Page 294 – Safeguard Properties

HUD: $1.6 Billion Awarded to Help the U.S. Virgin Islands Recover from Hurricanes Irma and Maria

Posted on September 13, 2018September 13, 2018 by Safeguard

Investor Update
April 11, 2018

Source: HUD

Disaster recovery funds to help repair damaged homes, businesses and infrastructure

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) today awarded $1.6 billion to support long-term disaster recovery in the U.S. Virgin Islands following Hurricanes Irma and Maria. These funds are provided through HUD’s Community Development Block Grant – Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) Program and are intended to rebuild seriously damaged housing, businesses and critical infrastructure.

“It’s clear that a number of states and local communities are still struggling to recover from a variety of natural disasters that occurred in the past three years,” said HUD Secretary Ben Carson. “These grants will help rebuild communities impacted by past disasters and will also protect them from major disasters in the future.”

Governor Kenneth Mapp said, “Just seven months ago we were struck by two Category 5 hurricanes within 12 days of each other causing catastrophic damage throughout our Territory. These storms devastated our entire power grid and severely damaged our hospitals, our schools, our roads as well as thousands of homes and businesses. Yet with the help of FEMA, President Trump, and the efforts of committed Federal partners such as Secretary Carson and Deputy Secretary Patenaude, we have begun our long road to a successful recovery. This additional $1.6 billion CDBG-DR grant that HUD has committed to the US Virgin Islands allows us to continue to rebuild our infrastructure and gives us the flexibility to create a more resilient power distribution system that is less likely to succumb to future storms. On behalf of the people of the US Virgin Islands, I offer my deepest gratitude to the Secretary and Deputy Secretary for their support.”

CDBG-DR grants support a variety of disaster recovery activities including housing redevelopment and rebuilding, business assistance, economic revitalization, and infrastructure repair. Grantees are required to spend the majority of these recovery funds in “most impacted” areas as identified by HUD. HUD will issue guidelines shortly and will provide substantial technical support to for use of the funds to address grantees’ long-term recovery needs, particularly in the area of housing recovery.

U.S. Virgin Islands planning officials, along with U.S. Virgin Islands citizens, will now develop a disaster recovery plan to identify how these funds will be spent. CDBG-DR funds are designed to meet local needs with critical recovery decisions being made by local citizens.

Freddie Mac: Updated Property Values for Borrowers Impacted by Eligible Disasters

Posted on September 13, 2018 by Safeguard

Investor Update
April 20, 2018

Source: Freddie Mac

We recently updated BPODirect® with the most recent pre-disaster property values.

When you evaluate borrowers impacted by an eligible disaster that occurred on or after August 25, 2017, for a Freddie Mac Flex Modification®, please use the property values provided in the “Auto Value” field in BPODirect. We’ve updated these to provide the most recent available value prior to the date of the eligible disaster.

Even if the property value is 90 days old or older, you must use that value, but continue to follow all other requirements in Single-Family Seller/Servicer Guide (Guide) Section 9206.8. In most cases, there will continue to be no value provided via Home Value Explorer® or the Automated Valuation Model report for properties in an eligible disaster area, so please use BPODirect in those instances.

If there is no property value in BPODirect, then you must order a broker price option. Please refer to Guide Section 9206.5 for full eligibility requirements for the Flex Modification.

For More Information

Visit Freddie Mac’s Learning Center for more on our training programs and reference tools.
Contact your Freddie Mac representative.

Freddie Mac: May 21 Servicer Performance Profile Updates

Posted on September 13, 2018 by Safeguard

Investor Update
April 25, 2018

Source: Freddie Mac (full release)

On May 21, you’ll notice two changes to your Servicer Performance Profile, one of which may require action on your part.

1. Due to a scheduled software upgrade, we’re updating the login URL to http://www.freddiemac.com/spp_login. If you have an existing bookmark to update, or would like to create a new one, please use this URL. However, no action is required on your part – if you use the current URL, then you’ll be redirected to the new URL automatically but may experience a brief “error” message during the redirect.

2. Also with this upgrade, we’ll no longer be able to use report names with special characters (e.g. +, #). If you use automated software or scripts to download the following reports, then you’ll need to update them to accommodate file name changes.

For More Information

Visit Freddie Mac’s Learning Center for more on our training programs and reference tools.
Contact your Freddie Mac representative.

