August 17, 2017
Latest from Inside Mortgage Finance
Total conventional-conforming originations rose by 17.6 percent from the previous quarter according to estimates from Inside Mortgage Finance
Government-Insured Sector Regains Market Share In 2Q17 as Purchase-Mortgage Lending Lifts Off
Mortgage origination volume was up substantially in all product categories during the second quarter, but the government-insured market posted the biggest gain, according to a new ranking and analysis by Inside Mortgage Finance. Mortgage lenders produced an estimated $125.0 billion of government-insured home loans during the second quarter, up 19.0 percent from the first three months of the year. That nudged the government-insured share of the market up to 27.5 percent, the highest it’s been since early 2010. In the immediate aftermath of the housing-market meltdown, jumbo and nonprime production was depressed significantly, boosting the shares of government and conventional-conforming production. FHA and VA production typically gains...[Includes two data tables]
‘Excess’ Servicing Up for Grabs on $11 Billion Ginnie Portfolio; Other Deals Percolating as Rates Stay Low
A California nonbank is in the market with an excess servicing deal tied to an $11 billion Ginnie Mae portfolio, according to investment bankers familiar with the auction process. Sources contend the sale is being managed in part by Andrew Platt, a former managing director at MountainView Capital Group, Denver, a firm that’s an active broker of servicing rights. Platt now serves as vice chairman of Sprout Mortgage, a nonprime lender based in Henderson, NV. The deal is...
Watt Hints That He May Not Alter the Dividend Payment. A Complication: the GSE Lawsuits?
The issue of whether the Federal Housing Finance Agency will alter the dividend payments Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac pay the Treasury Department became a bit more complicated this month when agency Director Mel Watt hinted in correspondence he’s unlikely to make a change. But despite such a sentiment being expressed in a letter to the National Association of Realtors, there continues to be a school of thought among certain lobbyists and trade group officials that a change is coming. “I still think...
Latest Mortgage Data
- FHA Originations Up, VA Down, Quicken, USAA Lead Production
- Nonconforming Originations Hit $7.0 Billion
- MBS & ABS Issuance at a Glance
- FHLBank Income up 6 Percent, Advances Steady in 2Q17
- GSE Lenders Reach for Refi Business in 2Q17
- Spike in Mortgage Servicing Complaints Belies Mixed Results
- More Latest Data
Feature Stories
Inside FHA/VA Lending
Industry Experts Favor Unified GSE, FHA/VA Servicing Policies
Simplifying and aligning the default servicing policies of the conventional conforming and the government-backed mortgage markets would better serve the mortgage industry and homeowners, according to industry experts. In a recent discussion on how regulatory burden and high servicing costs might impede lending, members of the Mortgage Servicing Collaborative agreed on the need for streamlined and harmonized federal, state and agency policies and rules on servicing. Increased regulatory requirements have caused mortgage-servicing costs to skyrocket in recent years, experts said. Even though the quality of servicing has improved, the new regulations are complex and costly, they noted. Multiple pressures placed upon servicers have suppressed mortgage lending, making it harder for borrowers with tainted credit to obtain a mortgage, according to the ...
Inside Nonconforming Markets
Jumbo Origination Volume Increases In 2Q17, Still Off of Pace Set Last Year
Originations of non-agency jumbo mortgages increased in the second quarter of 2017, according to a new ranking and analysis by Inside Nonconforming Markets. But halfway through 2017, volume is lagging the production seen last year. An estimated $83.0 billion of non-agency jumbos were originated in the second quarter, up 18.6 percent from the previous period. In the first half of 2017, an estimated $153.0 billion of jumbos were originated, down ... [Includes one data chart]
Inside MBS & ABS
Banks Add to Residential MBS Holdings During Second Quarter, More Interest in GSE Securities
Commercial banks and savings institutions continued to stockpile agency MBS during the second quarter of 2017 with a strong appetite for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac pass-through securities. Total bank investment in residential MBS rose by $36.28 billion during the second quarter, lifting the industry’s aggregate portfolio to a record $1.799 trillion. Bank MBS holdings have risen steadily since the third quarter of 2014, growing by $264.07 billion over that period. In addition to those held-to-maturity and available-for-sale accounts, about a dozen banks held $16.34 billion of residential MBS in trading accounts. All of the growth has been...[Includes two data tables]
Inside the CFPB
Trump DOJ Expected to Enter Ocwen’s Dispute With CFPB
Given the Trump administration’s expressed interest in scaling back federal regulation and giving corporate interests greater freedom to conduct their business as they see fit, political and legal observers expect the Department of Justice to respond in the affirmative to a recent judicial invitation to formally opine on Ocwen Financial’s dispute with the CFPB. The nonbank mortgage servicer recently asked Judge Kenneth Marra with the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida to invite the U.S. attorney general to appear and to participate in the company’s challenge to the constitutionality of the bureau. “There are at least two clear reasons to invite the attorney general to participate here,” said the company. “First, inviting the views of the attorney ...
Inside Mortgage Trends
2Q17 a Rocky Road for Publicly Traded Nonbanks; Several Firms on the Ropes
The second quarter of 2017 was not easy for publicly held nonbank mortgage lenders and servicers, but the beleaguered sector fared better than it did a year ago. A new Inside Mortgage Trends analysis of second-quarter earnings reports found the eight companies in the roundup managed to generate just $24.37 million in mortgage-banking income. That was down 80.1 percent from the group’s first-quarter earnings. One public nonbank, Stonegate Mortgage ... [Includes one data chart]
Inside The GSEs
GSE Combined Net Income $4.86B, Capital Buffer Concerns Grow
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac earnings remained strong in the second quarter with the GSEs posting a combined $4.86 billion in net income, but concerns about the soon to be non-existent capital buffer also remain. The GSEs’ $9.85 billion in net income for the first half of the year more than doubled their combined earnings from the same time period in 2016, according to their second quarter earnings statements released last week. While Fannie posted a net income of $3.20 billion, a 15.4 percent quarterly improvement, Freddie witnessed a 24.7 percent decline to $1.66 billion in the second quarter.
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Most Popular Stories
- Wells Fargo Wins the Bid for Seneca Mortgage
- OCC Sets Process for Banks to Originate Mortgages with LTV Ratios Greater than 100 Percent
- Watt Hinted He Won’t Alter the Dividend Payment Soon but That Doesn’t End the Debate
- Short Takes: Treasury Secretary Mnuchin is Staying Put / Bet on an ‘Administrative’ Fix for the GSEs? / Mr. Cooper is Born / But Alice Cooper is #1 / Lima Hires Capital Markets Chief
- Jumbo Lending Increased in 2Q17, but Volume Lagging Last Year’s Pace
