The number of loan modifications completed in the third quarter of 2014 was lower than activity in other recent quarters, according to servicers and data from the Home Affordable Modification Program. While improved borrower performance contributed to the slowdown, some servicers suggest that changes in federal modification programs were also a factor. A total of 29,384 permanent HAMP mods were started in the third quarter of 2014, down 14.6 percent from ... [Includes one data chart]
The Department of Housing and Urban Development will not take on the new points-and-fees cure provision for qualified mortgages adopted by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The agency is concerned that lenders might inadvertently violate the FHA’s statutory 3.5 percent downpayment requirement. HUD adopted other changes in the CFPB’s revised final rule on ability to repay and qualified mortgages (ATR/QM) to maintain consistency but saw no need for any further ability to cure points-and-fees errors. Reimbursement of any excess points and fees to the borrower could take away from the mandatory 3.5 percent downpayment and render the loan ineligible for FHA insurance, the agency explained in a notice published in the Nov. 3 Federal Register. HUD said it would provide lender guidance under its own QM rule on ...
Reinstating the government-sponsored enterprises’ conventional 97 percent loan-to-value mortgage programs would benefit first-time homebuyers and borrowers with little or no cash reserves for a downpayment but adversely affect the FHA Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund, according to analysts. If limited to first-time homebuyers, a conventional 97 LTV loan would offer some new homeowners better home loan financing than FHA and provide greater access to mortgage credit, said analysts with Bank of America Merrill Lynch. For years, Fannie Mae offered conventional 97 LTV loans through its MyCommmunityMortgage to help first-time homebuyers purchase a home with only a 3 percent downpayment. It was a better alternative to FHA’s main product, which required a 3.5 percent downpayment. The Fannie product also had less ...
Ginnie Mae servicing bumped up slightly in the third quarter after an uneventful prior quarter as FHA purchase activity continued to drag, according to Inside FHA Lending’s analysis of agency data. Servicing volume rose quarter over quarter by 1.4 percent. On an annual basis, volume increased 4.6 percent from the same period a year ago. Ginnie Mae servicers ended the quarter with a total of $1.48 trillion in unpaid principal balance, up from $1.46 trillion in the previous quarter. The top three servicers saw volume drop on both quarterly and year-over-year bases. Wells Fargo remained as top servicer of Ginnie Mae mortgage-backed securities, closing out the quarter with $422.4 million, down 0.8 percent from the previous quarter and down 0.6 percent from the prior year. The mega-servicer dominated the Ginnie market with a 28.6 percent market share. JPMorgan Chase carved out a 10.1 percent market share with ... [1 chart]
The real estate industry is urging the FHA to tighten up its pre-foreclosure sale process and be more vigilant before referring loans to the single-fThe real estate industry is urging the FHA to tighten up its pre-foreclosure sale process and be more amily loan sales program (SFLS). Commenting on the proposed section on servicing of the FHA Single Family Policy handbook, the National Association of Realtors expressed concern that the FHA is auctioning large pools of mortgages without considering the investor’s ability to achieve neighborhood stabilization goals such as homeownership preservation and affordable housing. The first step for FHA to improve servicing and pre-foreclosure efforts is to ensure mortgage servicers’ full compliance with FHA loss-mitigation requirements before referring loans to the SFLS, the NAR suggested. In addition, the FHA should ...
Reverse mortgage lenders are seeking a policy change that would allow Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to count reverse mortgages toward their proposed annual affordable housing goals. In another regulatory area, the industry has asked to delay a proposed mortgage disclosure rule until reverse lenders’ concerns have been resolved. Commenting on the proposed 2015-2017 affordable housing goals for the government-sponsored enterprises, the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association is urging the Federal Housing Finance Agency to allow the GSEs to reenter the reverse mortgage market through a proprietary reverse mortgage program. Specifically, such a change would enable Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to purchase reverse mortgages or securities backed by the product. Currently, the FHA under its Home Equity Conversion Mortgage program insures most ...
The nonbank expansion has eased over the past few quarters because once-hungry buyers of receivables such as Ocwen, Nationstar and Walter Investment are no longer gobbling up huge portfolios.
PennyMac’s MSR portfolio is almost evenly divided between subservicing for others, the company’s own originations, and mortgage servicing rights acquired from others.
Walter was already under the investigative microscope of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Federal Trade Commission because of its servicing practices.
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