As National Association of Realtors Vice President Joe Ventrone put it: “It’s an unintended consequence of the tax bill rather than falling into the bailout narrative.”

Borrowing from the FHLB advance window would save REITs a ton of money…

The GSE-eligible loans have an average unpaid principal balance of $549,259 while the non-agency mortgages have a UPB of $703,898…

The average credit score on loans in expanded-credit MBS issued in 2016 and 2017 was 704.9, according to a new analysis by Inside Nonconforming Markets.

The Treasury Department's goal is to right-size federal housing programs...

The correspondent share of the FHA market rose to 48.6 percent last year…

The Center for Responsible Lending and other groups said the Corker draft threatens access, affordability and market stability…

Freddie Mac's Treasury draw is estimated at $400 million...

Ginnie Mae this week warned nine VA lenders suspected of engaging in loan churning to each develop a plan to slow the rapid pace of prepayments they have triggered in the agency’s securitized loan pools. According to Ginnie, the issuers were directed individually to deliver correction action plans containing measures that could be deployed immediately to bring prepayment speeds in line with market peers. The agency told issuers they would be barred from multi-issuer pools if they do not come up with a plan. Participation would be allowed only in the agency’s custom pools. The latest action builds off the Ginnie Mae/VA Loan Churn Task Force, which has been working since September to resolve the churning problem. “We have an obligation to take necessary measures to prevent the lending practices of a few from impairing the performance of our multi-issuer securities, and thus raising the ... [ Chart ]

The Department of Veterans Affairs will require lenders to provide early disclosures to veterans seeking to refinance into a VA Interest Rate Reduction Refinance Loan. The new policy aims to ensure that the VA streamline refi loan they sought would actually lower their monthly mortgage payments and is not just a scam for lenders to charge higher fees. Loan churning, or serial refinancing, is at the root of the VA policy change. Churning refers to multiple refinancing of an unseasoned mortgage loan within a very short time, often within six months of origination. Serial refinancing may add more payments and interest to the new loan, prolonging debt repayment, and can strip equity. It also potentially raises the risk of default by the borrower. In addition, the risk of prepayment could affect pricing of Ginnie Mae securities, which could cause lenders to charge higher rates on VA loans to make up for the ...