The IMA package – top heavy with California and Florida loans – includes $110.8 million of Ginnie Mae receivables.

The majority of mortgage industry executives believe a proposal to raise Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac guaranty fees will hurt lenders, raise origination costs and lead to fewer loans being made, according to a survey by Genworth U.S. Mortgage Insurance. “The survey findings were in line with expectations and highlight the need for continued dialog on regulatory reform and credit access,” said Rohit Gupta, president/CEO of the company. An estimated 53 percent of executives believe raising the g-fees would result in fewer loans being closed. And 23 percent of executives said higher fees for the government-sponsored enterprises would increase demand for FHA loans. While 13 percent said an increase would limit industry competition, 11 percent said it would stoke competition. ...

With just over four weeks left in 2014, investment bankers expect a flurry of bulk deals to hit the market. But whether they close or not is a different matter. “There are definitely several deals – both large and small – that are being considered,” said Tom Piercy, managing member of Interactive Mortgage Advisors. “We are working on four or five deals totaling $10 billion.” Piercy said he wasn’t at liberty to provide details about the transactions since some have yet to be finalized. In two recently announced auctions, IMA is selling a $3.2 billion package of Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac mortgage servicing rights and a $1.6 billion pool.The brokerage firm also is in the process of selling a New York-based mortgage ...

Fixed-rate mortgages with 15-year terms are good products for low- and middle-income borrowers or have limited appeal for such borrowers as well as for lenders, according to competing think tanks.Co-directors of the American Enterprise Institute’s International Center on Housing Risk developed the Wealth Building Home Loan that Bank of America started offering in September. Edward Pinto, one of the co-directors of the AEI’s center, said the 15-year fixed-rate WBHL requires little or no downpayment, due in part to BofA’s partnership with the Neighborhood Assistance Corp. BofA will also provide a subsidy to decrease the interest rate on the loans. Pinto said the loan has much less foreclosure risk than a 30-year fixed-rate FHA mortgage due to the equity building ...

The Mortgage Industry Standards Maintenance Organization recently released version 3.3.1 of its residential reference model for public comment. This version of the standard includes data points and structures related to a number of recent regulatory and reporting requirements and additions in the areas of mortgage insurance coverage and conditions, title, payoff and property valuation. “Version 3.3.1 of the MISMO Reference Model and Logical Data Dictionary are the direct result of MISMO contributors from across the industry collaborating to solve business problems and develop the standards needed to meet industry needs in today’s rapidly changing regulatory and compliance environment,” said Mike Fratantoni, president of MISMO and chief economist for the Mortgage Bankers Association. In addition to the LDD, XML schema and ...

Wells Fargo reported a 2.1 percent drop in its correspondent originations from the second quarter to the third, and its year-to-date volume was down 57.3 percent.

The 57 percent reduction in endorsements takes FHA closer to the levels of activity seen before the housing crisis.

The CFPB put out a bulletin last week advising lenders not to create illegal hurdles for recipients of Social Security Disability Income who apply for mortgages, warning that requiring unnecessary documentation from such consumers could raise fair lending risk. The new bulletin discusses standards and guidelines on verification of SSDI, including those under the CFPB’s ability-to-repay rule, the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s standards for FHA loans, the Department of Veterans Affairs’ standards for VA-guaranteed loans, and guidelines from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The bureau begins by noting that to verify income for qualified mortgage debt-to-income ratios under the ability-to-repay rule, lenders are required to look at whether the Social Security Administration benefit verification letter or equivalent document ...

The biggest gain in bank MBS investment during the third quarter was in non-agency securities.

There’s a growing fear that the CSBS might move to increase capital standards for nonbank originators as well.