National Mortgage News

NewDay Financial LLC, Fulton, Md., has changed its identity to NewDay USA LLC. The USA part of the name looks to call attention to the company from its primary target markets as a Veterans Administration lender and Federal Housing Administration forward and reverse mortgage originator, company management said.

The Collingwood Group, a Washington-based mortgage advisory firm, has acquired GWN Consulting LLC, a specialist in FHA and GNMA risk management and quality control services.

Two more Standard & Poor's executives whose respective roles have included oversight of mortgage-backed securities ratings are leaving the company, possibly as part of an ongoing reorganization, according to a recent Wall Street Journal report.

Jerome Selitto has resigned as president and chief executive of PHH Corp., Mt. Laurel, N.J., and has been replaced by the company's chief operating officer Glen Messina.

The Association of Foreign Investors in Real Estate's annual survey shows the majority of respondents plan to increase their investment in U.S. commercial real estate this year, even though the percentage is lower than last year's notable high.

Home builders increasingly are turning to private equity firms for land acquisition loans as banks continue to book losses on legacy loans they made during the housing boom, according to the National Association of Home Builders.

The White House Wednesday morning signaled its intention to make former Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray the first director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau through a recess appointment.

Although profit margins are still healthy for most mortgage banking firms, net income in the new year will continue to be impacted by "high" rep and warranty expenses, according to a recent report from Keefe, Bruyette & Woods.

Mortgage applications fell almost 4% for the holiday week ending December 30, according to new figures compiled by the Mortgage Bankers Association. The decline is calculated on a sequential basis.

Publicly traded REIT Two Harbors Investment Corp. is laying the groundwork for a $200 million jumbo MBS deal, partnering with Barclays Bank PLC.

Despite improvements in the job market and low mortgage rates, Federal Reserve officials seem disappointed that their efforts to perk up housing are having little impact, according to minutes of the central bank's December monetary policy committee meeting.

Last Friday's "Default Technology Provider Initiated 1.2 Million Short Sales" story is incorrect, as the headline should read "Default Technology Provider's Software Facilitates 1.2 Million Short Sales." We regret the error. The corrected item follows.

Looking to move forward after recent accounting issues forced it to restate its 2010 earnings, Suffolk Bancorp in Riverhead, N.Y., has hired a new chief executive to replace J. Gordon Huszagh.

The top 10 sellers of mortgages to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac pay 20 basis points in guarantee fees compared to 30 bps for firms outside the top 100, according to a new report from Keefe Bruyette & Woods.

Another big year for multifamily construction could push housing starts up 13% in 2012 after posting a 4% increase last year, according to a new forecast from Wells Fargo Securities.

Most industry stocks followed the market upward Tuesday morning as the Dow rose more than 200 points.

Mike Anderson last week resigned as vice president of government affairs for the National Association of Mortgage Brokers.

November was the second best month of last year in terms of new private mortgage insurance written, but new applications received declined from October, according to the Mortgage Insurance Cos. of America.

Seven individuals in the Cleveland area have agreed to plead guilty to bank fraud charges in the 2010 failure of St. Paul Croatian Federal Credit Union and will testify against the main figure in the case, a purported international crime figure.

MGIC Investment Corp., at yearend contributed $200 million of cash to its mortgage insurance subsidiary as two important capital waiver deadlines expired.