulators are moving toward requiring high downpayments for the majority of home buyers, there are still ways to aid first time buyers, according to Obama administration officials.

The practice of voluntary asset buy-backs is prompting Fitch Ratings to keep several RMBS transactions in South Africa on Rating Watch Negative (RWN), the agency said in a report looking at the expected performance of the country’s structured finance sector this year.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) late Wednesday filed civil charges against a former operations chief at the now defunct Colonial Bank, accusing her of playing a key role in $1.5 billion warehouse lending related scam.

Trepp acquired Investcap Advisors, a privately held, Massachusetts-based firm. Investcap offers Web-based applications for U.S. CMBS loan and property surveillance.

Goldman Sachs is in the market with GS Mortgage Securities Trust, Series 2011-GC3. The more than $1.4 billion deal is backed by 57 fixed-rate loans secured by 111 commercial properties.

Troubled bond insurer Ambac Assurance Corp. posted a gain in its statutory surplus even as its bankrupt parent recorded a net loss in its fourth-quarter filing Wednesday.

The backlash against an aggressive mortgage servicing settlement reached new heights on Wednesday as lawmakers sharply criticized Elizabeth Warren of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) for her involvement and two state attorneys general vocally opposed the proposed deal.

Former Freddie Mac chairman and CEO Richard Syron recently received a 'Wells Notice' from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which means the agency is considering filing civil charges against him related to his management of company.

The flight to safety as a result of the crisis in Japan sent mortgage rates tumbling in the week ending March 17.

Fitch Ratings expects a growth in rehabilitation (rehab) student loans. Although rehab loans have always comprised a part of FFELP SLABS, their unique characteristics and performance history make separate assumptions necessary when analyzing student loan pools that have this type of collateral.

NewOak Capital appointed David Eyzenberg as managing director and head of the commercial real estate division, where he will direct the firm’s principal activities in that sector.

U.S. housing starts sank to a seasonally adjusted 479,000 in February, the lowest level in 23 months, as building permits dropped to a record low, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday.

Despite uncertainty surrounding covered bond legislation in the U.S., issuers may place around $50 billion in the greenback market this year, according to Karlo Fuchs, senior director at Standard & Poor’s.

Goldman Sachs is once again entertaining bids on its subprime servicing operation, Litton Loan Servicing, Houston, and has approached a handful of bidders about making an offer, according to industry officials.

For at least his first year as head of the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), David Stevens will be barred from lobbying the federal agency that matters most to many of the trade group's members: the one he's leaving.

Mortgage application activity slipped 0.7% in the week ending March 11 as a result of lower purchase activity.

Two top Obama administration officials said Tuesday that the GSEs would not be exempted from a pending proposal to help standardize mortgages sold into the secondary market.

A new estimate by the Treasury Department shows the bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will cost taxpayers an additional $73 billion through 2021.