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MHA HAMP Reporting Update Servicer Loan Number Change Request Process Available

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

Investor Update
September 29, 2016

In order to support scenarios in which servicers have changed Servicer Loan Numbers in their servicing system and loans had previously been reported to the HAMP System of Record using a different Servicer Loan Number, MHA as Program Administrator (MHA-PA) has established a regularly scheduled process to update Servicer Loan Numbers in the HAMP Reporting System upon a servicer’s request. The process document has been posted on the secure side (login required) of HMPadmin.com.

Servicer Loan Number Change Request Process

Updated Data Dictionary Posted

In connection with the November 2016 release of the HAMP Reporting System, an updated version of the following Data Dictionary was posted on HMPadmin.com:

ADR Data Dictionary – 11/01/2016 Release

Questions?
Email the HAMP Solution Center or call 1-866-939-4469.

Source: MHA

MHA HAMP Reporting Update Preview Schema File Available on HMPadmin.com

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

Investor Update
September 8, 2016

The following preview version of the November 1, 2016 Release schema is available in the File Formats and Interfaces section on HMPadmin.com (login required).

Servicing Transfer Transaction Submission File Format [.xsd] – 11/01/2016 Release

Questions?
Email the HAMP Solution Center or call 1-866-939-4469.

Source: MHA

MHA HAMP Reporting Update August 2016 UP Survey Now Available

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

Investor Update
September 15, 2016

The August 2016 UP survey is now available on HMPadmin.com (login required). Servicers that have executed a Servicer Participation Agreement (SPA) and that have cumulative UP activity must complete and upload their UP survey response to the HAMP® Reporting Tool (login required) by Thursday, September 22, 2016.

SPA servicers that have any cumulative UP activity as of August 31, 2016 must submit an UP survey at this time.

For details on downloading and submitting the UP survey response, log in to HMPadmin.com, navigate to the HAMP Loan Reporting Tools & Documents area, and select the UP Survey tab.

Questions?
For more information, email the HAMP Solution Center or call 1-866-939-4469.

For questions specifically regarding the survey contents, email the HAMP Servicer Survey team.

Source: MHA

HUD Provides $13 Million in Emergency Disaster Assistance to Baton Rouge and Lafayette

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

Investor Update
September 22, 2016

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) today announced it is providing Baton Rouge and Lafayette, Louisiana with an early infusion of $13 million in disaster assistance in the wake of last month’s devastating flooding. The announcement was made by HUD Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Harriet Tregoning following a meeting with members of Governor John Bel Edward’s Restore Louisiana Task Force.

The funding is provided through a special recovery fund established under the HUD’s Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program. This Declared Disaster Recovery Fund will provide $11 million to Baton Rouge/East Baton Rouge Parish and $1.9 million Lafayette/Lafayette Parish, which are eligible since they are entitlement communities under the CDBG program.

“We’ve got to roll up our sleeves to support recovery in any way we can,” said Tregoning. “HUD will continue to work very closely with our state and local partners to plan and execute a long-term strategy to help homeowners get back in their homes, to rebuild critical infrastructure and to help local businesses open their doors again.”

While there have been 26 major presidentially declared disasters this year, the most significant of these events was the flooding in Louisiana, with significant damage occurring in areas around Baton Rouge and Lafayette. This award is a small but targeted source of funding to meet emergency community development needs while the status of any larger supplemental appropriation gets resolved.

The consolidated governments of Baton Rouge/East Baton Rouge Parish and Lafayette/Lafayette Parish can use the funding announced today to:

Provide support for persons and families experiencing homelessness;
Repair damaged infrastructure;
Rehabilitate damaged homes; and
Restore rental properties and businesses.

Source: HUD

HARP Volumes Shrink as Refi Numbers Retreat

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

Investor Update
September 16, 2016

The number of mortgage loans backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that refinanced reversed course in July, declining after three months of gains as mortgage rates hover slightly above record lows, according to the FHFA’s July 2016 Refinance Report released Friday.

The GSEs combined to refinance approximately 170,000 mortgage loans during July; 5,121 of those loans (3 percent) were refinanced through the FHFA’s Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP), bringing the total number of loans refinanced through HARP up to nearly 3.424 million since the program’s inception in 2009.

HARP numbers have been shrinking since the third quarter of 2012 when they peaked at 319,000 for the three-month period. HARP refis totaled 18,000 for the second quarter of 2016. FHFA estimates that eligible borrowers who refinance through HARP can save approximately $2,400 per year on mortgage payments. The Agency has made attempts to reach borrowers eligible for HARP through a series of outreach events in cities with the most eligible borrowers (Chicago, Atlanta, Detroit, Miami, Newark, and Phoenix), webinars, websites, and social media campaigns.

