Residential lenders that rely on “downpayment assistance” programs (DPAs) operated by state housing finance agencies are growing nervous about a lengthy and ongoing audit being conducted by the Inspector General of the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Late this week, a spokesman for the HUD IG’s office confirmed to Inside Mortgage Finance that audit has yet to be completed. “It’s getting into the final stages,” he said. “We originally thought it would be done in early 2016.” He stressed...

How disruptive were MSR ‘marks’? The nine nonbank lenders tracked by Inside Mortgage Trends reported a combined $510.0 million loss in the first quarter…

When Freddie recently unveiled a first-quarter loss due to hedges affected by falling interest rates, MBA chief Dave Stevens issued a statement once again calling for Congress to enact housing-finance reform, but said nothing about the issue of zero capital.

“If nothing is done in the near term, the natural progression could be a spillover of mortgage originations that favor the private-label market,” S&P said.

DFA also created the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, an agency that seems almost universally loathed by the mortgage industry.

But Moody’s acknowledged that mortgage warehouse securitizations can be operationally complex.

UWM is offering “rate incentives” for jumbo borrowers with FICO scores north of 740, and a promise to close the loan in 25 days or less…

The attorneys noted: “The CFPB declined to state what the forms do represent, if anything.”

The average credit score for purchase loans securitized last month was 749.7, the first time that measure has been below 750 in over two years.

“The QM rule needs to stand on its own two feet … The FHFA should not be in charge of setting national mortgage underwriting,” said MBA chief Dave Stevens.