Economic trends point to continued strong performance for outstanding non-agency MBS, according to Standard & Poor’s. “S&P expects the sector to demonstrate stable characteristics and stable rating trends,” said Jeremy Schneider, a primary credit analyst at the rating service. “Our outlook for collateral performance is strong, and our assessment of the overall sector is stable.” In a report released late last week, S&P said...
Officials at Hudson City Bancorp said the jumbo portfolio lender is facing a significant loss of potential originations this year due to the documentation requirements included in the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s ability-to-repay rule. In January, Hudson City stopped offering mortgages with reduced-documentation standards due to the implementation of the ATR rule. Such loans accounted for 22.0 percent of the lender’s $3.44 billion in production in 2013. “We discontinued...
State regulators considering increasing capital requirements for nonbanks should hold off, according to an analysis by Kroll Bond Rating Agency. With encouragement from the Financial Stability Oversight Council, state regulators are considering prudential regulatory standards for nonbank mortgage companies. “We believe that large nonbank companies, and particularly seller/servicers in the mortgage sector, do not require formal capital requirements and other types of prudential regulation,” KBRA said in a report authored by Christopher Whalen, a senior managing director at the rating service. Nonbank servicers appear...
The Independent Community Bankers of America announced this week that its ICBA Mortgage Solutions added jumbo products to its correspondent offerings. ICBA Mortgage supports community banks’ access to the secondary market for servicing-released programs; the correspondent offerings are provided by LenderLive. The new program includes loan balances of up to $2.0 million. ICBA said the program allows for in-house underwriting and has a no-cross-sell guarantee. “We are pleased to offer a product that will meet jumbo customers’ needs while protecting these valuable relationships,” said Robert Kallio, senior vice president of ICBA Mortgage Solutions. He stressed...[Includes two data charts]
FHA lenders are generally supportive of the agency’s proposal to add a new method for evaluating lender performance but may request certain adjustments to ensure they are not at great risk for enforcement action, according to compliance experts. Lenders believe the proposal for an additional performance metric to supplement the lender compare ratio under the Credit Watch Termination Initiative is a positive step toward providing a more well-rounded analysis of a lender’s performance when the FHA is considering further action. “In and of itself, the proposal is not a panacea, but it is certainly a step in the right direction,” said Brian Chappelle, a mortgage industry consultant. The proposal reflects the FHA’s belief that a number of factors influence a lender’s performance, not just its compare ratio. The compare ratio compares a lender’s rate of early defaults and claims to those for ...
Ginnie Mae is now approving applications to issue agency mortgage-backed securities in as little time as six months, a far cry from two years ago when it took as long as 24 months, according to figures provided to Inside FHA Lending. In fiscal year 2013, which ended September 30, the agency approved 77 out of 122 new issuer applications. Since the beginning of the current fiscal year through April, the agency has processed 47 new applications resulting in 20 approvals. A spokesman for Ginnie noted that the number of applications processed in fiscal 2014 was impacted “by the government shutdown” but also by the development of a new online application tool that will be rolled out this year. “The time it takes to get a Ginnie Mae approval has been getting better – as in faster,” said David Lykken, managing partner of Mortgage Banking Solutions, a consulting and advisory firm. “It’s true that the number of ...
The Department of Housing and Urban Development has outlined steps FHA lenders must take following the successful deployment of a new system for requesting changes and notifications as well as completing their annual recertification.The changes became effective on May 27, 2014, as the new system, Lender Electronic Assessment Portal (LEAP), went live. All of FHA’s approximately 2,500 approved lenders will now use LEAP for their annual recertification and business updates and changes. Senior HUD officials, who requested anonymity, said the transition from the Lender Assessment Subsystem (LASS) and the Institution Master File (IMF) to LEAP is almost complete, except for a few kinks HUD staff is working out. “The change in the IMF is noteworthy because it was the repository for information about all FHA lenders and it had been operating on outdated technology for a long time,” said one agency executive. “All essential information about all FHA lenders is now consolidated in a ...
HUD Nominee Picks Up Support from Grassroot Activists, Home Builders. San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro, President Obama’s pick to replace Secretary Shaun Donovan at the Department of Housing and Urban Development, has won support from the National Community Reinvestment Coalition and the Center for Responsible Lending and the National Association of Home Builders. “Mayor Castro’s experience and strong commitment to neighborhood revitalization and community development will be critical to the recovery of communities still reeling from the housing crisis,” said NCRC President and CEO John Taylor. “We welcome his leadership and look forward to working in partnership with him to increase access to affordable housing and create vibrant, healthy communities.” CRL President Mike Calhoun noted Castro’s long record of ...
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