Ginnie Mae approved far fewer issuers last year than in 2017, according to agency data. Only eight out of 28 applicants were approved to participate in its mortgage-backed securities program, as against 22 issuers in the previous year.

The merger of SunTrust Banks and BB&T Corp. will create a new entity that would have ranked among the top 20 Ginnie Mae issuers and servicers in 2018.

Home Equity Conversion Mortgage originations declined in December-January due in part to the recent government shutdown and an overall slowdown in HECM activity, according to an analysis by Situs, Inc.

Congress is reportedly considering a legislative proposal to charge higher guarantee fees for VA mortgages to cover healthcare costs of Korean and Vietnam War veterans who were ex-posed to herbicides, such as Agent Orange and other toxic agents.

A Wall Street lobbying group has urged the Department of Veteran Affairs to change its cash-out refinance interim final rule, calling par-ticular attention to the net tangible benefit provision.

Industry representatives are urging the Department of Veterans Affairs to delay an interim final rule on VA cash-out refinance loans for fear that lenders may stop offering the product.

Government-backed originations fell significantly in the fourth quarter of 2018 due to a decline in purchase lending even as year-over-year results reflected the uncertainty in last year’s government-backed mortgage market. [Includes three data charts.]

HUD receives share in settlement under False Claim Act; Implementation date for EAD system postponed; Issuance of HMBS declines year over year.

Ginnie Mae has not yet decided a date for its 2019 annual summit but it may be “soon,” said an agency spokesman.

Conventional and VA-backed home mortgages are the most common type of mortgage products that servicemembers complained about to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, according to the agency’s latest analysis.