Page 357 – Safeguard Properties

Fannie Mae: Servicer Expense Reimbursement Job Aid

Posted on September 13, 2018 by Safeguard

Investor Update
March 1, 2016

This Servicer Expense Reimbursement Job Aid is an enforceable document which supplements the Fannie Mae Servicing Guide. Servicers remain responsible for following the Fannie Mae Single-Family Selling and Servicing Guides, Servicing Guide Procedures, Announcements, Lender Letters, and Delegations of Authority; collectively, the “Guides.” In an ongoing effort to simplify the communication between Fannie Mae and servicers, Fannie Mae has updated this Job Aid to provide additional guidance to servicers completing requests for expense reimbursements.

NOTE: The information contained in this document is not applicable to expenses incurred for Reverse Mortgages.

Source: Fannie Mae (Servicer Expense Reimbursement Job Aid full version)

Fannie Mae: Have You Seen Our New Spanish Resources for Lenders?

Posted on September 13, 2018 by Safeguard

Investor Update
March 2, 2016

Spanish speaking consumers represent one of the largest growing segments of the mortgage market. These Spanish Language Resources for Lenders can help you serve this market.

This page consolidates Spanish versions of many loan origination documents such as the loan application, loan estimate, verification forms, closing disclosure, mortgage and note, plus includes links to many other helpful mortgage resources—all in one place.

Use our sample Notice to Borrowers About Spanish and English Language Documents to help consumers understand that the mortgage transaction will be conducted in English, to encourage them to work with a mortgage professional fluent in both English and Spanish and for access to additional resources (such as the CFPB’s Spanish language website) and HUD Approved Housing Counselors.

Important Note: There are many legal issues involved in originating mortgage loans in a language other than English, including federal, state and local laws (such as those for California, Illinois, Massachusetts, Oregon, Texas and the District of Columbia) that address marketing, negotiating, and conducting lending activities. You should consult legal counsel about which requirements may apply to your business and the use of these materials.

Source: Fannie Mae (Full Spanish Language Resources for Lenders webpage)

Fannie Mae: Foreclosure Time Frames and Compensatory Fee Allowable Delays Exhibit

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

Investor Update
March 16, 2016

The Foreclosure Time Frames and Compensatory Fee Allowable Delays Exhibit has been updated to reflect that District of Columbia is a judicial foreclosure jurisdiction. Fannie Mae originally announced that all new foreclosures in the District of Columbia must be commenced as judicial foreclosures in a July 30, 2014 Servicing Notice.

Source: Fannie Mae

Consumers Not Taking Advantage of Refinancing Opportunities

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

Investor Update
March 1, 2016

Many American borrowers are burned out by their efforts to improve their personal finances, and as a result have created a huge pool of refinancing opportunities that Freddie Mac thinks is not going to be taken advantage of.

Freddie Mac’s latest Insight & Outlook report, released Monday, cited the nearly $655 billion in outstanding conventional 30-year mortgage-backed securities with interest rates greater than 4 percent and found that several borrowers have passed on favorable opportunities to refinance to lower their mortgages to the lower rates available for at least two-and-a-half years.

According to Freddie Mac, borrowers who ignore extended refinance opportunities are said to be burned out by several factors, including decreased credit scores, job loss, and illness, which make them reluctant to try. Significant delinquencies making the cost of refinancing more than it is worth are also a factor.

Additionally, borrowers spooked by decreasing home values between 2006 and 2012??when national house priced plunged by 27 percent??have been reluctant to refinance, or may be too far underwater to reap any benefits from refinancing.

In raw numbers, burned-out borrowers, however they became fatigued, account for $420 billion of that $655 billion pot, or 64 percent.

While Freddie Mac doesn’t expect much of a change from most borrowers who’ve eschewed refi opportunities, the GSE does think that many of these borrowers “may wake up to their refinance opportunity this year, especially as recent house price gains are trumpeted in the press,” the report stated.

The current high-level loan-to-value potential (i.e., mortgages most favorable to HARP refinancing for borrowers who have not done a refi) is about $35 billion, according to Freddie Mac’s analysis. Delinquencies, conversely, account for $65 billion.

Freddie Mac also estimated that about $30 billion (4.6 percent) of the loans in outstanding MBS with coupon greater than 4 percent have already taken out a HARP loan and have a current LTV of 90 or above.

