The U.S. Treasury doesn’t get to invest in the booming stock market, but its stake in two guarantors of mortgage-backed securities is making a killing. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac posted $9.9 billion in combined profits for the fourth quarter of 2016, and $20.2 billion for the full year. It was up 16.1 percent from 2015 and the fourth best year ever for the two government-sponsored enterprises. Their all-time high was...
The aggregate dollar volume of homeowner equity in real estate has almost returned to pre-crisis levels, but borrowers are no longer using their homes as ATMs, according to industry analysts. Between 2003 and 2007, homeowners were extracting more than $350.0 billion in home equity per year via home-equity loans and cash-out refinances, according to researchers at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. While home prices and equity have largely recovered, equity extraction remains below $50.0 billion per year. William Dudley, president and CEO of the NY Fed, said...
The U.S. Mortgage Insurers trade group is seeking to eliminate differences in standards for qualified mortgages. USMI detailed its policy priorities for 2017 late last week. While the priorities largely rehash previous points of emphasis that could increase business for private mortgage insurance companies, USMI said it has particular concerns about how some QM standards vary on mortgages delivered to the government-sponsored enterprises compared with FHA mortgages. As required by the Dodd-Frank Act, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau established...
Consequently, top-tier banks that offered FHA-insured mortgages have opted to either restrict their government business or exit the program altogether…
Market watchers must be wondering just how long investors will continue to believe in the GSE “bet” made by hedge fund manager Pershing Square Capital Management.
“This is a fair and just settlement for California consumers,” said CDBO Commissioner Jan Lynn Owen. “The terms will hold Ocwen accountable for widespread violations of laws that harmed borrowers in our state.”
David Stevens, MBA president and chief executive officer, said the FHA’s newer books of business have great credit quality, which makes the spike in 30-day delinquencies more surprising.
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