Securitization of USDA loans by Ginnie Mae fell in the fourth quarter of 2017. Approximately $19.9 billion of USDA loans were delivered into Ginnie MBS pools in 2017, notwithstanding a 9.2 percent drop from the previous quarter, agency data show. On the other hand, year-over-year securitization of rural housing loans with a government guarantee rose 5.8 percent from 2016. Top-ranked Freedom Mortgage saw its USDA loan deliveries to Ginnie drop 16.2 percent during the fourth quarter, while its USDA securitization volume rose a whopping 78.9 percent from the previous year. Overall, Freedom accounted for $3.6 billion of USDA loans pooled in Ginnie MBS last year. Second-place PennyMac closed the year with $3.1 billion of securitized USDA loans, while Wells Fargo reported a 13.1 percent drop in the final quarter to end 2017 with $1.4 billion of rural housing loans in Ginnie MBS. Chase Home Finance sprang out ... [ Chart ]

Fannie Mae adjusted its automated underwriting services last summer to make more loans with higher debt-to-income ratios eligible for approval without lenders needing to provide compensating factors.

DBRS took over as the top rating service in the non-agency MBS market last year, as more deals carried multiple ratings in 2017, according to a new Inside MBS & ABS ranking.

Angel Oak Capital Advisors recently issued its first MBS backed by fix-and-flip loans. The firm plans regular issuance of such deals, which could receive credit ratings once the rating services develop criteria for them.

Fitch Ratings recently proposed changes to its loss model criteria for non-agency MBS involving servicer quality and the performance of re-performing loans.

The regulatory relief bill recently passed by the Senate would reduce uncertainty for future ABS tied to Property Assessed Clean Energy financing programs, rating services said.

Housing-finance reform appears to be in the process of a slow death for 2018 partly because of the pending departure of key players, according to Bank of America Merrill Lynch analysts.

More Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac shareholders have initiated lawsuits against the government for the Treasury sweep of the mortgage giants’ profits.

A slightly higher share of new single-family mortgages found their way into MBS pools last year, according to a new Inside MBS & ABS analysis.

A subsidiary of Annaly Capital Management plans to issue a non-agency mortgage-backed security with a mix of seasoned mortgages. The $327.16 million OBX 2018-1 Trust will include loans that have seasoned for an average of four years and mortgages that were called from non-agency MBS issued in 2005. The newer loans have a total unpaid principal balance of $121.86 million. Some 11.4 percent of them include interest-only features. Non-qualified mortgages account for ...