Ginnie Mae servicing remained flat in the second quarter of 2014, continuing a trend that began in the third quarter of last year as FHA refinancing fell and purchase activity slowed, according to Inside FHA Lending’s analysis of Ginnie Mae data. Servicing volume rose by only 0.7 percent from the first quarter, slightly lower from the 0.9 percent increase reported by Ginnie Mae servicers for the first three months of 2014. On the other hand, volume was up modestly by 5.9 percent year-over-year, data showed. Ginnie Mae servicers ended the second quarter with a total of $1.46 trillion in unpaid principal balance, up from $1.45 trillion in the prior quarter. Four out of the top five Ginnie Mae servicers were banks. Wells Fargo closed out the second quarter with $425.9 billion in servicing volume, a 0.2 percent decrease from the previous quarter but up 2.1 percent from a year ago. Its 29.2 percent market share put it ... [1 chart]

Ginnie Mae would play a greater role in a private-market partnership model envisioned in proposed housing finance reform legislation introduced recently by House Democrats. However, many in the industry doubt whether a Democrat-sponsored reform bill will pass in this Congress. Sponsored by Reps. John Delaney (MD), John Carney (DE) and Jim Himes (CT), the Partnership to Strengthen Homeownership Act would put Ginnie Mae in charge of all single- and multifamily mortgage-backed securities with government backing. Among other things, H.R. 5055 would create a new Ginnie Mae MBS for conventional mortgages backed by the full faith and credit of the federal government with minimum support from the private sector. Under the proposed model, private entities would assume up to 5 percent of the first-loss capital on the MBS. The remaining 95 percent would be shared between ...

The rebound in new business at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac during the second quarter of 2014 was fueled by a hefty increase in purchase-mortgage activity, but it also featured clear shifts in the volume of loans coming from different kinds of lenders. A new Inside Mortgage Trends analysis of loan-level data on mortgage-backed securities issued by the two government-sponsored enterprises shows that nonbank lenders continued to ... [Includes 3 data charts]

The anxiously-awaited Spring surge in purchase-mortgage lending finally arrived at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac during recent months, according to a new Inside Mortgage Finance ranking and analysis of loan-level data from the two government-sponsored enterprises. The two GSEs issued $141.83 billion of single-family mortgage-backed securities during the second quarter, an encouraging 9.8 percent increase from the dreary levels recorded in the first three months of 2014. During the first quarter of this year, Fannie/Freddie MBS production set a 14-year low of just $129.21 billion. Clearly, the market isn’t...[Includes three data charts]

WinWater Home Mortgage, a relatively new jumbo conduit, is preparing to issue a $249.47 million jumbo mortgage-backed security. The deal is set to receive AAA ratings from DBRS, Kroll Bond Rating Agency and Standard & Poor’s despite concerns about the lack of performance data for WinWater and the firm’s “limited financial capacity.” WinWater is partly owned by principals of Premium Point Investments, a residential mortgage investment advisor ...

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac issued $44.8 billion in single-family mortgage-backed securities during the month of May, a slight 1.3 percent dip from April, but it reversed the brief rebound following a year-long streak of declines, according to an Inside The GSEs analysis. However, May’s MBS issuance was down a much steeper 62.4 percent from the same period a year ago. Top-ranked Wells Fargo’s Fannie and Freddie securitization, at $5.97 billion, dropped by 4.9 percent on a monthly basis and by 73.6 percent year-to-date.

MBS prices fell by roughly 100 basis points this week, but the downdraft could be short-lived thanks to the European Central Bank, according to MBS analysts and other market watchers. Late this week, the ECB cut its main interest rate to a record low 15 basis points, from 25 basis points. But in an unprecedented move, it also trimmed the interest rate it pays to banks on reserves to negative 0.1 percent. The move into negative rate territory is meant...

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 ...

Charge-offs in the credit-card ABS sector reached a new low in the first quarter of 2014, due mostly to a steady decline in delinquencies and lower bankruptcy rates, according to Fitch Ratings. Loss rates continued to break new records heading into 1Q14, falling to 2.89 percent during the latest March distribution period, even as average charge-offs dropped to a record 3.00 percent for 1Q14 from 3.04 percent in 4Q13. “This marks 15 consecutive quarters of improvement and is approximately 25 percent lower year-over-year,” said Fitch Ratings Credit Card ABS Group Managing Director Michael Dean and Director Herman Poon in a new report. Late payments also fell...

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac issued $45.4 billion in single-family mortgage-backed securities during the month of April, a 20.6 percent increase from March, reversing more than a year-long streak of declines, according to an Inside The GSEs analysis. However, April’s MBS issuance was down 63.0 percent from the same period a year ago.Top-ranked Wells Fargo’s Fannie and Freddie securitization, at $6.28 billion, rose by 23.1 percent on a monthly basis but dropped 73.3 percent year-to-date.