The measure would amend the state constitution to authorize reverse mortgages for purchase of a homestead property in Texas.

We continue to hear reports that certain commercial banks are discouraging their residential loan officers to take the state test and get licensed.

The U.S. Solicitor General has asked the Supreme Court of the United States not to grant the petition for certiorari pending in Township of Mount Holly v. Mt. Holly Gardens Citizens in Action, Inc., a case that raises the question of whether disparate impact claims can be brought under the Fair Housing Act. Mt. Holly involves a challenge to a redevelopment plan in the Mount Holly Township of New Jersey over questions as to whether it was having a disparate impact on minorities. Last summer, the township formally asked the SCOTUS...

Even a fraction of the shadow inventory falling into foreclosure could considerably swell HUD and GSE ownership of REO properties.

According to industry sources, the FHA recently sent out administrative letters to a handful of residential lenders. Meanwhile, yet another new subprime originator has emerged.

The FHA’s net-worth requirement, now fully phased in nearly three years since it was revised, will help ensure that only responsible, well-capitalized lenders and mortgagees are involved in the origination of FHA-insured loans. However, small FHA lenders may get squeezed out in the process. On May 20, the second and final phase of FHA’s new net-worth rule became effective. The final rule provides that, regardless of size, all applicants for FHA approval and those with current approval must have a ...

Lenders are at odds with housing finance agencies over the benefits of a new FHA guidance, which calls for documentation of downpayment assistance (DA) that HFAs provide to borrowers. The new guidance requires mortgagees to show written proof that funds provided by a federal, state or local government entity to help borrowers meet the FHA’s 3.5 percent minimum cash investment requirement actually came from the entity and not from some impermissible source. The guidance follows up on a rule issued by HUD last year clarifying an interpretation of the National Housing Act. The rule expressed HUD’s view that ...

A recent Federal Reserve survey of bank lending practices further confirmed a continuing trend among FHA lenders of refusing to lend to borrowers with FICO scores below 620 even though they qualify for the loan and could afford the required minimum 3.5 percent cash investment. About a third of senior loan officers who responded to the April 2013 survey indicated they were less likely to approve FHA home-purchase loan applications within the 580-620 FICO range this year compared to last year. They prefer lending to borrowers with a 720 FICO and who are making a 10 to 20 percent downpayment, the survey showed. An estimated 75 percent of banks cited the ...

The Texas House of Representatives has approved legislation that will let voters decide on Nov. 5 whether to allow home-equity purchase lending in the Lone Star State. The bill would amend the Texas constitution to authorize Home Equity Conversion Mortgage for Purchase loans, which would make the program available to Texans for the first time. The state legislature voted 139 to 1 in favor of Senate Joint Resolution 18, which the Texas Senate approved unanimously in March. Specifically, the bill would amend the state constitution to ... [One chart]

Wall Street raised no objections to a Ginnie Mae proposal to consolidate its two mortgage-backed securities programs, indicating the move would be good for securitization and result in other positives. However, there appeared to be no consensus among players on how to get there. Representatives of Ginnie Mae and the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association met early this month to discuss the agency’s proposal. Analysts agreed it is far too early in the game to discern a clear path towards a single Ginnie Mae MBS program and that implementation is likely years away. Nevertheless, there were ...