Bloomberg:

California and Nevada will jointly investigate mortgage fraud at U.S. banks, attorneys general from the two states said.

California Attorney General Kamala Harris and Catherine Cortez Masto, Nevada’s Attorney General, said today in a statement that they will share litigation strategies, information and evidence gathered. The states will also assist each other as they pursue independent prosecutions, they said...

Fannie Mae’s and Freddie Mac’s foreclosure prevention activity increased in the third quarter of 2011 and total nearly 2 million foreclosure prevention actions since the beginning of conservatorship in 2008. During this period, the Enterprises completed one million loan modifications, helping borrowers stay in their homes.

According to the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s third quarter 2011 Foreclosure Prevention & Refinance Report, the increase in completed foreclosure prevention activity in the third quarter was driven primarily by loan modifications and repayment plans. Two-thirds of all borrowers who received loan modifications in the third quarter had their monthly payments reduced by over 20 percent. Additionally, the Enterprises' cumulative refinancings through the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) increased 11 percent during the third quarter to nearly 928,600 loans.

It's possibly slightly too soon to assume that lenders...

On of the "early crowd" lenders just repriced for the...

The number of improving housing markets continued to expand for a fourth consecutive month in December, rising from 30 to 41 on the latest National Association of Home Builders/First American Improving Markets Index (IMI), released today. The December list featured 20 new additions, including several major markets such as Washington, D.C.; San Jose, Calif.; and Toledo, Ohio. Meanwhile, nine smaller markets dropped off the list, primarily due to softer house prices.

The index identifies metropolitan areas that have shown improvement from their respective troughs in housing permits, employment and house prices for at least six consecutive months.

New entrants to the list in December include the following:

Ann Arbor, MI
Athens, GA
Boulder, CO
Burlington, VT
Canton, OH
Charleston, WV
Danville, VA
Fort Wayne, IN
Grand Forks, ND
Jackson, MS
Kingsport, TN
Laredo, TX
Lincoln, NE
Muncie, IN
Muskegon, MI
San Jose, CA
Scranton, PA
Toledo, OH
Washington, DC
Winchester, VA

CoreLogic today released its October Home Price Index (HPI ®) which shows that home prices in the U.S. decreased 1.3 percent on a month-over-month basis, the third consecutive monthly decline. According to the CoreLogic HPI, national home prices, including distressed sales, also declined by 3.9 percent on a year-over-year basis in October 2011 compared to October 2010. This follows a decline of 3.8 percent* in September 2011 compared to September 2010. Excluding distressed sales, year-over-year prices declined by 0.5 percent in October 2011 compared to October 2010 and by 2.1* percent in September 2011 compared to September 2010. Distressed sales include short sales and real estate owned (REO) transactions.

"Home prices continue to decline in response to the weak demand for housing. While many housing statistics are basically moving sideways, prices continue to correct for a supply and demand imbalance. Looking forward, our forecasts indicate flat growth through 2013," said Mark Fleming, chief economist for CoreLogic.

During the third quarter, delinquency rates declined for commercial and multifamily mortgages held by banks and in commercial mortgage backed securities (CMBS). Delinquency rates increased for loans held by life insurance companies and held or insured by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac but are still at low levels, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) Commercial/Multifamily Delinquency Report.

"There were modest changes in commercial/multifamily delinquency rates during the third quarter," said Jamie Woodwell, MBA's Vice President of Commercial Real Estate Research. "The delinquency rates for loans held by life insurance companies, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac each ticked up slightly in the quarter, but remained at relatively low overall levels; delinquency rates for bank-held loans continued to decline from their cycle highs; and delinquency rates for loans held in CMBS fell slightly as loans made during the first half of the year were added to the base."

The Federal Reserve's Approach to Dodd-Frank Implementation Needless to say, implementation of the Dodd-Frank Act has been, and continues to be, a formidable task. At the Federal Reserve, hundreds of staff members are contributing to Dodd-Frank projects. We have issued 29 final rules, public notices, and reports already and we have another 13 rules underway. All told, we expect the Board will issue approximately 60 sets of rules and formal guidelines as part of its implementation efforts. We are working diligently to complete the remaining rules. The challenge arises from the sheer number of studies, rules, and other implementation tasks the Act requires the Federal Reserve to produce in a relatively short period of time. Moreover, much of the work involves the more time-consuming process of joint rulemakings or coordination with other agencies, all of which are facing similar demands...

It was a fairly quiet overnight session, both in terms...

Bloomberg:

California and Nevada will jointly investigate mortgage fraud at U.S. banks, attorneys general from the two states said.

California Attorney General Kamala Harris and Catherine Cortez Masto, Nevada’s Attorney General, said today in a statement that they will share litigation strategies, information and evidence gathered. The states will also assist each other as they pursue independent prosecutions, they said...

