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Mortgage Bankers Cut Jobs in May While Brokers Added Positions
July 2, 2020
Loan brokers, on the other hand, added 1,100 full-timers in May, bringing their employment count to 93,700. Over the past 12 months, brokerage firms have added 8,500 workers.
CRT Activities Resume at Freddie Mac
July 2, 2020
“CRT secondary markets have remained open throughout this crisis,” Freddie Mac's Mike Reynolds told Inside Mortgage Finance. “They were dramatically impacted by the COVID liquidity technical, as all markets were, but I think its important for your readers to know that trading still occurred."
Rep. Waters Not Happy with SCOTUS Decision on the CFPB. However...
July 2, 2020
But Waters acknowledged the ruling would make it easier for Joe Biden, if elected in November, to remove Trump’s CFPB director right away.
S&P Maintains Lead in ABS Ratings, DBRS Tops in MBS
July 2, 2020
DBRS Morningstar edged out Kroll Bond Rating Agency as the top firm in rating non-agency MBS in the first three months of the year.

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Buybacks
GSE Seller Buybacks Bounce Higher, Caliber Tops in 1Q20
The share of current production loans that sellers have to buy back from GSE securities pools remained miniscule, although volume was up in the first quarter. (Includes data chart.)
Profitability
1Q20 Servicing Losses Offset Solid Production Profitability
Hefty MSR hedging losses crushed profits on mortgage servicing in the first quarter, but mortgage bankers ended the period in better financial shape than they started it. (Includes data chart.)
Ginnie Mae
GNMA Rolls Along in May; COVID Impact May be Easing
Ginnie MBS issuance in May was off just a whisker from April’s record, but the full impact of the recession on housing sales is yet to come. (Includes two data charts.)
Jumbo
Retail Share of Jumbo Lending Declines Slightly in First Quarter
The retail channel lost market share in the jumbo sector during the first quarter of 2020. However, retail remains the predominant source of originations for the product. (Includes data chart.)
Agency MBS
Agency Market Drives 1Q20 Securitization Rates Higher
Ginnie MBS issuance caught up with strong primary market originations of FHA and VA loans, while Fannie and Freddie held steady in the conventional-conforming sector. (Includes data chart.)
Originations
Mixed Signals in Early 2020 Home-Equity Loan Market
The supply of home-equity debt outstanding fell below $500 billion in the first quarter. And though new originations were up slightly, lenders took a step back in April. (Includes three data charts.)

Inside Mortgage Finance

CFPB Proposes Moving QM Status Away from GSE Ambit
The CFPB wants to base QM status on a pricing metric rather than approval by the GSEs. Most mortgages would remain QMs but some business could shift to the non-agency market.
Banks Lose Share in 1Q20 Primary Mortgage Market
Nonbanks accounted for a record 63% of production by the top 100 lenders in the first quarter. Meanwhile, industry economists project a sharp drop in volume in the third quarter. (Includes two data charts.)
- Tight Warehouse Credit, BNYM Snafu Hurts Nonbanks
- MBS Continue to Gobble up Servicing Share in 1Q20
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Inside MBS & ABS

S&P Maintains Lead in ABS Ratings, DBRS Tops in MBS
June 25, 2020
S&P, Moody’s and DBRS made the most of the surge in rated ABS issuance during the first quarter. Kroll and Moody’s managed to increase non-agency MBS ratings in a declining market. (Includes two data charts.)
QM Proposal Might Impact GSEs’ Market Share
June 25, 2020
Under the CFPB proposal, which aims to establish a level playing field between the GSEs and the non-agency market, most loans will still be QMs, but there might be fewer incentives to sell the loans to the GSEs.
COVID-19 Infection at BNY Mellon Delays MBS Deals
June 25, 2020
A COVID-19 infection in the Dallas office of document custodian BNY Mellon is causing MBS transactions to backup.
PennyMac Raises Dividend; Is It an Omen?
June 25, 2020
Nomura analyst Matthew Howlett says PennyMac's strong performance is a sign of boom times for mortgage lenders. He expects four or five IPOs of nonbank originators in the next nine to 12 months.

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Inside Nonconforming Markets

CFPB QM Proposal Could Boost Non-Agency Market
June 26, 2020
The proposal could eliminate GSE eligibility as a standard for a loan to be deemed a qualified mortgage. The regulator aims to level the playing field between the non-agency market and Fannie/Freddie.
Expanded-Credit MBS Flood Market Toward Quarter-End
June 26, 2020
Eleven expanded-credit MBS have been introduced since June 15, with a total unpaid principal balance of $3.4 billion.
Prime Non-Agency MBS Increase Near End of June
June 26, 2020
Three prime non-agency deals were brought to market at the end of June. One of them is backed by GSE-eligible investment-property loans.
FHFA Reignites Debate on REIT Access to FHLBanks
June 26, 2020
The naysayers doubt nonbank originators and servicers have sufficient capital and liquidity to weather a storm.

