Ginnie Mae is once again getting anxious about the growing – and large – presence of nonbanks that service the agency’s MBS, fearing a liquidity crisis could erupt because some firms rely too heavily on “non-traditional and very sophisticated funding mechanisms.” In a statement issued to Inside MBS & ABS this week, Ginnie contrasted nonbanks to depositories “who traditionally were the primary issuers of Ginnie Mae MBS.” The agency added...[Includes one data table]

Commercial banks and savings institutions reported a small increase in the volume of repurchases and indemnifications regarding single-family mortgages during the first quarter of 2016, according to an Inside Mortgage Trends analysis of call-report data. Banks reported $764.1 million of repurchases during the first quarter, a 3.9 percent increase from the previous period. That was down 23.3 percent from the first quarter of 2015, however, and sets a pace ... [Includes one data chart]

A majority of mortgage companies plan to increase their spending on technology as part of their efforts to boost profit margins, according to the latest results from Fannie Mae’s quarterly survey of lenders. Some 56 percent of the 169 lenders surveyed by Fannie in the second quarter of 2016 listed technology investment as one of their top two strategies to increase profit margins, marking the first time a majority of respondents plan to increase tech spending to help profits since ...

Intercontinental Exchange will acquire a majority equity position in the owner of Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems and “modernize” MERS, according to the companies. Terms of the investment weren’t disclosed, though ICE said the price and terms of the transaction are “immaterial” to the company. The transaction is expected to be completed at the end of this month. MERS is owned by MERSCorp Holdings, a private corporation and member-based organization ...

The chance of Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac reform legislation passing Congress this year is virtually nil. But that hasn’t stopped industry trade groups from talking about the topic, or dispensing a barrage of advice for the Federal Housing Finance Agency about the withering capital cushions at Fannie and Freddie. The way things stand today, the largest industry trade organizations – and arguably the most powerful politically – are taking the position of “all or nothing” mortgage-finance ...

In a finding with ominous implications for the mortgage lending industry, a significant majority, 81 percent, of respondents in a recent opinion survey continues to believe that housing affordability is a problem in the U.S. The concern for lenders is that the more Americans believe the cost of buying a home is out of their reach, the greater the odds are they won’t even bother to shop for a house or a mortgage or save for a downpayment. “Stable, affordable housing is viewed as ...

Subservicing vendors continued to increase their contract totals in the first quarter as owners of mortgage servicing rights moved more of their business to these specialists to counter regulatory burdens that show few signs of abating. According to exclusive survey figures compiled by Inside Mortgage Finance, $1.625 trillion of home mortgages were being handled by subservicers at March 31, a 5.5 percent sequential increase and a 19.5 percent gain year-over-year. Subservicing firms – a business mostly dominated by nonbanks with one key exception – now process...[Includes one data table]

FHA single-family forward endorsements fell by 8.0 percent in the first quarter of 2016 from the prior quarter, suggesting a continued slowing in endorsement in the latter part of 2015 and early 2016 compared to earlier quarters, according to the FHA’s latest quarterly report to Congress on the state of the Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund. Overall though, the FHA MMIF report as well as FHA monthly production reports for March and April continued to show the very positive trends – rising volume, lower delinquencies and outstanding credit quality – that have been occurring in the FHA program since 2009. Endorsement volume for purchase and refinance loans was down to $53.5 billion during the first three months of 2016 from $58.1 billion in the fourth quarter of 2015, the MMI Fund report showed. Last year, forward endorsements soared in the second quarter and reached a record high in the ...

Ginnie Mae securitization of rural home loans got off to a wobbly start in the first quarter of 2016 as securitization volume fell 13.8 percent from the prior quarter, according to an Inside FHA/VA Lending analysis of Ginnie data. Approximately $3.9 billion in loans with a USDA guarantee were securitized during the first three months, with the top five issuers accounting for $2.1 billion of mortgage-backed securities produced by the segment during the period. USDA securitization volume dropped 9.2 percent year over year. Top USDA issuer Chase Home Finance accounted for $1.2 billion of securitized rural housing loans, while PennyMac, in distant second place, finished the quarter with $378.5 million. Wells Fargo ($294.0 million), Pacific Union Financial ($122.8 million) and Amerihome Mortgage ($102.2 million), in sequential order, comprised the rest of the top five issuers. Pacific Union climbed over ...

The Department of Veterans Affairs Home Loan Guaranty staff is reminding VA servicers of new title requirements taking effect this week for conveying properties to the VA. Under VA regulations, a conveyance or transfer of real property to the department is acceptable if the holders of the VA-guaranteed loan provide covenants or warranties against the acts of the holder and/or their agents. In addition, conveyances would be acceptable to the VA if it vests or entitles the agency to such title as is. In addition, the VA would take possession of collateral as long as it is acceptable to prudent lenders, informed buyers, title companies and attorneys in the community in which the property is located. However, the VA’s determination of clear and marketable title rests on state statutory requirements, the agency noted in its guidance. The VA is providing servicers a revised state-by-state list of ...