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Regulator Tries to Stabilize Bond Insurer Ambac
Posted on March 25th, 2010 No commentsWisconsin insurance commissioner Sean Dilweg has taken control of $35 billion worth of shaky mortgage-related and other liabilities from Ambac Assurance Corp., a move intended to help stabilize the struggling bond insurer. Ambac was founded and incorporated 40 years ago as an offspring of what is now Milwaukee-based MGIC Investment Corp., the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.
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B of A Mortgage Policy Could Benefit MGIC
Posted on March 24th, 2010 No commentsBank of America, the largest mortgage servicer in the country, will forgive up to 30 percent of some customers’ total mortgage balance. It’s a move that could also benefit Milwaukee-based mortgage insurer MGIC Investment Corp. B of A’s Countrywide unit sued MGIC in December, claiming that MGIC denied millions of dollars in valid claims. Read the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel article.
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European Bank Seizes School Districts’ Funds
Posted on March 24th, 2010 No commentsA European bank that lent money to five Wisconsin school districts that made risky investments has seized $5.6 million from district-controlled trusts to try to compel district officials to repay the debt, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported. The districts were Kenosha, Kimberly, Waukesha, West Allis-West Milwaukee, and Whitefish Bay.
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Waterstone Exec’s Compensation Down 11%
Posted on March 22nd, 2010 No commentsTotal compensation for Douglas S. Gordon, chief executive of the Wauwatosa, Wis.-based Waterstone Financial Inc., decreased 11 percent last year to $435,551, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.
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Home Sales Upswing Could Be Temporary
Posted on March 21st, 2010 No commentsAfter more than three years of falling home prices and slow sales, real estate and mortgage professionals say they anticipate sales building through April as home shoppers try to beat the April 30 expiration of a federal tax credit of up to $8,000 for first-time buyers and $6,500 for move-up buyers. But whether any momentum will continue after the tax credits are gone is difficult to predict. Read the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel article.
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Ashland Bank Assumes Failed Bank’s Assets
Posted on March 19th, 2010 No commentsThe failed State Bank of Aurora, Minnesota reopened as a branch of Northern State Bank of Ashland, Wis., according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. The State Bank of Aurora had $27.8 million in assets.
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Southport Reaches Agreement with Investor
Posted on March 19th, 2010 No commentsSouthport Bank in Kenosha has reached an agreement with an Ohio investor who will provide a capital infusion toward a $29.5 million recapitalization. The move will address concerns raised in a regulatory agreement between the bank and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Read more in the Business Journal.
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Park Bank Promotes Werner to President
Posted on March 18th, 2010 No commentsDavid P. Werner has been promoted to president of Park Bank in Milwaukee. Werner has been with the bank since 1989. He assumes the president title previously held by P. Michael Mahoney, Park Bank’s chairman and chief executive. Mahoney will remain chairman and CEO, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
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‘Financial Reality Day’ Educates Beloit Teens
Posted on March 18th, 2010 No commentsMore than 300 business students learned a lesson in financial planning in Beloit at a “financial reality day” sponsored by several local financial institutions. Students chose a career, received a fictional income and budgeted for a fictional life, which for some included children. Read the Beloit Daily News article.
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Mortgage Co. Owner Files for Bankruptcy
Posted on March 17th, 2010 No commentsFormer state revenue official and mortgage lending company owner John Torgerson of Eau Claire has filed for bankruptcy. Court records show Torgerson owes more than 100 creditors about $9.5 million. Torgerson founded Preferred Mortgage in 1979, which bills itself as a “premier low rate mortgage source,” according to WXOW-TV in La Crosse.