The program, which was set to expire at the end of 2016, was extended in August 2016 for the fifth time, this time until the end of September 2017, as the FHFA continues to try to reach the approximately 323,000 borrowers nationwide that are eligible to refinance through HARP as of March 31, 2016.

FHFA launched HARP in early 2009 as a way for borrowers who are current on their mortgages but have little or no equity to take advantage of low interest rates and other refinancing benefits. Five percent of the loans refinanced through HARP in July had a loan-to?value ratio greater than 125 percent. Slightly more than one-quarter (26 percent) of HARP refinances in July were for shorter-term 15- of 20-year mortgages, which typically build equity faster than 30-year mortgages.

According to FHFA, about 60 percent of the 323,000 borrowers with an incentive to refinance through HARP are concentrated in 10 states: Florida (37,662), Illinois (30,205), Ohio (27,514), Michigan (25,272), Georgia (19,946), Pennsylvania (15,190), New Jersey (14,496), California (12,272), New York (12,192), and Maryland (11,890).

Click here to view the FHFA’s complete report.

Source: MReport (full article)

GAO-16-831: Troubled Asset Relief Program: Status of Prior GAO Recommendations

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

Investor Update
September 6, 2016

What GAO Found

As of August 2016, GAO’s performance audits of the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) activities have resulted in 74 recommendations to the Department of the Treasury (Treasury). Treasury has implemented 62 of the 74 recommendations, some of which were aimed at improving the transparency and internal controls of TARP. Five recommendations remain open, all pertaining to the Making Home Affordable (MHA) program, a collection of housing programs designed to help homeowners avoid foreclosure. Of the five:

Treasury has partially implemented three open MHA recommendations—that is, it has taken some steps toward implementation but needs to take more actions. For example, in March 2016, GAO recommended that Treasury deobligate funds that its review showed would likely not be expended. Treasury’s most recent estimates identified $4.7 billion in potential excess funds, of which Treasury has deobligated $2 billion as of August 2016.
Two additional MHA recommendations remain open—that is, Treasury has not taken steps to implement them. GAO recommended that Treasury take steps to assess the extent to which servicers have established internal control programs that monitor compliance with fair lending laws applicable to MHA programs. GAO also recommended that Treasury establish a standard process to better ensure that changes to TARP-funded MHA programs are based on comprehensive cost-benefit analyses. Treasury told GAO they would consider this recommendation but has noted that it plans no major program policy changes given the December 30, 2016, application deadline for the MHA program.

Seven recommendations have been closed but were not implemented. Five were related to the Capital Purchase Program (CPP) and MHA and two to other TARP activities. Generally, these recommendations were closed because GAO determined that the recommendations were no longer applicable.

Why GAO Did This Study

The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (EESA) authorized the creation of TARP to address the most severe crisis that the financial system had faced in decades. Treasury has been the primary agency responsible for TARP programs. EESA provided GAO with broad oversight authorities for actions taken under TARP and included a provision that GAO report at least every 60 days on TARP activities and performance.

This 60-day report describes the status of GAO’s prior TARP performance audit recommendations to Treasury as of August 2016. In particular, this report discusses Treasury’s implementation of GAO’s recommendations focusing on two programs: CPP and MHA. GAO’s methodologies included assessing relevant documentation from Treasury, interviewing Treasury officials, and reviewing prior TARP reports issued by GAO.

What GAO Recommends

GAO continues to maintain that Treasury should take action to fully implement the three partially implemented and two open MHA recommendations. GAO will continue to assess the status of these recommendations considering new program activity and any further actions taken by Treasury.

For more information, contact Daniel Garcia-Diaz at (202) 512-8678 or garciadiazd@gao.gov.

Source: GAO (GAO-16-831 full version)

Additional Resource:
GAO-16-831 Full Report [pdf]

First-Lien Mortgages Get an A+

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

Investor Update
September 30, 2016

Performance of first-lien mortgages improved during the second quarter of 2016 compared with a year earlier, according to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s (OCC) Mortgage Metrics Report.

The overall performance of mortgages remained relatively unchanged from the previous quarter but improved from a year earlier. The percentage of mortgages that were current and performing at the end of the second quarter of 2016 was 94.7 percent, compared with 93.8 percent a year earlier.

The first-lien mortgages included in the OCC’s quarterly report comprise of 37 percent of all residential mortgages outstanding in the United States or about 20.7 million loans totaling $3.6 trillion in principal balances as of June 30, 2016.

