Officials at Ocwen warned of more financial turbulence throughout the year...

The relatively strong mortgage origination volume late in 2016 propped up production levels in all three major channels, according to a new Inside Mortgage Finance ranking and analysis. Mortgage brokers saw the biggest decline in volume during the fourth quarter, as production slipped 6.7 percent from the previous three-month cycle to an estimated $56.0 billion. But even with the late-year decline, the wholesale-broker market had...[Includes four data tables]

Warehouse providers ended 2016 with roughly $62.0 billion of commitments on their books, a 21.6 percent improvement from the same period a year earlier, according to new survey figures compiled by Inside Mortgage Finance. For the most part, warehouse finance continued to be a healthy business for the megabanks and regional banks that play in the sector – especially with nonbank originators stealing market share away from many of the institutions they’re receiving lines of credit from. Few warehouse managers interviewed by this publication cited...[Includes one data table]

At last check, Fairholme valued its stake in Fannie/Freddie at roughly $115.7 million.

The aggregate dollar volume of homeowner equity in real estate has almost returned to pre-crisis levels, but borrowers are no longer using their homes as ATMs, according to industry analysts. Between 2003 and 2007, homeowners were extracting more than $350.0 billion in home equity per year via home-equity loans and cash-out refinances, according to researchers at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. While home prices and equity have largely recovered, equity extraction remains below $50.0 billion per year. William Dudley, president and CEO of the NY Fed, said...

The disclosure comes on the heels of a recent legal settlement in California that paves the way for Ocwen to buy servicing rights once again...

Nationstar said it expects to board $144 billion of additional contracts in 2017, $111 billion of which is subservicing for New Residential Investment Corp.

Consequently, top-tier banks that offered FHA-insured mortgages have opted to either restrict their government business or exit the program altogether…

Nexera founder and CEO Steve Abreu – a former GMAC executive – said there’s a great deal of interest from PE firms in the “disruptor” segment…

Market watchers must be wondering just how long investors will continue to believe in the GSE “bet” made by hedge fund manager Pershing Square Capital Management.