The nonprime mortgages held in portfolio by the government-sponsored enterprises continued to decline in 2017, according to an analysis by Inside Nonconforming Markets. And while the GSEs sold vintage non-agency mortgage-backed securities during the year, pre-crisis Alt A mortgages guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are largely running off instead of being sold. Fannie and Freddie had a total of $108.23 billion in nonprime mortgage holdings ... [Includes one data chart]
S&P Global Ratings released a revised methodology and assumptions this week for non-agency mortgage-backed securities issued in 2009 and later. The revision included slightly more favorable treatment of mortgages to multiple borrowers and recalibrated loss severity assumptions, including an over/undervaluation framework that incorporates property values in markets compared with price-to-income ratios. New Penn Financial loosened ... [Includes two briefs]
Retail production shops and mortgage brokers managed to sustain origination volumes fairly well in the fourth quarter of 2017, but correspondent platforms had a tougher time of it, according to a new Inside Mortgage Finance ranking and analysis.
The first-time homebuyer share of home sales has trended downward in recent years, though not necessarily due to a lack of demand from potential buyers, according to some industry analysts. One of the biggest drags on purchases by first-time homebuyers appears to be a lack of starter homes for sale, according to analysts at Capital Economics.
According to their financial disclosures and company officials, both GSEs saw a sharp decline in the average guarantee fee they charged on new MBS issued during the fourth quarter…
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac observers are scratching their heads about “minimum return on equity” requirements that the Federal Housing Finance Agency has imposed, somewhat mysteriously, on the two government-sponsored enterprises.
RSS