A new net tangible benefit test for ensuring that a VA borrower benefits from a refinancing appears to be the obvious solution to the VA’s churning problem, according to analysts at Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BAML). Modeled after the FHA net tangible benefit test, the test seems to be a “foregone conclusion” for VA, analysts said. A Ginnie Mae/VA task force is currently working to resolve the problem, which is causing rapid prepayments in Ginnie mortgage-backed securities and raising serious doubts as to whether aggressive refinancing truly benefits veterans and servicemembers. “There is a critical need to ensure that veteran borrowers are not harmed by repeated refinancings through VA’s Interest Rate Reduction Refinance Loan program,” said Mortgage Bankers Association President/CEO David Stevens during a recent appearance before the House Financial Services Committee. IRRRLs, also referred to ...

FHA lenders think the new Loan Review System is a “modern and streamlined system” that is less user-friendly than Neighborhood Watch, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. In a letter to the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the MBA called on the FHA to continue its ongoing discussion with lenders and other industry stakeholders on how the improve the LRS and its response timelines. Implemented last May, the LRS is an electronic platform for monitoring and reviewing the quality of single-family mortgages that FHA has insured. It replaced the post-endorsement technical review performed by the FHA Connection/Underwriting Review System (URS), review functions for post-closing test cases submitted by direct endorsement lenders, and lender self-reporting functions in Neighborhood Watch. The LRS also includes a defect taxonomy, which features a list of ...

A spokesman described the new product as “an additional feature not unlike private mortgage insurance” although he refuses to call it an insurance policy…

Among the key findings: digital use is surging, but not digital satisfaction...

Arch MI remained the top private insurer in the third quarter and year-to-date, although its competitors gained some ground…

PennyMac Financial Services is set to launch broker-direct originations, complementing its correspondent production and retail originations. Officials note that in-house technology development plays a major role in the nonbank’s efforts to increase originations and servicing.

Capital One this week announced that it’s throwing in the towel on mortgage finance, laying off staff and shuttering offices in an attempt to improve profits. And now comes the big question: will other banks follow in its wake?

Back in February, Capital One’s Senior Director of Home Loans Eric Declercq left the company for a position at loanDepot.

Heightened concerns have emerged about the effectiveness of the CFPB’s information security systems…

Correspondents generated 38.8 percent of the market and posted the highest purchase-mortgage concentration, 77.8 percent.