A significant number of issuers, lenders, consumer advocates, congressmen and even some investors are urging federal regulators to conform to the definition for qualified residential mortgages with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s standards for qualified mortgages. However, securitization industry participants have raised a number of other concerns about the risk-retention rule required by the Dodd-Frank Act. The DFA requires that certain securitized assets that don’t meet qualification standards should be subject to mandatory risk retention of at least 5 percent by the issuer or lender. Lenders and consumer advocates widely agree...

The Federal Housing Finance Agency declared this week that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will finish making claims on pre-conservatorship mortgage acquisitions by the end of this year. “It is time for us to wrap up all our open issues dealing with that period and move on,” said FHFA Acting Director Edward DeMarco during a speech at the annual convention of the Mortgage Bankers Association. “I look forward to a speedy resolution of remaining claims in the coming months.” The two GSEs became wards of the federal government in September 2008. For years, lenders have complained...

Performance of vintage non-agency MBS continued to improve at the end of the third quarter of 2013, with delinquencies on nonprime securities at levels last seen five years ago. However, Fitch Ratings warns that liquidation timelines are extending, limiting improvements to loss severities. Performance of vintage non-agency MBS continues to improve due to home-price appreciation and steady employment growth, making the securities strong targets for investors. However, there are some concerns as unscheduled prepayments increased on Alt A MBS and jumbo MBS even as interest rates increased in the third quarter. Fitch said...

Standard & Poor’s rated more non-agency MBS, by dollar volume, than any of its peers during the first nine months of 2013, according to a new Inside MBS & ABS analysis and ranking. S&P rated $11.65 billion of non-agency MBS issued through the end of September. Although that was more than any of the other four rating services, it represented just 43.4 percent of total issuance in a market that is significantly more fragmented than it was before the financial crisis. Back in 2006, for example, S&P rated...[Includes two data charts]

Ginnie Mae remains a very good profit center for MBS issuers and investors, making government-backed lending appealing and beneficial to consumers, according to securitization experts. Government loans offer great value to lenders because they cover broader borrower eligibility than conventional loan products and lenders can execute more efficiently, said panelists at the Mortgage Bankers Association’s annual conference this week. The discussion focused on government loan programs – FHA, VA and Rural Housing Service – and on execution options for the loans and their mortgage servicing rights (MSRs). CMG Financial has found...

The planned $209.95 million Citigroup Mortgage Loan Trust 2013-J1 is backed by mortgages seasoned an average of four months from six lenders.

Michael Heid, president of Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, said more clarity on reps and warranties would help loosen residential credit.

Committee Chairman Tim Johnson, D-SD, said the structure of the government guaranty for MBS “must be explicit, appropriately priced, and stand behind private capital that is not guaranteed.”

Citigroup Global Markets Realty is preparing to issue a non-agency jumbo mortgage-backed security next week, according to a preliminary term sheet provided to Inside Nonconforming Markets. The issuance would come just two weeks after Shellpoint Partners scrapped a planned jumbo MBS because of tepid investor demand. Blackstone is also offering the first securitization backed by rental proceeds from real estate owned properties and Freddie Mac is preparing its second non-agency risk-sharing transaction ...

The Federal Housing Finance Agency will announce 2014 loan limits for the government-sponsored enterprises near the end of November and provide lenders at least six months before the expected reductions take effect. “FHFA will follow its practice of announcing the 2014 conforming loan limits in late November, at which time further information will be provided on potential reductions in the size of loans the GSEs will guaranty going forward,” said Edward DeMarco, acting director of the FHFA ...