With production expenses rising to more than $13,000 per loan, and four straight quarters of negative net income, mortgage lenders struggle to find ways to stay in business.
Has the trend toward servicing outsourcing slowed? It’s starting to look that way, especially with mortgage rates staying high. Or perhaps this is just a long overdue rest? (Includes data chart.)
Banks are less aggressive these days when it comes to buying MSRs. But not all. JPMorgan recently acquired a $21 billion package of servicing rights from Rocket, the nation’s fifth-largest processor of loans.
The reading for the total delinquency rate at the end of March was the lowest in the 20-year history of Inside Mortgage Finance’s large servicer delinquency index. Delinquencies are projected to increase as unemployment rises. (Includes data chart.)
Subservicer ServiceMac stands to lose a large contract down the road once Mr. Cooper swallows the Home Point portfolio. But that’s the nature of the beast when it comes to being a third-party vendor.
The Mortgage Bankers Association has asked the CFPB to expedite changes to loss-mitigation requirements, noting that regulatory standards haven’t evolved to take into account changes in servicing practices.
The coronation of JPMorgan Chase as king of the servicing market is unfolding in the second quarter as the company takes over First Republic’s whole-loan portfolio and Wells Fargo ships off $50 billion of agency MSR. (Includes three data charts.)
Merger and acquisition activity is heating up, but most of it centers on mortgage servicing rights, huge blocks of it. Not only is SPS in play, but so too is SLS.
Servicing valuations are starting to inch downward, but not dramatically. The good news: Investors still want the asset and prices are holding firm. One notable: More MSR owners are hedging the asset these days.
RSS