Problems with rating models that prompted corrections on more than 650 residential MBS in recent years helped lead to a settlement between Moody’s Investors Service and the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Non-agency MBS participants are developing a representation-and-warranty framework by learning from ongoing issues in pre-crisis non-agency MBS. The latest framework developed by the law firm of Alston & Bird features a number of new provisions to help address conflicts regarding breaches of reps and warrants.

Longer auto loan terms and softer collection practices by some lenders are slowing amortization schedules and backloading losses in certain subprime auto loan ABS, said S&P Global Ratings.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac pose more risk to the housing finance system today than they did a decade ago, according to some witnesses at a House Financial Services Committee hearing this week.

The Blackstone Group in the past few months has taken a hard look at the operations of Incenter, a portfolio company it controls that has diversified businesses that include loan and MBS trading/investments as well as servicing brokerage, according to market sources familiar with the situation.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac shareholders ran into another roadblock late last month when the Eighth Circuit Court ruled that the Treasury’s net worth sweep of profits earned by the government-sponsored enterprises may not be fair, but it’s perfectly legal.

Alston & Bird: “We’ve all learned the hard way…”

Industry consultant Tim Rood said the first rule for GSE reform should be: “Do no harm.”

With intense competition for originations of jumbo mortgages, the correspondent channel is experiencing volatility, according to an analysis by Inside Nonconforming Markets. A survey of major players in the market shows correspondent production of jumbo loans rose sharply from the first to the second quarter, though volumes and market share are down on an annual basis. Among a group of lenders that generated $55.77 billion in jumbo originations in the second quarter ... [Includes one data chart]

The amount of jumbo mortgages being handled by major servicers has largely increased in the past year, according to a new ranking and analysis by Inside Nonconforming Markets. Among a group of 30 servicers, only six posted declines in jumbo servicing volume on an annual basis as of the end of June. Among the top 10 jumbo servicers, only Ocwen Financial had a decline in servicing. The company remains under growth constraints placed by regulators ... [Includes one data chart]