A federal appeals court in New York this week will hear arguments from African-American subprime borrowers in Detroit in connection with a proposed class action challenging Morgan Stanley’s mortgage securitization practices during the subprime mortgage boom. The American Civil Liberties Union and its partners are seeking class-action status for the borrowers’ Fair Housing Act claims, which were initially rejected by a lower court. The court previously ruled that each borrower would have to sue on his or her own. The issue on appeal at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit is...

Originations of interest-only mortgages increased sharply in the first quarter of 2016, according to a new analysis by Inside Nonconforming Markets. A group of 12 lenders originated $8.72 billion in IOs in the first quarter, up 26.9 percent from the previous quarter and a 29.8 percent increase from same period in 2015. IO originations in the first three months of 2016 even topped the $8.61 billion in IO originations by the lenders in the second quarter of 2015. [Includes one data chart] ...

Lone Star Funds is preparing to issue a $161.71 million nonprime mortgage-backed security that will close next week. COLT 2016-1 Mortgage Loan Trust received an A rating from DBRS and Fitch Ratings. The deal marks the first nonprime MBS backed by new originations to receive a rating since the financial crisis. It will also be the largest post-crisis nonprime MBS issued to date, topping a $150.35 million MBS from Angel Oak Capital Advisors in December. Officials at Fitch Ratings said ...

Performance data on nonprime mortgages originated by Caliber Home Loans in recent years suggest that it’s possible to originate loans to borrowers who don’t qualify for agency financing without experiencing major delinquencies. Caliber started originating non-agency mortgages in its portfolio loan program in the fourth quarter of 2014. None of the mortgages have been 60 or more days past due, according to a term sheet for a pending nonprime mortgage-backed security ...

The issuance of three non-agency mortgage-backed securities in quick succession suggests that industry participants have adjusted to liability posed by the Truth in Lending Act/Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act disclosure rule. Jumbo MBS from JPMorgan Chase and Redwood Trust along with a nonprime MBS from Lone Star Funds all included mortgages subject to TRID and loans with TRID exceptions. TRID was seen as a major impediment to non-agency MBS issuance ...

A $412.66 million jumbo mortgage-backed security planned by a unit of JPMorgan Chase received high marks from rating services save for the representations-and-warranty framework on the MBS. Presale reports on JPMorgan Mortgage Trust 2016-1 were published last week, with AAA ratings from DBRS, Fitch Ratings and Moody’s Investors Service. Some 15 lenders contributed to the planned MBS, led by New Penn Financial with a 19.7 percent share, Primary Capital Mortgage ...

Overture Technologies announced this week that it added support for trended credit data to its automated underwriting system for non-agency mortgages. Trended credit data detail a potential borrower’s use and repayment of revolving credit over time. “Lenders, particularly those specializing in loans to borrowers with previous bankruptcy or housing defaults, can leverage this data to understand how consumers have managed their use of ... [Includes six briefs]

Redwood Trust is preparing to issue a $344.89 million jumbo mortgage-backed security next week, according to a presale report from Kroll Bond Rating Agency. Most of the mortgages in the planned deal are subject to the TRID mortgage disclosure rule. The combined Truth in Lending Act/Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act rule from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau took effect in early October. Since then, only one jumbo MBS has included TRID loans ...

Bank and thrift holdings of first-lien mortgages as of the end of the first quarter of 2016 declined compared with the end of 2015, according to an Inside Nonconforming Markets analysis of bank and thrift call reports. Banks and thrifts held $1.85 trillion in first-lien residential mortgages at the end of March, down 1.0 percent from the end of December. But industry holdings were up 1.6 percent from March 2015, suggesting that banks still have plenty of ... [Includes one data chart]

Hopes for a resurgence of issuance of non-agency mortgage-backed securities backed by new mortgages appear to be tied more to banks than to steps Congress might take to reduce the government-sponsored enterprises’ footprint, according to industry analysts. Since the financial crisis, banks have largely opted to hold non-agency originations in portfolio instead of issuing MBS. According to an analysis by Bank of America Merrill Lynch, capital requirements have given banks ...