The researchers confirmed that homebuilder originations from 2001 through the end of 2008 tended to go to lower credit-quality borrowers compared with originations from unaffiliated lenders.

Sources contend that at least two nonbanks have undertaken due diligence of PHH Mortgage, but so far a deal has been elusive.

The first quarter of 2014 marked the lowest point in mortgage banking income for depositories since the second quarter of 2011.

One warehouse executive, speaking under the condition his name not be used, said “Luckily for us, compared to January, things are great.”

In the first quarter, among the top ten, the biggest correspondent production gainers were Nationstar Mortgage and Stonegate Mortgage, both nonbanks.

There seems to be a growing trend of foreign banks rethinking their position in the U.S. mortgage market.

Commercial banks and savings institutions generated $3.37 billion in mortgage banking income during the first quarter of 2014, according to a new Inside Mortgage Trends analysis of call reports. First-quarter bank and thrift mortgage banking profits were down 36.2 percent from the fourth quarter of last year and 56.2 percent off the robust $7.70 billion the industry earned in the first three months of 2013. The first quarter of 2014 marked the lowest ... [Includes one data chart]

A decline in refinance activity has prompted a number of lenders to turn to correspondent producers in an effort to boost originations. While correspondent lenders could anticipate better pricing due to the demand for their originations, firms buying the production concede that it’s not the most profitable origination channel, suggesting that pricing might not improve much. Big banks continue to dominate the correspondent channel while reducing ...

Mortgage servicing rights will never trade as freely as mortgage-backed securities, but agency officials say they are considering ways to facilitate the increasingly active MSR market. “The market is undergoing tremendous changes with great opportunities in mortgage servicing,” said Bob Ryan, a special advisor at the Federal Housing Finance Agency, during last week’s Secondary Market Conference sponsored by the Mortgage Bankers Association. “It has attracted ...

The mortgage market’s shift from a focus on refinances to purchase mortgages won’t be enough to prompt an increase in purchase-mortgage originations in 2014, according to industry economists. The Mortgage Bankers Association revised its origination projections last week, predicting that purchase-mortgage originations will decline by 4.0 percent in 2014 compared with the previous year. An estimated $680 billion in purchase mortgages ... [Includes one data chart]