Actual repurchases or replacements were substantially below the $541.8 million in buyback requests that were withdrawn by the GSEs during the first quarter…
The Congressman noted that outside of a study done in 2011, the administration has had little engagement with Congress on a path toward ending the conservatorships, which are almost eight years old...
Late last week, the Structured Finance Industry Group, a securitization trade association, put out its long-awaited compliance review documentation related to the CFPB’s integrated disclosure rule under the Truth in Lending Act and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act. SFIG said its RMBS 3.0 TRID Compliance Review Scope documentation was put together by representatives of third-party review firms across the industry and its own RMBS 3.0 Due Diligence, Data and Disclosure Working Group.The material addresses TRID compliance issues on non-agency mortgages uncovered during reviews by due diligence providers. Under the standards, loans that would have received grades of C or D due to TRID exceptions can sometimes receive B grades if errors are corrected. The document was created to ...
The level of repurchase activity at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac continued to decline during the first quarter, helped along by the resolution of older buyback cases, according to a new Inside The GSEs analysis of Securities and Exchange Commission disclosures by the two. Lenders repurchased or replaced just $315.0 million of mortgages – or otherwise indemnified the GSEs – during the first quarter, the analysis reveals. That was the lowest quarterly repurchase total since Fannie and Freddie, along with other asset securitizers, began filing repurchase disclosures with the SEC back in early 2012. First-quarter repurchases were down 11.8 percent from the fourth quarter of 2015 and 35.9 percent below the total for the first three months of last year.
Fannie Mae’s $759 million new headquarters has been the centerpiece of public criticism over the past week. A Federal Housing Finance Agency Office of the Inspector General report criticized the FHFA for allowing what it called excessive spending on the downtown Washington, DC, headquarters, which broke ground in mid-May. The review stemmed from an anonymous hotline complaint alleging overspending on the project. The IG questioned the FHFA’s oversight and recommended the agency closely scrutinize the building’s plans and budget. The problem arose when the cost to build out the new space to Fannie’s specifications increased by 54 percent from January 2015. Costs rose from $164.32 square feet to $252.81 square feet. Then back down some in May 2016 to $223.35/square foot.
An Arkansas Congressman introduced a bill last week that would require the Treasury Department to annually exam the possibility of ending the GSE conservatorship.Rep. French Hill, R-AR, said H.R. 5505, the GSE Review and Reform Act, would require Treasury Secretary Jack Lew to lead the reform of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. It would amend the Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010 to require annual studies on ending the conservatorship of the GSEs. He noted that outside of a study done in 2011, the administration has had little engagement with Congress on a path toward ending the eight-year conservatorship and reforming the “broken” housing finance system. Hill added that the...
The increase in first-time homebuyer volume and market share has occurred without looser underwriting in terms of credit scores and loan-to-value ratios…
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac MBS guarantee fees are too high, given the strong credit profile of new business since the financial crisis, according to a diverse collection of real estate, banking and consumer interest groups. The groups called on the Federal Housing Finance Agency to lower MBS guarantee fees charged by the two government-sponsored enterprises, and to reduce or eliminate the loan-level pricing adjustments that are typically wrapped into the consumer’s note rate. The average g-fee has jumped from 22 basis points in 2009 to 58 bps in 2014, including the 10 bps surcharge that Congress mandated in 2011 to cover a payroll tax cut. Loan-level pricing adjustments can total...[Includes one data table]
Mortgage-finance reform doesn’t look to be anywhere on the horizon, but at some point government policymakers will have to figure out what to do with trillions of dollars of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac MBS if the two government-sponsored enterprises are put out to pasture. In fact, the transition to a new GSE single security that’s scheduled to start in 2018 could become a test run of sorts for the even bigger changes ahead, according to a paper published by the Urban Institute. Crafted by five mortgage-industry veterans, “A More Promising Road to GSE Reform” is centered on the creation of a new government corporation that would replace Fannie and Freddie. The National Mortgage Reinsurance Corp. would issue...
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