FHLMC Guide Bulletin 2018-6: Servicing Updates

Posted on September 13, 2018 by Safeguard

Investor Update
April 11, 2018

Source: Freddie Mac

With Single-Family Seller/Servicer Guide (Guide) Bulletin 2018-6, we’re making changes to simplify the user experience and provide greater efficiency when servicing Freddie Mac mortgages. The changes include:

Automating subsequent transfers of servicing requests and approvals.
Introducing a new process to facilitate the move of servicing of one or more mortgages from one Seller/Servicer number to another (“intra-servicer portfolio move”).
Providing more specific guidance regarding cancelations of borrower-paid mortgage insurance.
Updating our mortgage modifications requirements related to:
Home Affordable Modification Program? (HAMP®).
Escrow shortage and advance repayment.

For details on these changes and other important updates, read Guide Bulletin 2018-6 [pdf] or contact your Freddie Mac representative.

FHFA: Refinance Report – February 2018

Posted on September 13, 2018 by Safeguard

Investor Update
April 12, 2018

Source: FHFA

February 2018 Highlights

Total refinance volume decreased in February 2018 as mortgage rates rose in January. Mortgage rates increased in February: the average interest rate on a 20-year fixed rate mortgage rose to 4.33 percent from 4.03 percent in January, reaching levels last observed in 2014.

In February 2018:

Borrowers completed 1,292 refinances through HARP, bringing total refinances from the inception of the program to 3,486,875.
HARP volume represented 1 percent of total refinance volume.
Three percent of the loans refinanced through HARP had a loan-to-value ratio greater than 125 percent.

Year to date through February 2018:

Borrowers with loan?to?value ratios greater than 105 percent accounted for 15 percent of the volume of HARP loans.
Thirty-one percent of HARP refinances for underwater borrowers were for shorter?term 15? and 20?year mortgages, which build equity faster than traditional 30?year mortgages.
HARP refinances represented 3 percent of total refinances in Illinois — triple the 1 percent of total refinances nationwide over the same period.
Borrowers who refinanced through HARP had a lower delinquency rate compared to borrowers eligible for HARP who did not refinance through the program.
Nine states and one U.S. territory accounted for over 70 percent of the nation’s HARP eligible loans with a refinance incentive as of September 30, 2017.

Attachments: Refinance Report – February 2018

FHFA: Foreclosure Prevention Report – January 2018

Posted on September 13, 2018 by Safeguard

Investor Update
April 11, 2018

Source: FHFA

January 2018 Highlights

The Enterprises’ Foreclosure Prevention Actions:

The Enterprises completed 23,949 foreclosure prevention actions in January, bringing the total to 4,064,207 since the start of the conservatorships in September 2008. Over half of these actions have been permanent loan modifications.
There were 11,831 permanent loan modifications in January, bringing the total to 2,162,777 since the conservatorships began in September 2008.
Forty-seven percent of modifications in January were modifications with principal forbearance. Modifications with extend-term only accounted for 40 percent of all loan modifications during the month.
There were 1,026 short sales and deeds-in-lieu completed in January, down 2 percent compared with December.

The Enterprises’ Mortgage Performance:

The serious delinquency rate decreased slightly from 1.18 percent at the end of December to 1.17 percent at the end of January.

The Enterprises’ Foreclosures:

Third-party and foreclosure sales increased from 3,942 in December to 5,000 in January.
Foreclosure starts increased from 12,997 in December to 16,003 in January.

Attachments: Foreclosure Prevention Report – January 2018

Fannie Mae: SMDU Enhancements Coming This Weekend; AAA Matrix Updates; and More

Posted on September 13, 2018 by Safeguard

Investor Update
April 18, 2018

Source: Fannie Mae

Enhancements to SMDU coming this weekend

This weekend, we will implement enhancements to Servicing Management Default Underwriter™ (SMDU™). Please refer to the release notes for more information. During implementation, SMDU will be unavailable to process transactions from 10 p.m. ET on Friday, April 20 until 1 p.m. ET on Saturday, April 21. If you have questions about this release, please contact your Fannie Mae Servicing Account Manager.

AAA matrix updates

We’ve updated AAA matrices for all jurisdictions to reflect an increase in the hourly rates for non-routine litigation detailed in the Schedule of Legal Fees and Costs attached to the Mortgage Default Counsel (MDC) Retention Agreement. For hours billed on or after June 1 for matters which Fannie Mae has specifically approved MDC law firms to handle, Fannie Mae will pay:

An hourly attorney rate of $225 for any attorney with less than five years of experience.
An hourly attorney rate of $275 for any attorney with five or more years of experience.
A maximum hourly paralegal rate of $85.

