The expanded-credit market was the only sector to see originations increase in the first quarter. The products accounted for 2.2% of total mortgage originations. (Includes data chart.)
Participants in the non-agency market note that the loans are more difficult to underwrite than typical agency mortgages. But given that agency refi business is falling, there’s still plenty of business to be had in the non-agency space.
Impac increased its emphasis on non-QM lending in the first quarter of 2022 and ended up taking a loss. Officials at the nonbank said hedging and other activities couldn’t overcome volatility in the non-QM market.
A handful of real estate investment trusts acquired non-QMs at a discount as interest rates increased during the first quarter. Lenders selling the loans took some losses but appear to have weathered the storm.
MFA Financial took a large loss in the first quarter as rising interest rates reduced the value of non-QMs on the REIT’s balance sheet. Lima One, a business-purpose lender now owned by MFA, was a bright spot.
Issuers of expanded-credit MBS stocked deals with $14.10 billion of volume in the first quarter of 2022, a record for the sector. A rise in interest rates helped to increase securitization activity. (Includes three data charts.)
Arch Mortgage Funding quietly acquired a small number of jumbo mortgages last year and expanded into acquisitions of non-QMs this month. Prior to the non-QM announcement, Arch Capital Group said little about the conduit.
Annaly Capital Management is working to increase its aggregation of non-agency mortgages. The company generated returns in the mid-teens from the activity in the first quarter.
Some issuers of non-agency MBS are stocking deals with mortgages that have seasoned for an average of about one month while others are still offloading mortgages that were originated prior to the runup in interest rates.