“Since the last Insight and Outlook, mortgage rates have continued to tumble, falling nearly 20 basis points,” the report concluded. “Lower mortgage rates will increase the number of borrowers who have rate incentive to refinance.”

That potential? About $122 billion, the report found.

Source: DS News

Additional Resource:

Freddie Mac Insight & Outlook (2/29/16)

VALERI Servicer Newsflash

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

Investor Update
February 23, 2016

IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Servicer Transfer Events – Servicers that report through a servicing system must use the Bulk Upload Template to report the Servicing Transfer Events until further notice. Issues were found in the daily change file process that requires additional information to properly report the transfer events. Clear Quest (CQ) ticket 11954 has been opened to address the issue and is tentatively scheduled for the VALERI 16.3 manifest release in September. Thank you for your patience in this matter.

Security Awareness Password Resets – All VALERI user accounts require a password reset on an annual basis. VALERI daily transaction file accounts are included and subject to the annual password reset. InterChange Services PowerCell (which supports VALERI) will coordinate the password change with VALERI servicers and perform a test to ensure functionality is successful. Password changes are expected to take place in February 2016.

State Foreclosure Process and Statutory Bid Information – The State Foreclosure Process and Statutory Bid Information spreadsheet has been relocated from the Guides and Templates link to the Guaranty Claims – Rules, Fees and Costs link on the VALERI internet website.

M26-4, VA Servicer Handbook – Updates to M26-4 have been published and are located at http://www.benefits.va.gov/WARMS/M26_4.asp.

Source: VA

MHA HAMP Reporting Update Updated Job Aids Available on HMPadmin.com

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

Investor Update
February 24, 2016

The Official Monthly Reporting – OMR Job Aid and the Reporting Trial or Official Setup Job Aid have been updated to support the April 1, 2016 release of the HAMP® Reporting System.

Please refer to these documents for instructions on submitting Official Monthly Reporting data and Trial or Official Setup data.

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

Source: MHA

MHA HAMP Reporting Update Presidents Day Holiday Support and System Availability

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

Investor Update
February 10, 2016

Due to the observance of Presidents Day, the HAMP Reporting System response files will not be available between 6:00 p.m. ET on Friday, February 12, 2016 and 8:00 a.m. ET on Tuesday, February 16, 2016.

During this time frame, the HAMP Reporting Tool will be available for servicers to submit and upload HAMP loan data files and the corresponding response files will be provided.

The HAMP Solution Center (HSC) will close at 6:00 p.m. ET on Friday, February 12 and will resume operations at 9:00 a.m. ET on Tuesday, February 16. Servicers may contact the HSC by phone or email at any time; however, phone messages and emails will be held in queue until the center reopens on Tuesday.

The NPV Transaction Portal will be available for normal processing during this period.

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

Source: MHA

MHA HAMP Reporting Update January 2016 UP Survey Now Available

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

Investor Update
February 17, 2016

The January 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 Tuesday, February 23, 2016.

SPA servicers that have any cumulative UP activity as of January 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 Written Testimony of Edward L. Golding

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

Investor Update
February 11, 2016

Hearing before the House of Representatives Committee on Financial Services, Subcommittee on Housing and Insurance

I. Introduction

Thank you, Chairman Luetkemeyer and Ranking Member Cleaver, for the opportunity to testify about the ongoing work of the Federal Housing Administration (FHA).

Since 1934, the FHA has played a critical role in the U.S. housing market. Born out of the Great Depression, the FHA has a dual mission: 1) to ensure access to affordable credit for housing to underserved borrowers and markets; and 2) to act as a countercyclical force that sustains the housing market in difficult or uncertain times, reducing negative economic impacts on the economy. In recent years, FHA has been called upon to play both roles – in response to the crisis and as the economy and housing market continue to recover.

By making sure borrowers, particularly first-time homebuyers, have access to affordable credit to purchase homes, FHA supports and expands the middle class, helps families put down roots in communities, and gives them the opportunity to accumulate wealth and build long-term financial stability. With the tendency of the private marketplace to restrict credit, especially in the face of uncertainty or risk, FHA’s presence helps to create a balance that allows for stability in the housing market and extends opportunity for homeownership to a much broader segment of the population.