Previously, the maximum hourly attorney rate was $215 per hour regardless of years of experience and there was no established maximum hourly paralegal rate. To view the updated matrices, visit the Excess Attorney Fee/Cost Guidelines page.

Deactivated line items in LoanSphere Invoicing

Effective June 18, we will deactivate the following line items in LoanSphere Invoicing™:

Property Services: Category 19
Subcategory 850: Insp – Inspection (Other)
Subcategory 1154: Other Property Inspection
Subcategory 1418: Pool Securing – Repair/Replace Fence or Gate

Reference the Servicer Expense Reimbursement Line Items in LoanSphere Invoicing Job Aid for a list of all available servicer expense categories and subcategories for conventional loans.

Reminder: Elimination of certain servicing requirements for acquired properties

Servicers are no longer required to pay property tax bills, HOA or condo association fees, or assessments for certain acquired properties, except at the direction of Fannie Mae. For more information, reference the Servicing Guide, email hoa_correspondence@fanniemae.com for HOA-related questions, or email tax_correspondence@fanniemae.com for questions related to property tax bills.

Join us at these upcoming events:

View more events.

Recent Tweets

Adopting new technology doesn’t have to mean losing the personal touch. See how @TheMortgageFirm is using #Day1Certainty to increase their operational efficiency, while maintaining their focus on building long-lasting customer relationships. #MBATech18
http://bit.ly/2J4jj6i

Apr. 18

@D2_Duncan lowered slightly his forecast for full-year 2018 growth to a still-strong 2.7 percent on weak consumer spending in Q1. However, additional downside risks are emerging, most notably the increasingly heated rhetoric on trade. Read more:
http://bit.ly/2EP8GSr

Apr. 16

Fannie Mae: Servicing Guide Is Updated; Servicer Expense Reimbursement Job Aid Updates; and More

Posted on September 13, 2018 by Safeguard

Investor Update
April 11, 2018

Source: Fannie Mae

Announcement SVC-2018-03: Servicing Guide Updates

The Fannie Mae Servicing Guide has been updated with changes that:

Remove the requirement for servicers to provide a welcome call for servicing transfers as long as borrowers receive timely and accurate information about the transfer. Servicers must remain in compliance with all applicable laws.
Provide more flexibility for escrow shortages associated with loan modifications. Servicers now have the option to spread an escrow shortage over a period of up to 60 months, and may do so in any way that most benefits the borrower.

For a summary of key updates in Servicing Guide Announcement SVC-2018-03, view the executive perspectives video presented by Jenise Hight, Director of Servicing Policy, and the executive overview from Carlos Perez, Chief Credit Officer for Single-Family.

New information in the Servicer Expense Reimbursement Job Aid

The Non-Recoverable Advances section of the Servicer Expense Reimbursement Job Aid has been updated with information about the new Non-Recoverable indicator included in LoanSphere Invoicing™ 18.0. Visit the Servicer Expense Reimbursement page to view the updated job aid and other resources related to LoanSphere Invoicing.

Reverse Mortgage Loan Servicing Manual updates

The Reverse Mortgage Loan Servicing Manual has been updated to provide servicers more flexibility when submitting claims for reimbursement, require servicers to reconcile mortgage loan status codes on a monthly basis, and more. View the Reverse Mortgage Loan Servicing Manual Announcement RVS-2018-01 for more information.

Improve processes with servicer self-assessment

Check out this servicer self-assessment resource, another way Fannie Mae is Simplifying Servicing. You can use this resource to evaluate processes and procedures in key servicing areas — including investor reporting, loan administration, escrow administration, collections, and loss mitigation.

Join us at these upcoming events:

April 12-14 | National Association of Minority Mortgage Bankers of America Connect 2018 | Atlanta

April 15-18 | MBA Technology Solutions Conference & Expo | Detroit

April 29-May 1 | Texas MBA 102nd Annual Convention | San Antonio

View more events.

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Building the foundation for affordable housing with employment opportunity

Access to affordable housing in America continues to be a challenge for people at virtually all income levels. Read more

Receive regular content updates by registering at The Home Story.

