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First American Plans to Buy First Advantage
June 29, 2009
First American Corp.'s proposed acquisition of the minority stake outstanding of First Advantage Corp. will simplify the legal and organizational structure of the two companies and aid in the proposed split of the former's financial services and information solutions businesses, according to a report from Fitch Ratings. Santa Ana, Calif.-based FAF, which already controls 74% of the equity in First Advantage, has made an offer to purchase the remaining 26% at $14.04 per share. In late morning trading on June 29, the Poway, Calif.-based provider of risk mitigation and business solutions was trading at $14.85 per share, after going above the $15 mark at one point. It was back in January 2008 that FAF first announced the split, similar to one already accomplished by rival Fidelity National Financial. However in July 2008, it put the split on hold, blaming market conditions. In a statement, Parker S. Kennedy, FAF chairman and chief executive indicated that the company was still committed to the split plan, saying "we believe this transaction will boost the financial strength of First American as we continue to prepare for the separation of our information solutions and financial services businesses." In its report, Fitch said the information solutions business has been a "shock absorber" for FAF during the real estate downturn, but took no ratings actions on the title company. It views the transaction as ratings neutral because it is an all-stock deal.
Loan-Score Links to FHA TOTAL Scorecard
June 25, 2009
Irvine, Calif.-based Loan-Score Decisioning Systems has completed the necessary integration for lenders to connect to the Federal Housing Administration's TOTAL Scorecard platform directly from its automated underwriting system. Specifically, lenders that are using Loan-Score's product and pricing engine and AUS are able to able to instantly return decisions to loan officers or brokers electronically with this integration. In order to attain results from TOTAL Scorecard, lenders must use an AUS to connect to the system. Because Loan-Score is now an FHA integrated AUS, their clients' end users are able to hit TOTAL Scorecard for instant decisioning.
New Application to Start with a Securitized Mortgage Focus
June 24, 2009
A Fitch Solutions/Portsmouth Financial Systems desktop application that offers loan-level analytics for the U.S. structured finance market will start with a focus on subprime, alternative-A and prime credit residential mortgage-backed securities. Michael Megliola, chief executive officer of Portsmouth Financial Systems, Portsmouth, N.H., said the application differs from others offered in the market because it offers "more granular structured finance analytics at the loan, bond and deal level." Users can define the parameters for the analytics in the application, which is called Deal View. These can include, for example, a comparison of prepayment and default rates for arbitrary loan pools, or interactive yield tables on a collection of loans, the companies said. They plan to add more asset classes to the application going forward.
Trepp to Monitor Collateral for TALF CMBS Program
June 16, 2009
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York has chosen commercial real estate information and technology provider Trepp LLC as collateral monitor for commercial mortgage-backed securities as part of the Term Asset-Backed Securities Lending Facility. TALF's monthly subscription window for new issue CMBS was set to open for the first time Tuesday afternoon. At press time midday Tuesday Trepp senior vice president Andy Liebman and Tom Sink said to their knowledge there was nothing pending for it, but they were already at work on aspects of the program that are being finalized, and said next month they anticipate the program will be underway for both new issue and legacy CMBS. Trepp said in its role as monitor it would assist the New York Fed in providing valuation, modeling, analytics and reporting as well as advise on matters involving newly issued and "legacy" CMBS in the program. The New York-based company said it would not establish policies or make decisions for the New York Fed, including decisions on whether to reject a CMBS as collateral for a TALF loan or exclude loans from mortgage pools. Trepp said it would use the analytics and forecasting services of its subcontractor and sister company, the Boston-based Property and Portfolio Research, in conjunction with its work as a TALF CMBS collateral monitor.
Launch of Online Agent Certification Program
June 12, 2009
Southern California-based REOTrans has launched the RT Certified Agent Program, an online training regimen that educates agents in the REO-sales process. REOTrans has been providing basic training on the use of the workstation free of charge at various industry meetings, but the sessions were constantly overbooked, so the company decided to create an online series of courses. The company offers three levels of certification.
Lending Space Names Osheka President
June 1, 2009
LendingSpace, the developer of web-based loan origination software for reverse and forward mortgages, has named Jeffrey Osheka president. Mr. Osheka has over 20 years in the industry working for companies such as Lydian, Decade Systems, Ultraprise/GHR and Fidelity Mortgage Funding. As president of LendingSpace, Mr. Osheka is responsible for directing the company's current growth, with an emphasis on the rapidly expanding reverse mortgage market.
Integration Done to Cut Fraud
May 29, 2009
Interthinx has integrated its fraud prevention system with MortgageDashboard's loan origination system. The integration enables MortgageDashboard to offer customers an interface with automatic screening for potential fraudulent activity, according to the Agoura Hills, Calif.-based company. BenchMark Mortgage was recently introduced to MortgageDashboard's expanded loan origination system.
Woodward Asset Capital Launches OfferSubmission.com
May 29, 2009
Woodward Asset Capital LLC, Southfield, Mich. has launched OfferSubmission.com, a web-based software program geared toward firms that want to sell assets, including mortgages. Woodward is marketing the program to banks, servicers, GSEs, private equity firms and hedge funds.
Software Firm Releases Loan Mod Product
May 12, 2009
Byte Software, Kirkland, Wash., has released the BytePro Loan Modification Edition, designed to help servicers process modifications under the Treasury Department's Home Affordable Modification Program. The BytePro Loan Modification Edition allows servicers to process HMP modifications from initial borrower contact through completion of the modification. The company says the software calculates the interest rate, term, and balance of the modified loan in accordance with Treasury mandates. For loans that do not qualify for the HMP program, the software provides the ability to modify loans according to the lender's own parameters.
Byte Software Enters the Loan Mod Space
May 12, 2009
Byte Software, Kirkland, Wash., has released the BytePro Loan Modification Edition, designed to help servicers process modifications under the Treasury's Home Affordable Modification Program (HMP). The BytePro Loan Modification Edition allows servicers to process HMP modifications from initial borrower contact through completion of the modification. It automatically calculates the interest rate, term, and balance of the modified loan in accordance with Treasury mandates, and it produces all the documents that must be executed by the borrower and servicer. For loans that do not qualify for the HMP program, the software provides the ability to modify loans according to the lender's own parameters.
