Issuance of the government-sponsored enterprises’ credit-risk transfers has been growing consistently over the last five years, according to Suzanne Mistretta, senior director at Fitch Ratings.

Production of non-agency jumbo mortgages declined significantly in the first quarter of 2018, according to a new ranking and analysis by Inside Nonconforming Markets. An estimated $60.0 billion of jumbos were originated in the first quarter, down 26.8 percent from the previous period. Jumbo production was also off 13.0 percent from the first three months of 2017. The decline in jumbo volume was greater than the slowdown in the overall mortgage ... [Includes one data chart]

cchappell@imfpubs.com Although a stronger economy, wage growth and an improved job market is driving home prices upward in 2018, Lawrence Yun, chief economist of the National Association of Realtors, said a low supply and widespread affordable housing shortage will dampen sales. In his 2018 midyear forecast he said more new housing starts are needed… …

California continues to account for the largest share of non-agency jumbo originations but it lost some market share in 2017, according to an Inside Nonconforming Markets analysis of data from the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act. Some $317.29 billion of jumbos were originated in 2017, down 9.7 percent from the previous year. The analysis is based on originations of first-lien, single-family mortgages, with loan-limits determined at the county level. Originations of ... [Includes one data chart]

Impac Mortgage Holdings is putting more emphasis on originating non-qualified mortgages, with officials noting that the loans offer much better margins than conventional mortgages. Impac originated $248.2 million of non-QMs in the first quarter of 2018, up 5.6 percent from the previous cycle and a 34.7 percent increase from a year ago. Non-QMs accounted for 18.8 percent of Impac’s production in early 2018 compared with a 14.2 percent share in the previous quarter and an ...

Minority borrowers applying for an FHA or VA first-lien purchase mortgage were more likely to be denied than comparable white borrowers, according to an Inside FHA/VA Lending analysis of 2017 Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data. This finding was no surprise because the denial rates reflected the same historical trends for white and minority borrowers over the years. Approximately 727,865 FHA/VA loans went to white borrowers last year. Of the 978,981 government-insured loan applications submitted by white borrowers, 9.07 percent were denied. Of the 231,108 black borrowers who applied for a government-backed home loan, lenders rejected 14.57 percent. Out of the 285,707 FHA/VA loan applications submitted by Hispanics, lenders denied 11.42 percent. Asian borrowers submitted the least number of FHA/VA loan applications, 44,739. Lenders denied 11.36 percent. For FHA, the ... [Chart]

Residential mortgage lending was down in the first quarter of 2018 in every category, according to a new analysis and ranking by Inside Mortgage Finance. [Includes two data charts.]

Although mortgage servicing sales dipped a bit in the first quarter, it appears the second quarter is turning out to be a potential scorcher – thanks to rising interest rates and a plethora of buyers.

The delinquency rate on residential mortgages declined in the first quarter of 2018, according to various data sources. Performance typically improves in the first quarter due to seasonal factors. [Includes one data chart.]

By the end of this year, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac plan to create a clearinghouse of resources such as translated mortgage documents to help borrowers who have a limited proficiency of English.