Recent Tweets

Happy 50th birthday to the #FairHousingAct. Join policymakers, community leaders, and more on 4/20 for an @AtlanticLIVE event discussing fair housing. #FairHousingis50 #AtlanticBuildingEquity

http://bit.ly/2HgkVwm

Apr. 11

Find out what’s driving the recent volatility in housing sentiment in this month’s #HPSI:

http://bit.ly/2EEDsxi

Apr. 10

Fannie Mae: Check Out the Intro to Servicing eLearning Series and More

Posted on September 13, 2018 by Safeguard

Investor Update
April 4, 2018

Source: Fannie Mae

Introduction to Servicing eLearning series

We’re committed to providing new servicers with the resources they need to get up to speed quickly. Check out each of the latest 15-minute courses available now in our self-paced eLearning series: QC Audit and Compliance and Subservicer Oversight. Visit the Servicing Training page to find more resources.

Reminder: Notifying document custodians about servicing transfers

After Fannie Mae has approved a servicer’s Form 629: Request for Approval of Servicing or Subservicing Transfer, the transferor servicer or the transferee servicer must notify their document custodians of the servicing transfer. A final list of all transferred loans must be included with the notification. Please note: Notification must occur even if the document custodian does not change. Review the list of active document custodians.

Join us at these upcoming events:

April 9-11 | Great River MBA Conference | Memphis
April 12-14 | National Association of Minority Mortgage Bankers of America Connect 2018 | Atlanta

View more events.

You may also be interested in…

How Fannie Mae’s Duty to Serve efforts are evolving as we test and learn
Fannie Mae is already focusing on the needs of underserved markets and populations under FHFA’s Duty to Serve rule. Read more

Receive regular content updates by registering at The Home Story.

Recent Tweets

We’ve updated our Selling Guide. Find out what’s new in this short video.
https://t.co/tzyFXk0iBQ

Apr. 3

Voting is still open! Thanks in advance for supporting us in @FTFnews’ Technology Innovation Awards. #FTFAwards2018
http://bit.ly/2Gsncku

Apr. 2

CFPB Considers Ending Public Access to Bank Complaints

Posted on September 13, 2018 by Safeguard

Investor Update
April 24, 2018

Source: HousingWire

“I don’t see anything in here that says I have to run a Yelp for financial services sponsored by the federal government,” Mulvaney says

A new report from the Wall Street Journal says the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is likely to end the public’s access to a web portal used by consumers to file complaints against financial companies.

The WSJ’s Yuka Hayashi reports that CFPB Acting Director Mick Mulvaney addressed his intention of eliminating access to the database on Tuesday during an address at the American Bankers Association’s conference, saying it contains information the government hasn’t fully vetted.

“I don’t see anything in here that says I have to run a Yelp for financial services sponsored by the federal government,” Mulvaney told an audience at the conference while holding up a copy of the Dodd-Frank Act, according to the report.

From the report:

Mr. Mulvaney said the bureau would continue to maintain a toll-free number and a website to gather consumer complaints and forward them to companies, but the database would be hidden from public view.

Mr. Mulvaney’s remarks came as the CFPB formally gathers comments from the financial industry and public on its handling of consumer complaints, including whether the bureau should change how it operates the database.

The CFPB under the Trump administration has in recent weeks asked for public feedback on a dozen issues as part of an effort to “ensure the bureau is fulfilling its proper and appropriate functions.” The effort covers key areas of the CFPB’s operations, from enforcement to rule-making, and could be a precursor to wholesale changes coming to the agency created under the Obama administration and long criticized by Republicans.

“Yes, this is a different bureau than it was under our predecessors,” Mr. Mulvaney said. “That is the nature of the business and elections do have consequences.”

Aaron Klein, fellow policy director at the Brookings Institute, responded to the news about the database, tweeting: “Thanks to @CFPB complaint data base, people are more informed when they make choices, and businesses have greater reputational incentives, which promotes a more efficient and effective free market. Eliminating #CFPB database is an attack on free markets.”

Recently, the CFPB issued its 12th and final request for information by asking about its handling of consumer complaints and inquiries.

HousingWire’s Kelsey Ramírez reported earlier this month that the bureau is seeking assistance in assessing its handling of consumer complaints and consumer inquiries and, consistent with law, considering whether changes to its processes would be appropriate. To date the bureau has received 1.5 million consumer complaints.

The bureau previously requested information on its consumer financial education, its guidance and implementation support, adopted regulations and new rulemaking authorities, its rulemaking process, the usefulness of its consumer complaint database, its supervision process, its enforcement process, its administrative adjudications and its civil investigative demands.