The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. this week revised its securitization safe-harbor rule to clarify loss mitigation standards for mortgage servicers to synchronize it with the similar requirements issued by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The FDIC safe-harbor rule sets standards under which the agency will not attempt to capture assets of a failed bank that are transferred to qualifying securitizations. Under the previous rule, servicers of residential mortgages backing MBS that enjoy safe-harbor status were required to take loss mitigation action within 90 days after the loan becomes delinquent. In January 2013, the CFPB adopted...

Mortgage-finance reform doesn’t look to be anywhere on the horizon, but at some point government policymakers will have to figure out what to do with trillions of dollars of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac MBS if the two government-sponsored enterprises are put out to pasture. In fact, the transition to a new GSE single security that’s scheduled to start in 2018 could become a test run of sorts for the even bigger changes ahead, according to a paper published by the Urban Institute. Crafted by five mortgage-industry veterans, “A More Promising Road to GSE Reform” is centered on the creation of a new government corporation that would replace Fannie and Freddie. The National Mortgage Reinsurance Corp. would issue...

Outreach and lender-education efforts by industry groups, such as the National Association of Realtors and the National Association of Home Builders, have boosted refis as well...

A federal appeals court in New York this week will hear arguments from African-American subprime borrowers in Detroit in connection with a proposed class action challenging Morgan Stanley’s mortgage securitization practices during the subprime mortgage boom. The American Civil Liberties Union and its partners are seeking class-action status for the borrowers’ Fair Housing Act claims, which were initially rejected by a lower court. The court previously ruled that each borrower would have to sue on his or her own. The issue on appeal at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit is...

In fact, the transition to a new GSE single security that’s scheduled to start in 2018 could become a test run of sorts for the even bigger changes ahead…

What does the Brexit vote for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac? Hedging losses, maybe?

A majority of mortgage companies plan to increase their spending on technology as part of their efforts to boost profit margins, according to the latest results from Fannie Mae’s quarterly survey of lenders. Some 56 percent of the 169 lenders surveyed by Fannie in the second quarter of 2016 listed technology investment as one of their top two strategies to increase profit margins, marking the first time a majority of respondents plan to increase tech spending to help profits since ...

Intercontinental Exchange will acquire a majority equity position in the owner of Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems and “modernize” MERS, according to the companies. Terms of the investment weren’t disclosed, though ICE said the price and terms of the transaction are “immaterial” to the company. The transaction is expected to be completed at the end of this month. MERS is owned by MERSCorp Holdings, a private corporation and member-based organization ...

The chance of Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac reform legislation passing Congress this year is virtually nil. But that hasn’t stopped industry trade groups from talking about the topic, or dispensing a barrage of advice for the Federal Housing Finance Agency about the withering capital cushions at Fannie and Freddie. The way things stand today, the largest industry trade organizations – and arguably the most powerful politically – are taking the position of “all or nothing” mortgage-finance ...

A top mortgage-industry executive called for the establishment of criteria for adjusting FHA mortgage-insurance premiums to limit taxpayer exposure and allow private capital to play a larger role in the mortgage market. In a recent blog, Patrick Sinks, president/CEO of Mortgage Guaranty Insurance Corp., noted growing talk in the mortgage industry of another possible FHA premium reduction following last year’s 50 basis point cut. However, before that happens ...