Fitch Ratings is now giving a more detailed assessment of MBS due diligence firms. This week, the company introduced a tiered rating system to replace the previous designations used for classifying third-party reviewers conducting due diligence on new non-agency MBS.
HSBC has agreed to pay $765 million in civil penalties under a settlement agreement with the Department of Justice to resolve allegations it misled investors on the quality of its residential MBS and the accuracy of its due diligence procedures.
Seasonal housing-market factors pushed GSE single-family mortgage business higher in the third quarter, according to a new Inside The GSEs analysis of mortgage-backed securities data.Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac issued $213.81 billion of single-family MBS in the third quarter, a 10.4 percent increase from the previous period. The gain came from a 23.4 percent surge in purchase-mortgage business, which offset a 15.5 percent downturn in GSE refi activity. [Includes two data charts.]
MFA CEO Craig Knutson said he’s pleased the REIT has “gained traction on these new acquisition efforts, which involve relationships cultivated over the past year or more.”
Private mortgage insurers appeared to gain market share in the third quarter of 2018 as purchase-mortgage lending surged in the agency market, according to an exclusive ranking and analysis by Inside Mortgage Finance. [Includes three data charts]