Nationstar Mortgage is telling potential investors in the company that it plans to be a significant player in settlement services, REO management, processing and other areas.
At least one top-five ranked residential servicer is planning to offer for sale a decent-sized package of mostly nonperforming servicing rights over the next month.
Mortgage production volume increased modestly during the fourth quarter of 2012, thanks largely to continuing gains by a number of mid-sized lenders, according to a new Inside Mortgage Finance ranking and analysis. An estimated $495.0 billion in new single-family mortgages were originated during the final three months of 2012, up 2.1 percent from the previous quarter. Including a slightly revised estimate for the third quarter, total mortgage originations hit $1.835 trillion during 2012 – a solid 24.8 percent gain over the previous year. That made 2012 the second-strongest year since the housing market began to come unglued back in 2007. It’s no surprise that agency programs continued...[Includes two data charts]
Residential lenders that are relatively new to the seller/servicer ranks of Fannie Mae continue to gripe about the purchase limits the GSE has placed on them, causing the agency to spell out its reasoning in an online commentary. According to a recent message posted to Fannie’s website by Executive Vice President and Chief Risk Officer John Nichols, the caps the GSE placed on new customers – nonbanks primarily – were caused by what the company calls a “significant shift in the composition of our customer base and the emergence of many new originating institutions with whom we have done little or no business.” He adds: “This rapid change in the marketplace prompted...
A number of mortgage industry experts share the view that a dark cloud has been cast over President Obama’s recess appointment of Richard Cordray as director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, after an appeals court ruled late last week that other recess appointments the president made at the same time were unconstitutional. “The significance of this decision cannot be overstated as it raises a host of questions about the potential impact of a judicial ruling that Mr. Cordray’s recess appointment was similarly invalid,” said Barbara Mishkin, of counsel with the law firm of Ballard Spahr. Edward Mills, a financial policy analyst at FBR Capital Markets, said...
The agency share of mortgage originations is expected to remain elevated for years to come due to profits at the government-sponsored enterprises, increasing home prices, a lack of non-agency production, and the new ability-to-repay rule, according to industry participants. The factors have combined to reduce the push for the Obama administration and Congress to take action on GSE reform. The most recent impediment to GSE reform appears to be new profits reported by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, along with expected profitable quarters going forward due to repurchase settlements, home price appreciation and other positive trends. “The Treasury Department has...
Mortgage lenders seeking new agency approvals from Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae have to take a number and wait. And sometimes that wait can last for a year or more, even longer depending on which “agency” a company is dealing with. But all that appears to be changing, according to interviews conducted by Inside Mortgage Finance over the past two weeks. Unfortunately, there’s little in the way of hard numbers to back that up, except for Ginnie Mae. According to an agency spokesman, Ginnie approved...
The Department of Housing and Urban Development this week announced the latest changes designed to bolster the solvency of the FHA and ease Congress’ fear of a potential taxpayer bailout. The announcement is in connection with additional reforms, which FHA Commissioner Carol Galante committed to in an agreement with Sen. Bob Corker, R-TN. In a deal that cleared the way to her confirmation as FHA chief, Galante promised to have the measures in place by the end of the month to better manage risk and strengthen the FHA Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund. As expected, HUD is...
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