FHA’s Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund (MMIF or “the Fund”) bore the strain of the Great Recession, falling below its required capital reserve and eventually taking a mandatory appropriation in 2013. However, FHA’s focus on risk management, increasing revenue, and program improvements resulted in the ratio returning to 2 percent in 2015. This achievement was the result of FHA’s prudent policy changes, and an ability to work with Congress to pass stabilizing legislation and quickly implement program changes over the course of several years.

This significant increase in value has coincided with the slow, but steady improvement in the state of the U.S. housing market. U.S. Census Bureau data show that recent building permits are up more than 14 percent over the previous year and total housing starts for 2015 were nearly 11 percent higher than 2014.1 National unemployment has fallen to 5 percent, while consumer confidence and home prices continue to rise.2

Today, FHA’s position is strong and continues to improve. FHA remains committed to its mission to address underserved borrowers and mortgage markets and this testimony discusses FHA’s most recent Annual Report and offers a closer examination of the impact of FHA’s Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) program.

1 http://www.census.gov/construction/nrc/index.html
2 http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-economy-homes-index-idUSKCN0V41PQ

Source: HUD (full written testimony)

HUD Makes $40 Million Available for Housing Counseling Grants

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

Investor Update
February 19, 2016

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) today announced it is making $40 million in grants available to support hundreds of housing counseling organizations across the country that assist families, including those buying their first home, struggling to locate affordable rental housing or seeking to avoid foreclosure. It is estimated HUD’s housing counseling grants, and the additional funding they leverage, will reach more than 1.5 million households through a network of approximately 300 national, regional and local organizations. See HUD’s new funding announcement.

“We know that housing counseling can make all the difference in purchasing and, most importantly, keeping a home,” HUD Secretary Julián Castro. “The grants we offer today will help ensure families and individuals make more informed housing decisions, whether it means buying their first home, avoiding foreclosure, or finding affordable rental housing.”

HUD is offering $40 million to directly support the housing counseling services provided by national and regional organizations, multi-state organizations, State Housing Finance Agencies (SHFAs) and more than 200 local housing counseling agencies that assist low- and moderate-income families improve their housing conditions. Grant winners use the money to help homebuyers evaluate if they are ready to buy a house, understand their financing and down payment options, and navigate what can be an extremely confusing and difficult process. Grantees also help families find affordable rental housing and offer financial literacy training to help struggling families repair credit problems.

The comprehensive housing counseling housing grants funding announced today will be competed through the Department’s two-year (FY2016 – FY2017) Comprehensive Housing Counseling Grant Program Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) published February 18, 2016. The application deadline is April 4, 2016.

In addition, HUD is also making $2 million available in FY2016-2017 Housing Counseling Training Grant Program funds to support basic and specialized housing counseling training for housing counseling agencies. The application deadline is April 4, 2016. Read the housing counseling training fund announcement here.

The national and regional agencies distribute much of the housing counseling grant funding to the community-based organizations. The larger organizations also help guide and improve the quality of housing counseling services and enhance coordination among counseling providers.

In addition to providing counseling to homeowners and renters, the organizations assist homeless persons in finding the transitional housing they need to move toward a permanent place to live. Grantees also assist senior citizens seeking reverse mortgages or (HECM,) providing counseling for the rapidly growing number of elderly homeowners who want to convert equity in their homes into income that can be used to pay for home improvements, medical costs, and other living expenses.

Housing counseling agencies also support fair housing by assisting borrowers in reviewing their loan documentation to avoid potential mortgage scams, unreasonably high interest rates, inflated appraisals, unaffordable repayment terms, and other conditions that can result in a loss of equity, increased debt, default, and even foreclosure. Likewise, foreclosure prevention counseling helps homeowners facing delinquency or default employ strategies, including expense reduction, negotiation with lenders and loan servicers, and loss mitigation, to avoid foreclosure.

Recent research from the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia and the Urban Institute continues to find substantial benefits to housing counseling for families who purchase their first homes and those struggling to prevent foreclosure. Read more about research evidence on the role housing counseling can play in reducing mortgage delinquency and foreclosure and helping first-time buyers access and sustain homeownership.

There are many ways to find a HUD-approved housing counseling agency. Visit HUD’s website or call (800) 569-4287 for our interactive telephone directory. Get the free housing counseling i-phone app from the app store (not yet available for android). Watch HUD’s video on how housing counseling can help families find and keep housing.

Source: HUD