Correspondent-production platforms regained a smidgeon of market share in government-insured lending during the third quarter, according to a new Inside FHA/VA Lending analysis. (chart)

The ability to extract more equity at a lower price appears to be driving the growth in FHA cash-out volume, according to an Urban Institute analysis of FHA’s FY 2018 report on the financial condition of the Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund.

The Department of Veterans Affairs has announced new VA loan limits for 2019, a 6.9 percent increase from last year.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has filed a complaint and a proposed settlement against a Nevada lender for misleading borrowers on the benefits of VA streamline refinancing.

The CFPB last week sued Village Capital & Investment for deceiving veterans regarding the Interest Rate Reduction Refinance Loans program.

FHA forward mortgage production plunged in the third quarter, precipitated by a substantial drop in purchase activity. [Includes two data charts.]

The Department of Veterans Affairs this week laid the groundwork for changes to its current rules on VA-guaranteed cash-out refinance loans.

In an analysis of FHA’s fiscal 2018 audit of the Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund, analysts believe the Department of Housing and Urban Development may be inclined to shrink FHA’s footprint modestly given the risk profile of its new business.

Retail-originated loans securitized by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae during the third quarter generally had stronger credit scores than similar loans produced by third-party lenders, according to a new Inside Mortgage Trends analysis of loan-level data. The average credit score for a retail purchase loan pooled in an agency mortgage-backed security during the period was 735.47, compared with 720.20 for correspondent purchase ... [Includes two data charts]

The FHA’s Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund is generally healthy but for its Home Equity Conversion Mortgage program, according to the latest FHA audit of the MMIF. In its 2018 report to Congress this week, the Department of Housing and Urban Development had good and bad news regarding the financial condition of the insurance fund. The good news is that the economic value of the MMIF, which backs the FHA’s single-family loan programs, increased to $34.7 billion in fiscal 2018 from $26.7 billion a year ago. Total capital resources rose to $49.2 billion from $40.9 billion during the same period. For the fourth consecutive year, the fund exceeded its statutory capital reserve ratio of 2.00 percent. The ratio rose to 2.76 percent in 2018 from 2.18 percent last year. Premium reductions, had they been in effect, would have reduced the fund’s economic net worth and dropped its capital ratio, industry ...