Through three quarters this year, retail originations fell 20.2 percent while brokers saw a 10.3 percent production drop and correspondent lending declined by only 1.8 percent.

The federal regulator released a check digit tool and a rate-spread calculator.

Some lenders said they’re loosening underwriting standards in in an effort to compete for volume.

Nationally, home prices increased by 6.48 percent in October compared with a year ago, according to Black Knight.

“While this flexible approach is generally beneficial for lenders and consumers, it does produce some uncertainty over what will be considered ‘good faith’ or ‘material,’” according to attorneys at the law firm of Buckley Sandler.

An estimated 69.5 percent of third-quarter mortgage originations were funneled into securities, according to affiliated publication Inside MBS & ABS.

A new spending bill approved by Congress extended federal funding through Jan. 19.

Certain temporary modifications have been made to allow lenders to submit demographic information if the currently available fields in the system match the data submitted. Otherwise, just leave the fields blank, according to the FHA.

The GSEs are expected to assess the current mortgage servicing business model and develop plans to support liquidity in the mortgage servicing market.

The Government Accountability Office, in a new report, urged Congress to specify the economic conditions it believes the FHA mortgage insurance fund can withstand without supplemental funds.