Underwriting trends for jumbo mortgage-backed securities were mixed as of the third quarter of 2014, according to an analysis by Inside Nonconforming Markets. While some issuers started to include mortgages with higher loan-to-value ratios, average combined LTV ratios in jumbo MBS were actually higher for deals issued in the fourth quarter of 2013 than those priced in the third quarter of 2014. Average credit scores on issuance for the third quarter were ... [Includes one data chart]

Ginnie Mae this week provided new details to the long-anticipated plan for increased issuer net worth and liquidity and a new performance scoring method for issuer activity – changes that could adversely affect small issuers and portfolio servicers. In remarks at the Mortgage Bankers Association’s annual convention in Las Vegas, Ginnie Mae President Ted Tozer said the changes are part of a larger effort to ensure the continuing flexibility and availability of the agency’s mortgage-backed securities program to as many entities as possible. New types of issuers and counterparties have entered the agency-backed MBS market in the wake of the financial crisis, which called for adjustments and tailored approaches to the evolving housing finance market, Tozer noted. Tozer said both policy changes and staff expertise will ensure the success of ...

While the FHA’s share of the primary insurance market has dropped significantly since premiums were hiked in early 2013, the VA program and the rural housing loan program run by the Department of Agriculture are going strong, according to agency officials. During a panel discussion at the Mortgage Bankers Association annual convention this week, VA and Rural Development executives said that both agencies have been quietly building mortgage market share. Jeffrey London, deputy director of the VA’s loan guaranty service, reported that purchase-mortgage VA loan originations were up 11 percent in fiscal 2014, with 40 percent of the business being first-time homebuyers. Of that group, 80 percent took no-downpayment VA loans, the biggest selling point in the program, along with its relatively low costs. In earlier remarks, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julian Castro revealed that ...

A shift from refinances to purchase mortgages has helped push combined loan-to-value ratios on jumbo mortgage-backed securities to the highest levels since the financial crisis. The higher LTV ratios are prompting an increase in credit enhancement requirements. JPMorgan Chase this week issued a $355.64 million jumbo MBS with an average combined LTV ratio of 74.0 percent. And WinWater Home Mortgage is preparing a $276.91 million jumbo MBS with an average combined LTV ratio of ...

Ginnie Mae issuance for the first nine months of 2014 totaled $207.5 billion as government-backed purchase-mortgage activity picked up in the third quarter, according to an analysis of agency data. New issuances rose 19.8 percent from the second quarter. FHA loans accounted for $116.9 billion of new Ginnie Mae issuances while VA and the Rural Housing Development funneled $75.9 billion and $14.2 billion, respectively, of new loans into Ginnie Mae pools. Mortgage securities backed by home-equity conversion mortgages are not included. Purchase mortgages totaling $140.6 billion comprised the bulk of new issuances over the nine-month period while the share of refinances totaled $49.8 billion. Modified loans accounted for $17.1 billion. Most of the FHA and VA loans originated during the first nine months came through the ... [ 2 charts ]

Issuers of securities backed by Home Equity Conversion Mortgages created $518 million in new HMBS pools during August, the third largest monthly HMBS issuance this year and the latest month for which HMBS issuance data was available. August’s new issuance total was up slightly from July’s $507 million, according to New View Advisors, which advises financial services clients on capital markets, product development and investment strategies. Ninety-one pools were issued, consisting of 46 original issuance and 45 tail pools. Original HMBS pools are created when a pool of FHA-insured reverse mortgages is securitized for the first time. Tail HMBS issuances are HMBS pools created from the uncertified portions of HECMs that have already had their original HMBS issuance. Tail issuances accounted for about $140 million. Beginning with FY 2014, HECM principal limits were ...

Redwood Trust’s planned $329.95 million jumbo mortgage-backed security is the second straight MBS from the issuer to have adequate geographic diversity, according to Fitch Ratings. Almost every jumbo MBS issued since 2010 has taken a hit from default expectations and had higher credit enhancement because of geographic concentration. Sequoia Mortgage Trust 2014-3 is scheduled to be issued around Sept. 19. Fitch, Kroll Bond Rating Agency and Moody’s Investors Service gave the deal preliminary triple-A ratings with credit enhancement of 6.55 percent on the top-rated tranche. The credit enhancement level is one of the lowest in recent years on jumbo MBS backed by 30-year fixed-rate mortgages. It is particularly low considering that due diligence was completed on less than 100 percent of the loans, and the MBS will include two loans that do not meet standards for qualified mortgages.

An estimated $65.5 billion of FHA-insured mortgages, excluding reverse and modified loans, were included in Ginnie Mae mortgage-backed securities issued during the first six months of 2014, according to an Inside FHA Lending analysis of agency securitization data. Ginnie Mae FHA MBS issued during the first half of the year nearly matches the total number of new FHA loans originated over the same period (see related chart, p. 4-5). FHA purchase home mortgages served as collateral on 76.3 percent of Ginnie Mae MBS issued over the six-month period, while loans to first-time homebuyers accounted for 63.0 percent of Ginnie MBS issued during the period. The FHA loans in Ginnie pools over the last two quarters showed an average FICO score of 681, a loan-to-value ratio of 92.5 percent and an average loan amount of $169,093. Except for fifth-ranked Freedom Mortgage, the rest of the top five ... [1 chart]

Morgan Stanley was set to issue its first jumbo mortgage-backed security since the financial crisis this week. The $256.48 million deal differs from most jumbo MBS issued in recent years in that all the loans were sourced from one lender, and they’re all adjustable-rate mortgages, including a fair number of interest-only loans. Morgan Stanley Residential Mortgage Loan Trust 2014-1 was scheduled to close Aug. 15. Fitch Ratings and Standard & Poor’s gave the deal ...

Two industry trade groups expressed support for consolidating Ginnie Mae’s mortgage-backed securities program and creating a new MBS but they are at loggerheads on some of the details. Commenting on the Ginnie Mae proposal, the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) and the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) said the disagreements are mostly on how to resolve issues related to winding down the Ginnie Mae I MBS program and providing a conversion option for existing securities. “It is clear that further discussion is warranted, and direct engagement with key stakeholders should be beneficial,” the trade groups suggested. Ginnie Mae has received considerable support from a variety of industry players for its “straw man” proposal to shift to a single MBS program based on the existing Ginnie II. The program now accounts for more than 90 percent of all ...