Banks reported a modest decline in mortgage banking income during the second quarter of 2012, but the business continued to generate strong profits, according to a new analysis of call report data by Inside Mortgage Trends. Commercial banks, thrifts and bank holding companies reported a total of $7.91 billion in non-interest income from single-family mortgage banking activity during the second quarter. That was down 0.8 percent from the first three months of the year, but it still ranked ... [Includes one chart]

Historically low mortgages rates have fueled a prolonged refinancing wave that helped provide lenders with an important revenue source during the financial crisis. But as refinancing activity wanes and home prices begin to stabilize, lenders need to plan for the coming purchase market to stay competitive and continue growing revenue. In this regard, St. Louis-based Mortgage Returns helps mortgage companies, banks and independent mortgage banks prepare for the transition to a purchase-driven business ...

Plans to hasten the resolution of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac through an amended preferred stock purchase agreement (PSPA) announced last week by the Treasury Department and the Federal Housing Finance Agency has elicited mixed responses from stakeholders. Views vary as to whether the new deal will actually benefit taxpayers or simply protect holders of government-sponsored enterprise debt. The revised agreement will speed up the reduction of both GSEs’ investment portfolios, from an annual rate of 10 percent to ...

Lenders won a number of concessions from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau last week when the regulator proposed rules for loan originator compensation. However, the proposal also includes significant provisions that would impact lender profitability and originator compensation. For firms currently offering compensation arrangements that would be prohibited by the proposal, the CFPB said its proposed prohibition on compensation based on transaction terms “may contribute to adverse selection ...

Nationstar Mortgage Holdings posted strong profits for the second quarter of 2012 due to the company’s expanding servicing portfolio and refinances of loans in the portfolio. The nonbank had $36.3 million in net income for the quarter even after taking a $20.9 million decrease in the fair value of its mortgage servicing rights. “The primary driver of profitability continues to be servicing performance,” said Jay Bray, CEO of Nationstar, during a call with investors last week to announce the company’s earnings ...

Chimera Investment announced that it will restate three years of earnings and take large hits to net income and other-than-temporary impairment losses due to accounting on non-agency mortgage-backed securities. The real estate investment trust has been working for more than a year to apply proper accounting guidance to its $4.41 billion in non-agency MBS holdings. “As a result of applying the correct generally accepted accounting practices guidance to our investments in non-agency residential mortgage-backed securities ...

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau late last week released a proposed mortgage loan origination regulation, and perhaps most notable is what’s not in it – a required flat fee – a decision likely to be embraced by mortgage lenders. In a conference call with reporters, bureau officials said that after consulting with industry representatives and community advocates, the CFPB concluded a flat fee proposal would not be in consumers’ best interests. The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act places...

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has come out with an extensive set of proposed rules addressing numerous mortgage servicing issues in the form of two related notices designed to protect homeowners from surprises and costly mistakes by their mortgage servicers. The first proposal aims to give borrowers clear and timely information about their mortgages so they can avoid costly surprises, and would bring greater transparency to the market, according to the bureau. The proposed rule would try to do this...

Six federal financial regulatory agencies have put out a proposal to establish new appraisal requirements for mortgage loans deemed to be higher risk. The Dodd-Frank Act generally defines a “higher-risk mortgage” as a closed-end consumer credit transaction secured by a principal dwelling with an annual percentage rate exceeding certain statutory thresholds (1.5 percent for first-lien loans, 2.5 percent for first-lien jumbo loans, and 3.5 percent for subordinate-lien loans). “Qualified mortgages” will be exempt from this...

It looks like the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is going into stealth mode to try to find lender violations of various consumer protection laws. A job opening at the CFPB that was posted on a Treasury Department jobs listing suggests the bureau plans on using a mystery shopper or perhaps something a little more ominous, all in the name of consumer protection. According to the ad, the CFPB is looking for an investigator who “will work under the direction of enforcement attorneys to plan, organize, and conduct a wide...