Mortgage-Refinancing.com News

States With Highest, Lowest Closing Costs
Bankrate.com announced its 2008 ranking of closing cost by state. New York came in as the most expensive area to close a loan. The state with the lowest closing costs was North Carolina.

Wachovia Servicer Rating Upgraded
Standard & Poor's Ratings Services announced that it raised Wachovia Mortgage FSB's mortgage loan servicer rating. The rating was increased to strong from above average. The outlook is stable.

2007 Vintage Performance Far Worse Than Prior Years
Delinquency of at least 60 days on Alt-A loans backing residential mortgage-backed securities issued during 2007 and seasoned 12 months was 9 percent, according to data provided by LoanPerformance to MortgageDaily.com. Alt-A issuances from 2006 had a 5 percent delinquency rate at 12 months seasoning. For prime jumbo loans, the 2007 vintage saw 1.6 percent 60-day delinquency at 12 months' seasoning, LoanPerformance reported. That was more than double the delinquency rate jumbo issuances from 2006 saw after 12 months.

Bankrupt Branch Operation Dumps Wholesale
EquiPoint Financial Network is fighting to survive a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing. It has fled the wholesale business and is trying to re-emerge as a broker concentrating on reverse mortgages. Just a few years ago, the company had 85 branches. The number of branches has since dropped to 14.

Best Mortgage Broker
The National Association of Mortgage Brokers has identified the country's best mortgage broker. The trade group named Jim Brown Broker of the Year. The title was announced it NAMB's annual conference in June.