Fear and loathing in the mortgage job market? Movement Mortgage has let several mortgage workers go. Can looser underwriting standards save the day?

Supporters are defending a House Republican proposal to liquidate Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and let the private market fill in the gaps. But despite a nearly complete lack of bipartisan support and even doubts from within his own party, the author of the proposal is pushing hard to fast-track the bill. This week, the House Financial Services Committee heard testimony from 11 experts on the Protecting American Taxpayers and Homeowners Act, introduced last week by Rep. Jeb Hensarling, R-TX.“The PATH Act is a comprehensive proposal to create a sustainable housing finance system by ending the federal government’s domination of the housing finance market and give consumers more choices in determining which mortgage product best suits their needs,” said Hensarling.

HUD thinks random sampling would help make post-endorsement reviews more efficient, but some legal advisors believe the cost is too great.

The Fed chief told elected officials that whatever housing finance reform plan they choose to replace Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, it should be clear to private investors about the government’s role in the market.

Redwood Trust, not surprisingly, was the top jumbo MBS issuer in the first half of 2013, according to exclusive rankings from Inside MBS & ABS.

With legislation to replace the government-sponsored enterprises not likely to be enacted until after the 2014 election, the Mortgage Bankers Association is proposing five steps administrators can take now to ensure a smooth transition without disrupting the nation’s housing finance system. At a press briefing this week, MBA President and Chief Executive Officer David Stevens rolled out the trade group’s five-point plan that could be immediately implemented by the Federal Housing Finance Agency and/or Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac without the need for legislation. At the top of the MBA’s list and the tallest order of the five recommendations is...

In what may well be his last appearance before Congress as chairman of the Federal Reserve, Ben Bernanke this week indicated the central bank’s much-debated “tapering” of its massive asset purchase program is likely to begin later this year and then cease altogether by the middle of 2014, assuming the U.S. economy progresses as the Fed anticipates. At the same time, the Fed chief emphasized the Federal Open Market Committee will continue to be flexible in responding to market and economic conditions, all based on the flow of data coming into the committee. Bernanke said the FOMC has made...

Both supporters and detractors of a House Republican bill aimed at comprehensive mortgage finance reform told members of the House Financial Services Committee this week the proposal has room for improvement, but the author of the proposal is pulling out all the stops to get the legislation on the fast track despite a nearly complete lack of bipartisan support. This week’s hearing, called by Rep. Jeb Hensarling, R-TX, committee chairman and author of the Protecting American Taxpayers and Homeowners Act, was designed to gather input on the bill with an eye toward marking up the PATH Act before the House adjourns for its August recess. The bill would put...

It’s no secret that the market for nonperforming mortgages has improved nicely this year, but now there are signs of life in the “re-performing” sector as well, especially among investors that hope to package and securitize the notes. According to Jeana Curro, director of agency MBS strategy for Royal Bank of Scotland, the re-performing MBS market is small, “although not insignificant.” But getting a true handle on MBS backed by re-performing loans can be...

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau may have over-reached by extending its new bulls-eyes on debt collectors to mortgage servicers, according to some top mortgage industry attorneys. The CFPB last week warned all companies under its jurisdiction that they will be held accountable for unlawful conduct in collecting a consumer’s debts, citing its authority under the Dodd‐Frank Act, which prohibits “unfair, deceptive, or abusive” acts or practices (UDAAPs). Attorney Alan Kaplinsky, a practice leader in the Philadelphia office of the Ballard Spahr law firm, said it’s particularly significant that the bulletins not only address the conduct of debt collectors and debt buyers, but also are directed at creditors and servicers. CFPB Bulletin 2013‐07 makes...