Correspondent lenders and mortgage brokers took slightly less severe declines in origination volume in early 2017 than was seen in the retail channel, according to a new Inside Mortgage Finance ranking and analysis. All three production channels were down sharply as total first-lien mortgage originations tumbled 33.6 percent from the fourth quarter of 2016. The retail segment saw the biggest decline, dropping 34.6 percent to an estimated $221.0 billion. Retail production typically features...[Includes four data tables]
Warehouse lenders ended the first quarter of 2017 with an estimated $59.0 billion of commitments on their books, a 4.8 percent sequential decline, according to exclusive survey figures compiled by Inside Mortgage Finance. Compared to a year ago, commitments were up 13.5 percent. However, many nonbanks sign commitment deals but don’t always draw on the lines very heavily. A case in point was the first quarter: the drop in commitments was benign compared to the overall decline in originations. Industrywide, residential lending fell by 33.6 percent from the fourth quarter. The good news for the warehouse sector is...[Includes one data table]
An uptick in mortgage interest rates has reduced rate-term refinance volume but demand from borrowers for cash-out refis and home-equity loans appears to remain relatively strong. “When we look at the landscape for home-equity extraction, we see potential tailwinds from loan-to-value ratio and credit curing combined with slightly less stringent lending standards helping bolster borrower demand,” analysts at Wells Fargo Securities said in a report last week. Borrower LTV ratios have been helped...
MBA's Stevens once again slams those in favor of a GSE “recap and release” plan, saying this group consists “primarily [of] stock speculators who are most concerned about personal profits” rather than the future of the U.S. housing system.”
Meanwhile, although GSE risk sharing seems popular in some circles, FHFA itself admitted recently that some of this coverage has come at premium cost to Fannie and Freddie.
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