Fannie Mae’s and Freddie Mac’s foreclosure prevention activity increased in the third quarter of 2011 and total nearly 2 million foreclosure prevention actions since the beginning of conservatorship in 2008. During this period, the Enterprises completed one million loan modifications, helping borrowers stay in their homes.

According to the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s third quarter 2011 Foreclosure Prevention & Refinance Report, the increase in completed foreclosure prevention activity in the third quarter was driven primarily by loan modifications and repayment plans. Two-thirds of all borrowers who received loan modifications in the third quarter had their monthly payments reduced by over 20 percent. Additionally, the Enterprises' cumulative refinancings through the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) increased 11 percent during the third quarter to nearly 928,600 loans.

The number of improving housing markets continued to expand for a fourth consecutive month in December, rising from 30 to 41 on the latest National Association of Home Builders/First American Improving Markets Index (IMI), released today. The December list featured 20 new additions, including several major markets such as Washington, D.C.; San Jose, Calif.; and Toledo, Ohio. Meanwhile, nine smaller markets dropped off the list, primarily due to softer house prices.

The index identifies metropolitan areas that have shown improvement from their respective troughs in housing permits, employment and house prices for at least six consecutive months.

New entrants to the list in December include the following:

Ann Arbor, MI
Athens, GA
Boulder, CO
Burlington, VT
Canton, OH
Charleston, WV
Danville, VA
Fort Wayne, IN
Grand Forks, ND
Jackson, MS
Kingsport, TN
Laredo, TX
Lincoln, NE
Muncie, IN
Muskegon, MI
San Jose, CA
Scranton, PA
Toledo, OH
Washington, DC
Winchester, VA

CoreLogic today released its October Home Price Index (HPI ®) which shows that home prices in the U.S. decreased 1.3 percent on a month-over-month basis, the third consecutive monthly decline. According to the CoreLogic HPI, national home prices, including distressed sales, also declined by 3.9 percent on a year-over-year basis in October 2011 compared to October 2010. This follows a decline of 3.8 percent* in September 2011 compared to September 2010. Excluding distressed sales, year-over-year prices declined by 0.5 percent in October 2011 compared to October 2010 and by 2.1* percent in September 2011 compared to September 2010. Distressed sales include short sales and real estate owned (REO) transactions.

"Home prices continue to decline in response to the weak demand for housing. While many housing statistics are basically moving sideways, prices continue to correct for a supply and demand imbalance. Looking forward, our forecasts indicate flat growth through 2013," said Mark Fleming, chief economist for CoreLogic.

During the third quarter, delinquency rates declined for commercial and multifamily mortgages held by banks and in commercial mortgage backed securities (CMBS). Delinquency rates increased for loans held by life insurance companies and held or insured by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac but are still at low levels, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) Commercial/Multifamily Delinquency Report.

"There were modest changes in commercial/multifamily delinquency rates during the third quarter," said Jamie Woodwell, MBA's Vice President of Commercial Real Estate Research. "The delinquency rates for loans held by life insurance companies, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac each ticked up slightly in the quarter, but remained at relatively low overall levels; delinquency rates for bank-held loans continued to decline from their cycle highs; and delinquency rates for loans held in CMBS fell slightly as loans made during the first half of the year were added to the base."

The Federal Reserve's Approach to Dodd-Frank Implementation Needless to say, implementation of the Dodd-Frank Act has been, and continues to be, a formidable task. At the Federal Reserve, hundreds of staff members are contributing to Dodd-Frank projects. We have issued 29 final rules, public notices, and reports already and we have another 13 rules underway. All told, we expect the Board will issue approximately 60 sets of rules and formal guidelines as part of its implementation efforts. We are working diligently to complete the remaining rules. The challenge arises from the sheer number of studies, rules, and other implementation tasks the Act requires the Federal Reserve to produce in a relatively short period of time. Moreover, much of the work involves the more time-consuming process of joint rulemakings or coordination with other agencies, all of which are facing similar demands...

Fannie Mae’s and Freddie Mac’s foreclosure prevention activity increased in the third quarter of 2011 and total nearly 2 million foreclosure prevention actions since the beginning of conservatorship in 2008. During this period, the Enterprises completed one million loan modifications, helping borrowers stay in their homes.

According to the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s third quarter 2011 Foreclosure Prevention & Refinance Report, the increase in completed foreclosure prevention activity in the third quarter was driven primarily by loan modifications and repayment plans. Two-thirds of all borrowers who received loan modifications in the third quarter had their monthly payments reduced by over 20 percent. Additionally, the Enterprises' cumulative refinancings through the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) increased 11 percent during the third quarter to nearly 928,600 loans.

It's possibly slightly too soon to assume that lenders...

On of the "early crowd" lenders just repriced for the...

It was a fairly quiet overnight session, both in terms...