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Inside Mortgage Trends

Agency MBS Soars in 2Q20 on Gusher of Refi Business
July 2, 2020
Retail platforms benefited the most from a huge increase in agency refinance business from the first to the second quarter. First-time buyers held on in a precarious housing market. (Includes two data charts.)
Originations Appear to Have Topped Expectations in 2Q
July 2, 2020
The book just closed on the second quarter, and it appears that many nonbank originators closed more loans than they did in 1Q20.
Bank Retail Originations Down in 1Q20; Pipeline Up
July 2, 2020
Banks and thrifts reported significant declines in mortgage originations and loan sales during the first quarter of 2020, but they ended the period with a huge pipeline of pending secondary-market activity. (Includes data chart.)
Impac Scales Back Production in a Bid to Reach Profitability
July 2, 2020
The nonbank took a large loss in the first quarter and halted production. Officials at the firm are now betting on originating GSE-eligible mortgages through call centers to return to profitability in the third quarter.

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Inside FHA/VA Lending

Correspondents Lose Share in 1Q20 FHA/VA Market
With one big exception — Freedom Mortgage — correspondent platforms saw declining production of FHA/VA loans in the first quarter. Retail was fairly steady, while wholesale-broker gained momentum. (Includes data chart.)
HECM Production Spikes in 1Q But Sees a Sharp Drop in April
Reverse mortgage lenders pumped out $3.87 billion in the first three months of 2020. But originations took a big step back in April due to COVID-19. (Includes two data charts.)
COVID-19 Infection at BNYM Delays Ginnie Custodial Transfers
BNY Mellon told MBS participants that deals will be delayed because of a COVID-19 infection in its Dallas office.
Significant Number of Loans in Forbearance Still Paying
Roughly 10% of loans backing Ginnie Mae MBS at the end of May were in forbearance because of the COVID-19 pandemic, but over a quarter of them were still current. (Includes data chart.)

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Inside Mortgage Trends
Agency MBS Soars in 2Q20 on Gusher of Refi Business
Retail platforms benefited the most from a huge increase in agency refinance business from the first to the second quarter. First-time buyers held on in a precarious housing market. (Includes two data charts.)
Inside Mortgage Finance
CFPB Proposes Moving QM Status Away from GSE Ambit
The CFPB wants to base QM status on a pricing metric rather than approval by the GSEs. Most mortgages would remain QMs but some business could shift to the non-agency market.
Inside Nonconforming Markets
CFPB QM Proposal Could Boost Non-Agency Market
The proposal could eliminate GSE eligibility as a standard for a loan to be deemed a qualified mortgage. The regulator aims to level the playing field between the non-agency market and Fannie/Freddie.
Inside MBS & ABS
QM Proposal Might Impact GSEs’ Market Share
Under the CFPB proposal, which aims to establish a level playing field between the GSEs and the non-agency market, most loans will still be QMs, but there might be fewer incentives to sell the loans to the GSEs.
Inside the CFPB
CFPB Proposes Changes to QM Rule and GSE Patch
The CFPB wants to replace the debt-to-income ratio limit with a price-based threshold in the general qualified-mortgage definition. The bureau also proposed extending the GSE patch until the effective date of a new QM definition.
Inside The GSEs
June Caps One of the GSEs' Best MBS Cycles on Record
Fannie and Freddie issued a staggering $880 billion of single-family MBS during the first half of 2020, up 78.5% from the first three months of the year. Volume peaked in June as refi activity continued to surge.
Inside FHA/VA Lending
Correspondents Lose Share in 1Q20 FHA/VA Market
With one big exception — Freedom Mortgage — correspondent platforms saw declining production of FHA/VA loans in the first quarter. Retail was fairly steady, while wholesale-broker gained momentum. (Includes data chart.)

Inside The GSEs

Arkansas Man Charged with $8 Million PPP Loan Fraud
According to charges filed by an FHFA special agent, the defendant submitted fraudulent PPP loan applications to two Federal Home Loan Banks.
June Caps One of the GSEs' Best MBS Cycles on Record
Fannie and Freddie issued a staggering $880 billion of single-family MBS during the first half of 2020, up 78.5% from the first three months of the year. Volume peaked in June as refi activity continued to surge.
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