Citigroup also marked down the asset value of its residential mortgage servicing portfolio to $2.282 billion, a 12 percent decline on a sequential basis.
Fannie Mae’s and Freddie Mac’ home retention activity declined for the most part during the first quarter of 2014, according to a new analysis of Federal Housing Finance Agency data by Inside The GSEs.Total loss mitigation activity – total home retention efforts and foreclosure alternatives combined – declined 8.9 percent from the first quarter of the year to 130,854 and was down 28.9 percent from year-ago levels.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac generated $141.8 billion in single-family mortgage-backed securities during the second quarter of 2014, rebounding from the dismal first three months of the year, according to a new Inside The GSEs analysis. That was up 9.8 percent from the 14-year record low Fannie/Freddie MBS production of just $129.2 billion during the first quarter. However, the April-June cycle generated the second lowest quarterly volume since the end of 2008, and refinance volume continues to reach new lows – falling another 8.5 percent from the previous quarter.
By now, the word is out: the Federal Housing Finance Agency is exploring codifying capital minimums for nonbank servicers as a way to help Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac better manage counterparty risk. Industry officials tracking the topic told Inside Mortgage Trends they don’t believe the FHFA is necessarily worried about the capital positions of the big three nonbanks: Nationstar Mortgage, Ocwen Financial, and Walter Investment Management ...
The rebound in new business at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac during the second quarter of 2014 was fueled by a hefty increase in purchase-mortgage activity, but it also featured clear shifts in the volume of loans coming from different kinds of lenders. A new Inside Mortgage Trends analysis of loan-level data on mortgage-backed securities issued by the two government-sponsored enterprises shows that nonbank lenders continued to ... [Includes 3 data charts]
The Federal Housing Finance Agency remains committed under new management to deploy regulatory countermeasures against municipalities that move forward with proposed efforts to seize underwater mortgages via local eminent domain powers, agency officials say. After a quiet period when it appeared this issue was going away, eminent domain initiatives are cropping up again, including a recent push by a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors to get the city to partner with Richmond, CA.
Senate Confirms New HUD Secretary, FHFA IG Nominee on Hold. The Senate this week voted 71-26 to approve San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro’s nomination to be secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development. During his confirmation hearing last month before the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, Castro told Senators he thinks taxpayers should have more protection than they have now under the current GSE structure, though he did not back a specific legislative proposal. As HUD secretary, Castro is one of four members of the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s Oversight Board.
HSBC failed to implement and maintain required quality controls and failed to oversee the foreclosure-related charges it submitted to the FHA and Fannie Mae, resulting in unspecified millions of dollars in taxpayer losses, according to federal investigators. Under the terms of the civil settlement announced last week by the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s office and the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s Inspector General, HSBC will pay $10 million to settle charges that in 2009 and 2010 it failed to properly supervise foreclosure-related fees by outside lawyers and other service providers to the FHA and Fannie.
Modified Freddie Mac mortgages performed somewhat better than Fannie Mae loans for up to two years after modification as the performance gap between the two GSEs closed slowly, according to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. The OCC’s latest Mortgage Metrics Report noted that Freddie loans had a 15.6 percent re-default rate six months after modification, while Fannie mods saw a 16.3 percent rate. At the 12-month mark, Freddie stood at 22.3 percent compared to Fannie’s 23.4 percent.
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