In return, FHFA's pending lawsuits will be dismissed with prejudice and Bank of America and its affiliates will be released from all securities law and fraud claims, as well as certain other claims related to the non-agency RMBS in dispute.

Little else is known about Commerce. The press statement notes that the lender has a “vision of moving forward with a reviving market by offering products backed by a team of professionals with the upmost integrity and knowledge of the industry.”

According to exclusive figures compiled by Inside Mortgage Finance, almost 85 different lenders made FHA mortgages in 2013 that had FICOs of less than 550.

Bank of America, which is among the 18 original defendants, has not yet settled and faces the largest liability because of its ownership of Countrywide Financial Corp. and Merrill Lynch.

There has been some speculation that DeMarco might want the CSP CEO job, which pays in the range of $400,000. But many sources we talked to doubt it will happen.

The securitized mortgage market appears to be destined to be dominated by mortgages that meet the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s qualified-mortgage standards. Criteria from the rating services gives favorable treatment to QMs, while Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are avoiding non-QMs altogether. Fitch Ratings released criteria this week for how it will rate non-agency mortgages in light of the CFPB’s ability-to-repay rule and QM standards, rounding out a number of updates from the rating services about how they will handle the issue. The ATR rule took effect for loans with an application date of Jan. 10 or later. So far, no loans subject to the ATR rule have appeared in a jumbo MBS. Issuers have...

All the world loves the CFPB? Not in the mortgage space, it seems. Financial services consultant Joe Garrett said he has six mortgage clients that have undergone exams by the agency. To say the least, it hasn't been a happy experience.

Other firms had more of a jumbo focus. Second-ranked PHH Mortgage reported that 50.0 percent of its originations in 2013 were non-agency jumbos.

Bank and thrift holdings of adjustable-rate mortgages have increased significantly in recent years, according to an analysis by Inside Mortgage Finance, driven in part by originations of jumbo mortgages. Banks and thrifts held $647.42 billion in ARMs in portfolio as of the end of 2013, according to call-report data. The total ARM portfolio increased by 0.7 percent last year, the third annual increase in a row, while the aggregate bank and thrift retained portfolio of first-lien mortgages fell 3.0 percent. ARMs accounted for 37.1 percent of the bank/thrift mortgage portfolio at the end of 2013, compared to just 31.9 percent at the end of 2011. Lenders have to keep generating...[Includes two data charts]

The Johnson-Crapo bill would subject Quicken and all the other nonbanks to FDIC-like examinations.