The post-October 2 hangover is here.

Originators of Home Equity Conversion Mortgages — including both Federal Housing Administration-approved lenders and their non-approved counterparts — suffered a decline of 17.6% in February, according to the most recent set of numbers from Reverse Market Insight.

That’s a major shift from January, which saw the effects of the boom in originations created by people rushing to lock in the higher principal limit factors prior to the October 2 deadline. January saw a 32.9% increase from December, with a total of 6,308 loans.

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Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) must pay a $1 billion fine related to its auto loan and rate-lock programs, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced late last week.

The whopping penalty comes as the CFPB has generally relaxed its enforcement actions under the Trump administration and new acting director Mick Mulvaney, and received support from both sides of the aisle. The original action, pursued by both the CFPB and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, began under the Obama administration and found Wells Fargo in violation of the Consumer Financial Protection Act.

“Fraud is fraud and theft is theft,” Rep. Jeb Hensarling, the Texas Republican who heads up the House Financial Services Committee, said in a statement. “What happened to far too many consumers at Wells Fargo for far too many years cannot be described any other way. One billion dollars is one of the largest civil penalties ever imposed upon a bank and, based on all the evidence, it was well deserved.”

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Ocwen Financial Corporation (NYSE: OCN) president and CEO Ron Faris will retire at the end of June, the financial services corporation announced Thursday.

Glen Messina, former president and CEO of PHH Corp. (NYSE: PHH) — which Ocwen acquired earlier this year — will step into the top spot.

“As president and CEO, Ron guided Ocwen through a period of significant change, both in the mortgage industry and at our company,” board chair Phyllis Caldwell said in a statement announcing the personnel moves. “Ron redesigned the way we conduct business, and because of Ron’s leadership, we are strategically positioned to move forward into the future through our pending merger with PHH.”

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Ditech Holding Corp., the parent company of Reverse Mortgage Solutions, announced Wednesday it has appointed board chairman Thomas F. Marano as CEO and president of the company, effective immediately.

Marano replaces interim CEO and president Jeffrey Baker, who will continue to serve as president of RMS. 

“We are pleased to appoint an executive of Tom’s caliber as Ditech Holding’s chief executive officer and president,” Daniel Beltzman, chairman of the Board’s Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, said. “The Ditech Holding Board of Directors conducted a comprehensive search, and Tom’s expertise and more than 29 years of experience in the financial services industry distinguished him from the other candidates…We thank Jeff for serving as interim chief executive officer and president during this time of transition and are grateful that he will continue to help lead the company as president of RMS.”

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Real estate transactions—including reverse mortgage transactions—are increasingly a target for scammers, as seen by title and closing professionals on an ongoing basis. But there are precautions and measures loan originators and others who participate in the reverse mortgage market can take in order to avoid the unfortunate consequence of a borrower’s funds being stolen.

“The same technology that has helped us to work faster and more securely has opened a whole new application for scammers,” said Adan Gutierrez, client solutions manager for Allegiant Reverse Services, a division of FNC Title of California, during a webinar hosted by ARS on Wednesday.

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Reverse mortgage technology executive Wendy Peel was honored this week by the Mortgage Bankers Association with its 2018 Tech All-Star Award. Peel, who serves as vice president of sales and marketing for national  software provider ReverseVision, accepted the award Monday during the MBA’s annual Technology Solutions Conference & Expo in Detroit. It is the 17th year MBA has awarded this honor.

The national recognition served as a nod to not only to the growth of the software platform but also to the “normalization” of Home Equity Conversion Mortgage loans.

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When potential borrowers want to learn more about reverse mortgage products, many professionals look to their in-house resources, like company websites, to begin the education process.

For Beth Paterson, executive vice president at Reverse Mortgages SIDAC in St. Paul, Minn., her website’s articles are a primary “education piece.”

“Our website is designed as educational, not just promotional,” she said.

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