http://www.appraisalinstitute.org/ANO/ This is the syndication feed for Appraiser News Online. 120 The U.S. Department of the Treasury announced Jan. 27 that it would expand the Home Affordable Modification Program and triple payments to servicers that reduced borrower principal, HousingWire reported. http://www.appraisalinstitute.org/ano/current.aspx?volume=2&numbr=3/4#16912 Staff Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT Residential In his State of the Union address Jan. 24, President Obama announced the administration would expand the Home Affordable Refinance Program to include mortgages not guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The plan must receive Congressional approval, however, which is far from guaranteed, HousingWire reported Jan. 25. The expanded program could cost as much as $10 billion and do nothing for the 4.1 million homeowners who are at least 30 days past due on their mortgages. http://www.appraisalinstitute.org/ano/current.aspx?volume=2&numbr=3/4#16909 Staff Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT Residential The Federal Reserve said it had no plans to raise interest rates within the next two years and anticipates keeping rates below 1 percent until late 2014 because of continued weakness in the U.S. economy, USA Today reported Jan. 26. http://www.appraisalinstitute.org/ano/current.aspx?volume=2&numbr=3/4#16906 Staff Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT Financial News U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan, Securities and Exchange Commission Director of Enforcement Robert Khuzami and New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman announced the formation of the Residential Mortgage-Backed Securities Working Group Jan. 27. http://www.appraisalinstitute.org/ano/current.aspx?volume=2&numbr=3/4#16903 Staff Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT Residential The Federal Housing Administration will change the way it monitors loan performance for originators participating in its Lenders Insurance program, National Mortgage News reported Jan. 27. The changes stem from a new rule to clarify and codify FHA’s indemnification practices. http://www.appraisalinstitute.org/ano/current.aspx?volume=2&numbr=3/4#16900 Staff Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT Residential Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan filed suit against Standard & Poor’s Jan. 25 for its role in launching the financial crisis of 2008, her office announced. The suit is focused on the firm’s high ratings for risky mortgage-backed securities that it allegedly knew were unworthy of such designation. This suit indicated the ratings firm “consistently misrepresented” MBS risks, often assigning AAA ratings to high-risk investments in an effort to increase revenue and grab market share. http://www.appraisalinstitute.org/ano/current.aspx?volume=2&numbr=3/4#16897 Staff Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT In the States The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Judicial Circuit in Atlanta ruled that Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems Inc. has the authority to assign security deeds and foreclose on properties as part of the securitization process, HousingWire reported Jan. 24. http://www.appraisalinstitute.org/ano/current.aspx?volume=2&numbr=3/4#16894 Staff Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT Financial News Only 23 percent of Americans say they trust the country’s financial system, according to the latest Chicago Booth/Kellogg School Financial Trust Index released Jan. 26. In particular, trust in banks continued to fall, dropping from 39 percent in June 2011 to 30 percent in December. http://www.appraisalinstitute.org/ano/current.aspx?volume=2&numbr=3/4#16891 Staff Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT Financial News The nation’s biggest banks all took significant hits in the fourth quarter of 2011, largely the result of having to repurchase bad loans, complying with federal mortgage servicing standards, funding lawsuit settlements and paying for ongoing litigation and foreclosure expenses, American Banker reported Jan. 23. U.S. Bancorp took a $130 million charge for the settlement with state attorneys general and a $34 million charge for servicing compliance during the fourth quarter. http://www.appraisalinstitute.org/ano/current.aspx?volume=2&numbr=3/4#16888 Staff Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT Financial News JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America could lose $131 million in Home Affordable Modification Program payments if they don’t improve program performance, according to the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program, HousingWire reported Jan. 25. http://www.appraisalinstitute.org/ano/current.aspx?volume=2&numbr=3/4#16885 Staff Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT Financial News Executives from Citigroup told lenders that they will no longer purchase medium- or high-risk loans that could result in buyback requests from Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, American Banker reported Jan. 25. American Banker obtained the bank’s internal memo dated Jan. 16 that told lenders to withdraw medium- and high-risk loans because the bank could not predict timeframes for when the loans would be reviewed — or if they even could be reviewed. http://www.appraisalinstitute.org/ano/current.aspx?volume=2&numbr=3/4#16882 Staff Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT Financial News Wells Fargo announced a multi-billion-dollar program Jan. 25 to clear housing inventory in Los Angeles and Atlanta. The NeighborhoodLift program will launch Feb. 3 in the LA metro area and Feb. 10 in Atlanta. http://www.appraisalinstitute.org/ano/current.aspx?volume=2&numbr=3/4#16879 Staff Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT Financial News Moody’s Investors Service reported that the time it took to foreclose on a home in the third quarter fell by about 100 days at Wells Fargo and JPMorgan Chase as the two financial giants worked through their most difficult mortgages, HousingWire reported Jan. 23. http://www.appraisalinstitute.org/ano/current.aspx?volume=2&numbr=3/4#16876 Staff Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT Market Trends A Campbell/Inside Mortgage Finance HousingPulse Tracking Survey released Jan. 23 showed that buyers purchasing homes in all-cash deals are driving down home prices. Cash purchasers can successfully bid lower because the deals are more reliable than those requiring mortgage approval, and closing times are reduced. According to the monthly survey of 2,500 real estate agents, the overall percentage of cash buyers increased to a record 33.2 percent in December 2011, an increase of 29.6 percent from December 2010. http://www.appraisalinstitute.org/ano/current.aspx?volume=2&numbr=3/4#16873 Staff Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT Financial News Average mortgage rates climbed as the housing market ended 2011 on a high note, Freddie Mac reported Jan. 26 in its weekly Primary Mortgage Market Survey. http://www.appraisalinstitute.org/ano/current.aspx?volume=2&numbr=3/4#16870 Staff Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT Financial News The Appraisal Institute regrets the passing of the following Designated members, as reported to Appraiser News Online in January. http://www.appraisalinstitute.org/ano/current.aspx?volume=2&numbr=3/4#16867 Staff Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT Inside the Institute The Appraisal Institute designated 39 members in January, including 30 who received the MAI designation and nine who received the SRA designation. International members were well represented, with 10 from Korea and one from China. http://www.appraisalinstitute.org/ano/current.aspx?volume=2&numbr=3/4#16864 Staff Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT Inside the Institute The Appraisal Institute announced Jan. 31 its support for a new tool that will assist appraisers and others seeking to establish the value of a property’s solar-powered features. The PV Value spreadsheet was developed by Solar Power Electric and Sandia National Laboratories. “We are pleased to continue to serve as the industry leader in real estate valuation by offering our support for this innovation,” said Appraisal Institute President Sara W. Stephens, MAI. “We encourage real estate appraisers, mortgage underwriters, credit analysts, real estate property assessors, insurance claims adjusters, photovoltaic industry sales staff and others to take advantage of this new tool.” http://www.appraisalinstitute.org/ano/current.aspx?volume=2&numbr=3/4#16861 Staff Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT Industry Insider The Appraisal Institute continued to attract national media attention the week of Jan. 23, garnering coverage in National Mortgage News, Builder.com and HousingWire after publishing new guidance to help appraisers know when — and how — to use distressed sales as comparables. http://www.appraisalinstitute.org/ano/current.aspx?volume=2&numbr=3/4#16858 Staff Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT Inside the Institute