Mortgage banking remained profitable for the vast majority of banks and thrifts that are in the business, but earnings declined sharply in early 2017 and more institutions quit the market, according to a new Inside Mortgage Trends analysis of call reports. The industry reported a combined $3.562 billion in mortgage-banking income for the first quarter of this year, down 35.0 percent from the previous three-month period. The upside was that first-quarter profits ... [Includes one data chart]

More first-lien mortgages are originated through retail lending operations than either of the other main production channels, but correspondents gained some ground during the first quarter. An exclusive Inside Mortgage Trends analysis of survey data shows that the market share for correspondents rose in all three major loan categories: conventional conforming, jumbo and government insured. Correspondents have their deepest penetration in ... [Includes two data charts]

But keep in mind the 'new nonprime' is nothing like the toxic and predatory products of the last decade...

VantageScore is gaining traction as an alternative to FICO credit scores in consumer lending and structured finance, according to a study by DBRS. Introduced in 2006 as a joint venture among three national credit bureaus – TransUnion, Experian and Equifax – VantageScore was first used in securitization transactions backed by student-loan refinancings. Its transition to consumer loans and structured finance demonstrates industry acceptance as an alternative to the widely used FICO scores, DBRS pointed out. The study compares...

Among the top five retail lenders, Wells Fargo had the largest sequential decline in 1Q17, down 41.2 percent.

Ginnie Mae is making enhancements to a tool developed for MBS issuers to help them compare their performance with other issuers and to determine whether they are meeting agency expectations. Improvements to the Issuer Operation Performance Profile (IOPP) tool also would increase scoring transparency and make reports clearer and easier to understand, the agency said. The IOPP was introduced...

Four whole-business securitizations totaling $3.58 billion are in the works, according to presale reports, including a $900.0 million deal from Coinstar. The securitization from Coinstar received a preliminary BBB rating from Kroll Bond Rating Agency. The company owns nearly 20,000 kiosks that count change located in grocery stores and other retail venues, mostly in the U.S. The company generates...

The credit landscape is improving as more lenders introduce new credit-scoring mechanisms and eligibility requirements, but it may not mean much for mortgage origination volume, at least in the short term, according to a new study by mortgage consulting firm the Stratmor Group. The study noted that when faced with slower housing growth due to demographics, affordability, and higher healthcare costs, lenders will look to loosen underwriting standards to feed their production capacity. Rob Chrisman, senior advisor with Stratmor, said many of the “good borrowers” have refinanced and bought homes already, leaving lenders with borrowers of lesser credit quality. “Lenders and investors, too, are...

“You need a lot of issuers out there and you need more investors,” said Redwood CEO Marty Hughes.

While the industry continues to debate the merits of allowing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to build a capital cushion for “zero day” in 2018, investors in MBS have a different agenda: making sure that whatever the future holds for the government-sponsored enterprises, it had better include a federal guarantee on conventional mortgage securities. Without it, the MBS market would suffer greatly – as would residential lending and the sale of new and existing homes. So far, no one knows...