Two top Democrats on the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs called upon the FHA to revise its eligibility policy to enable more distressed borrowers to qualify for loan modification. Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Johnson, D-SD, and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-MA, urged FHA Commissioner Carol Galante in a letter to eliminate a provision that requires borrowers to be “currently employed” in order to receive loss mitigation assistance from the FHA. The FHA inserted the provision into the FHA guidelines for ...
Genworth U.S. Mortgage Insurance has stepped up its competition with the FHA in the home purchase market by announcing reduced rates and the elimination of certain overlays to make it easier for customers to deliver loans through the government-sponsored enterprises’ automatic underwriting systems. Effective on Sept. 16, the credit policy changes closely align Genworth’s requirements with those for loans approved by Fannie Mae’s Desktop Underwriter or Freddie Mac’s Loan Prospector. Specifically, Genworth will expand guidelines for its Simply Underwrite program to enable lenders to offer affordable low-downpayment financing to ...
The Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago has announced a partnership with Ginnie Mae to issue securities guaranteed by the secondary market agency and backed by home loans originated by member financial institutions. The new conduit product, “MPF Government Mortgage-Backed Securities,” provides another secondary mortgage market outlet for lenders originating mortgages insured by the FHA or guaranteed by the VA or the Rural Housing Service. Low-volume lenders that currently lack direct access to the secondary market are expected to benefit from the new FHLBank program. MPF GMBS would allow lenders to ... [1 chart]
The Department of Housing and Urban Development has used up the $25 billion of commitment authority allocated by Congress for the FHA multifamily and healthcare programs, though mortgage insurance applications will still be accepted through Sept. 30. Firm commitments issued as of Sept. 16 will be honored and loans may be endorsed and closed up until the cutoff date, HUD said in a letter this week to program partners. HUD will be unable to issue new commitments until an FY 2014 budget for the FHA multifamily and healthcare programs is approved. All transactions requesting commitment authority between ...
Residential mortgage REITs held $327 billion of single-family MBS at the end of the second quarter, according to a new market analysis by Inside MBS & ABS.
A federal district court judge in California this week dismissed without prejudice an action brought by securitization trustees to stop the City of Richmond, CA, and its partners from implementing an eminent domain strategy to seize and refinance underwater mortgages. Judge Charles Breyer of the U.S. District for Northern California said he decided to dismiss the case rather than hold it in abeyance because “the plaintiffs’ claims are not yet ripe for adjudication.” In other words, one can’t sue over something that has not happened or is not bound to happen. In fact, certain developments, such as the finalization of an agency rule or the resolution of pending suits in other jurisdictions, may leave...
The Office of Management and Budget has cleared a proposed rule setting qualified mortgage standards for FHA-insured single-family mortgages for issuance in the coming weeks. The OMB signed off on the proposed standards on Sept. 12 and the Department of Housing and Urban Development has a few more refinements to perform before publishing the proposal for public comment. HUD declined to discuss the contents of the proposed standards or indicate a timetable for a final QM rule. Industry participants, on the other hand, said they would be surprised if ...
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