Despite a sharp increase in mortgage originations last year, the number of state-licensed loan originators increased by just 2.7 percent compared to 2011, according to data from the Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System analyzed by Inside Mortgage Trends. A total of 519,428 loan originators were either licensed by the states or registered as staff of a bank, thrift or credit union. The highest concentration of these LOs was in California, where 15.3 percent of the industry ... [Includes one data chart]

Is the tide turning on residential delinquencies suffered by banks or do the numbers look better because the group is selling legacy MSRs?

According to an analysis by Fitch Ratings, the overall charges for a simple jumbo non-agency MBS across all note-holders would increase to between 6.3 percent and 8.2 percent under the new proposal.

The launch of the revised CFPB database expands the bureau's consumer complaint apparatus in a major way. It includes a sub-category for many products, including mortgages.

Fannie Mae could have an answer to its 'deferred tax asset' issue by the end of next week, freeing up billions of dollars in money.

Is Navy Federal's no-downpayment product safe? It believes so, and is quite happy with the delinquency experience on the loan but won't provide specifics.

Genworth moves closer to delinking from its mortgage insurance unit. Meanwhile, Wells Fargo has suffered the loss of a well-regarded regional rep.

No one is suggesting, quite yet, that new “bulk” and “flow” servicing deals will become com-monplace again, but thanks to rising interest rates and home values, there is a new optimism among sellers that hasn’t been seen since the housing crash of 2008 (Includes three data charts)

Industry observers are lauding the passage of an amendment in the Senate’s proposed budget to curtail the use of Fannie Mae’s and Freddie Mac’s guaranty fees to pay for unrelated spending.By a vote of 50 to 49 last weekend, the Senate passed its fiscal 2014 budget resolution. An amendment making it more difficult to tap fees charged by the government-sponsored enterprises was offered by Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee Chairman Tim Johnson, D-SD, and Ranking Minority Member Mike Crapo, R-ID, and approved by unanimous consent.

The mortgage share of home-purchase financing has declined significantly in recent months as a result of an influx of investors using cash to buy homes, according to the latest Campbell/Inside Mortgage Finance HousingPulse Tracking Survey. “Cash buyers are killing the financed buyer options,” according to a real estate agent in New York state. “Buyers are waiving every protection to get the deal.”