The OCC broke down this data further to show that servicers initiated 48,732 new foreclosures in the second quarter of 2016. This was a decrease of 17.3 percent from the previous quarter and 31.1 percent from a year earlier.

Additionally, home forfeiture actions, such as completed foreclosure sales, short sales, and deed-in-lieu-of-foreclosure actions, decreased 29.0 percent from a year earlier, to 33,344.

Servicers were also reported to have completed 34,604 modifications during the second quarter of 2016. Among the 34,604 modifications completed during the quarter, 30,179, or 87.2 percent, reduced the loan’s pre-modification monthly payment.

Broken down even further, of these 34,604 modifications, 94.2 percent were “combination modifications”, or modifications that included multiple actions affecting affordability and sustainability of the loan, such as an interest rate reduction and a term extension.

Among the 32,592 combination modifications completed during the quarter, 93.9 percent included capitalization of delinquent interest and fees, 81.8 percent included an interest rate reduction or freeze, 87.6 percent included a term extension, 7.5 percent had principal reduced, and 11.9 percent had principal deferred. An additional 1,855 loan modifications received only a single action.

The fourth quarter of 2015 is the first quarter for which all loans modified during the quarter could have aged at least six months by June 30, 2016. Among modifications that were completed during the fourth quarter of 2015, servicers reported that 4,404 were 60 or more days past due or in the process of foreclosure at the end of the month that they became six months old.

Source: DS News

FHLMC Guide Bulletin 2016-18: Freddie Mac Principal Reduction Modification Update

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

Investor Update
September 21, 2016

In Single-Family Seller/Servicer Guide (Guide) Bulletin 2016-18 [pdf], we’re announcing new Form 1205-PR, Post Settlement Correction Request for the Principal Reduction, to facilitate the processing of the Freddie Mac Principal Reduction Modification.

Effective October 1, Servicers must follow the new submission requirements for Form 1205-PR, which are included in this Guide Bulletin, along with Form 1205-PR as Attachment A.

Freddie Mac Outreach to Borrowers

Visit our temporary Principal Reduction Modification web page, which we created to help you with borrower inquiries. Learn about our outreach efforts to borrowers, including borrower letter/call campaigns, in-person events, online resources, and more! The national letter/call campaigns are underway now through November.

For More Information

Read our Single-Family News Center article on the Principal Reduction Modification, announced in Guide Bulletin 2016-7 [pdf].
Check out our Summary of Upcoming Requirement Changes [pdf] document.
Contact your Freddie Mac representative.

Source: Freddie Mac

FHLMC Guide Bulletin 2016-17: Servicing Updates

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

Investor Update
September 14, 2016

In today’s Single-Family Seller/Servicer Guide (Guide) Bulletin 2016-17, we’re announcing the new and improved 2017 Freddie Mac Servicer Success Scorecard (Scorecard) and updating other servicing requirements. Many of the Scorecard improvements below are based directly on your feedback.

Your 2017 Scorecard

We’re starting clean in 2017 by refreshing the look and feel of your Scorecard. We’re making it easier to access the information that’s important to you by simplifying the existing navigation and providing a more intuitive user interface. When you log in, you’ll arrive directly at a global view of your Scorecard – just one- or two-clicks away from drilling further down into your data.

Source: Freddie Mac (full update)

FHFA: Three Easy Steps to HARP: How Homeowners Can Save Thousands

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

Investor Update
September 13, 2016

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) just extended the deadline for the Home Affordable Refinance Program, or HARP, to September 30, 2017, but with current rates at historic lows there is still time to act. Refinancing through HARP is a streamlined process, and more than 3.4 million homeowners have already done it, but there are still more than 323,000 homeowners who could save an average of $2,400 per year with a HARP refinance.

Here are 3 Easy Steps Homeowners Can Take:

1.Check eligibility, including whether Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae own their current loan.

2.Gather information. Pull together their mortgage statements, tax returns, and bank statements.

3.Contact an approved HARP lender. Check here for Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae. Lenders who participate in HARP will walk homeowners through the entire process, all the way through to closing.

Two Ways to Save

There are two ways to save money with HARP: Homeowners can either refinance to a lower interest rate and experience significant savings on their monthly mortgage payment, or refinance to a shorter-term mortgage, which translates to greater savings over the long term and helps build equity faster.

Even if a homeowner has been previously turned down for HARP, he or she may still qualify and can try again. Additionally, homeowners who have previously modified their mortgage through the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) are not disqualified from HARP and should check their eligibility to further reduce their payment.

If you are eligible for HARP, this is a unique opportunity to save on your mortgage. Follow us @FHFA on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube for more information or go to www.HARP.gov today to learn more about a HARP refinance.

Source: FHFA (full blog post)