FHA jumbo loan production rose nearly 36.9 percent in the first quarter, ending the period with $3.8 billion in new volume, according to an Inside FHA/VA Lending analysis of agency data. Volume includes all FHA loans exceeding $417,000. It was also up significantly, 59.6 percent, from the same period a year ago. Purchase loans accounted for 52.8 percent of FHA jumbos originated during the first three months of 2015, and 93 percent were fixed-rate purchase and refinance loans. The top five FHA jumbo lenders – Quicken Loans, Wells Fargo Bank, Prospect Mortgage, Pinnacle Capital Mortgage Corp., and LoanDepot – reported increases on a quarter-to-quarter basis. Together, the elite group accounted for 13.0 percent of the FHA jumbo market. The largest quarter-to-quarter increases were mostly mid-level FHA jumbo lenders. For example, 12th-ranked Freedom Mortgage, a top player in the ... [ 1 chart ]

Clearer FHA guidance on loan defects may help lenders avoid problems but they do not provide legal protection against costly government false-claim lawsuits, according to mortgage industry stakeholders. Long-anticipated rules issued recently by the FHA explain how the agency intends to categorize loan defects identified during an individual loan-level review of endorsed single-family mortgages. The loan-defect assessment methodology or “defect taxonomy” was first unveiled in September 2014 as part of the FHA’s Blueprint for Access, which outlined steps the agency is taking to expand lending to underserved and first-time homebuyers. Combined with the updated loan-certification language used by lenders to warrant compliance with FHA rules and the new Single Family Policy Handbook, FHA plans to use the taxonomy to create a stronger quality assurance program. With better quality ...

The Department of Veterans Affairs is providing VA lenders with LoanSafe Appraisal Manager, a new automated tool for appraisal review. The LSAM is designed to help VA lenders do a quick assessment of appraisal risk for VA policy compliance violations, over/under valuations and appraisal quality issues. The automated appraisal tool does not provide an estimate of value or make decisions for lenders. It does not accept or reject appraisals or characterize them as good or bad. Currently, every VA appraisal report must be reviewed either by a VA-designated fee appraiser or by a staff appraisal reviewer before the agency issues a notice of value. A notice of value is the reasonable value of the property for loan purposes. A staff appraisal reviewer (SAR) ensures that all VA loan requirements are satisfied. The reviewer might find some inconsistencies during the review and ...

Financial institution regulators in Washington state have charged Quicken Loans with using false, deceptive and misleading advertisements to target veterans and active military members with adjustable-rate refinance offers. According to a complaint filed by the Division of Consumer Services of the Washington State Department of Financial Institutions, Quicken Loans falsely implied in its direct mailings that it is associated with the Department of Veteran Affairs. The VA provides guarantees to fixed- and adjustable-rate mortgage loans to veterans and servicemembers through the agency’s Home Loan Guaranty program. Quicken Loans allegedly used graphics in its 5/1 ARM solicitations that resembled the seal of the VA, with the words “Governed By: United States Veterans Department.” In addition, the Michigan-based lender allegedly used an ...

Rural borrowers will be paying a higher upfront fee for mortgage loans with a Rural Housing Service guaranty, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has announced. In an advance notice, the USDA said it will raise the upfront guaranty fee for loans originated under the RHS’ Single Family Housing Guaranteed Loan Program in FY2016. For purchase and refinance loans, the upfront guaranty fee will change from 2.00 percent to 2.75 percent of the loan amount. The annual fee will remain at 0.50 percent. The fee increase will apply to guaranteed loans obligated on Oct. 1, 2015, through Sept. 30, 2016, the USDA said. A loan is obligated when the USDA has approved a complete loan-application package and issued a conditional commitment for a single-family housing loan guarantee to the USDA lender. The new fee will apply to loan guaranty requests submitted to the USDA prior to Sept. 30, 2015, without a ...

GNMA to Modernize Management of Loan Docs that Serve as Pool Collateral. Ginnie Mae plans to reform its document custody policies to minimize agency risks. Michael Drayne, Ginnie’s senior vice president of issuer and portfolio management, said the changes will apply to documents for loans that serve as collateral for securitized pools of mortgages. Current policies will be reexamined to see whether they adequately reflect and mitigate actual risks. Existing technology will be reevaluated as well. Ginnie will also study how to integrate document-custody functions and information into the agency’s systems. In addition, Ginnie will look at whether information about the status of pool collateral should be managed at the loan level, not merely the pool level. Furthermore, the agency will reevaluate the need to reexamine its enforcement methods and whether they should be ...

Nonbank mortgage lenders accounted for 43.3 percent of the total originations produced by the top 100 lenders during the first quarter of 2015, according to a new Inside Mortgage Finance ranking and analysis. That was up from a 42.7 percent share of production by the top 100 in the fourth quarter of 2014 and a 38.0 percent share a year ago. The 48 nonbanks that ranked in the top 100 originators had a combined $133.35 billion in first-quarter production, up 13.0 percent from the fourth quarter. Banks and thrifts still play...[Includes one data table]

Mortgage bankers rode a wave of rising loan production to big increases in profitability during the first quarter of 2015, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s quarterly Mortgage Bankers Performance Report. Average pretax income for firms participating in the survey was $2.246 million, a whopping 149.3 percent increase from the fourth quarter. That was the highest pretax profit since the second quarter of 2013, when lenders earned ...

Lenders are increasingly interested in outsourcing portions of the mortgage origination process, according to a new survey by the Stratmor Group. Industry analysts note that while outsourcing can help reduce costs, there are also risks, particularly for lenders considering outsourcing the entire origination process. Stratmor, a consulting firm that focuses on mortgage profitability, found that the majority of lenders are more interested in outsourcing loan production ...

The average bid on the benchmark Fannie Mae 30-year 3.50 percent MBS fell to 102.2 this week compared to 104.5 earlier in the month, leaving some market watchers feeling sick to their stomachs. The general fear is that MBS prices may fall further over the short term as interest rates rise. The question for many boils down to the basics: Where will mortgages settle? As Inside MBS & ABS went to press this week, the yield on the 10-year Treasury reached...