Internal differences among Democrats and Republicans – let alone the strong differences between the two parties – have prevented Congress from resolving the conservatorship of the two government-sponsored enterprises, according to industry analysts. At the ABS Vegas conference this week sponsored by the Structured Finance Industry Group and Information Management Network, two people with intimate knowledge of matters in the House and Senate pointed to inter-party issues regarding GSE reform. Andrew Olmem, a partner at the law firm of Venable and a former Republican chief counsel and deputy staff director at the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs until 2013, noted...

The jumbo market ended 2014 with $235 billion in originations, a 14 percent decline from the prior year.

Treasury counselor Michael Stegman noted that policymakers on both sides of the aisle are dissatisfied with the current status quo regarding Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Among all lenders, Quicken Loans led the pack with $6.67 billion of production, a 27 percent drop from the prior year.

Some $2.67 billion of jumbo MBS contributions in 2014 were from unidentified lenders, accounting for 27.1 percent of total issuance.

Another manager noted that, “It’s been very intense recruiting in the markets that have shown the most growth: Texas, California, Florida and the DC [Washington] area.”

Some factions of the industry have expressed a concern about the “liquidity language” in the FHFA proposal, but that’s not a concern for Pingora's Lau.

In an effort to help indebted students as they move into the workforce, the CFPB joined other federal regulators recently in issuing guidance on private student loans with graduated repayment terms at loan origination. “Financial institutions that originate private student loans may offer graduated repayment terms in addition to fixed amortizing terms to borrowers at the time of loan origination,” the guidance stated.Graduated repayment terms provide lower initial monthly payments early in the repayment period and phase in the amortization of the principal balance, it noted. “Graduated repayment terms may align a borrower’s income level with loan repayment requirements, provide flexibility to repay the debt sooner if a borrower’s income increases more quickly than projected, and may help long- ...

Fannie, Freddie and Ginnie produced $85.18 billion of new single-family MBS during the month of January.

Policymakers continue to provide plenty of doubt about whether anything will happen to shrink the footprint of the government-sponsored enterprises. At a hearing last week before the House Financial Services Committee, Mel Watt, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, said he hasn’t made a decision about future adjustments to the guaranty fees charged by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The g-fee issue has been under review by the FHFA for ...