Mortgage originations are already off to a better start in 2015, and industry economists are predicting, on average, a 15 percent increase from last year’s sluggish output. But uncertain prospects in the housing market point toward a decline in mortgage originations next year, according to forecasters at the secondary market conference sponsored this week by the Mortgage Bankers Association. 2015 should bring the strongest housing sales volume since 2007, said Leonard Kiefer, deputy chief economist at Freddie Mac. Sales activity was decent over the winter, despite severe weather in many areas, but the market has yet to get back to normal. Freddie looks...[Includes one data table]
Seven months ago, a fledgling nonprime lender called Deephaven Mortgage unveiled a $300 million investment in the firm by a global “alternative” hedge fund called Varde Partners, Minneapolis. But since then, not much has been heard about Deephaven. Then again, it might be said that the “new” nonprime industry is still trying to figure out how to operate in a world of tight regulation, non-QM lending and a securitization market that doesn’t want to touch its product. Matt Nichols, the former Goldman Sachs managing director who formed Deephaven two years ago, did not respond...
“U.S. Bank was asked why it wasn’t expanding in the mortgage business,” Gabriel said during a panel discussion. “Their answer was: ‘Did you see what happened to Bank of America?’”
According to analyst Paul Miller of FBR Capital Markets, the standards are meant to “impact small, nonpublic, nondepository institutions that have operated on the periphery of the sector.”
Who might replace Lawsky? How about: Rohit Chopra, assistant director and student loan ombudsman for another agency that’s highly popular with mortgage executives: the CFPB.
Housing is showing some traction, but heavy regulation and enforcement continue to weigh on the mortgage market, according to analysts at this week’s secondary-market conference sponsored by the Mortgage Bankers Association in New York. Charles Gabriel, president of Capital Alpha Advisors, said there are some green shoots in the mortgage market, including signs of more home sales. But he characterized it as “a mature market that is suboptimized.” Lenders have paid massive penalties in lawsuits, he added, and there is no sign that they will expand the credit box. “U.S. Bank was asked...
The noise over regulatory relief legislation is getting louder. Over the past week, Republicans in the Senate issued a clarification of sorts about their draft legislation, Democrats came up with a narrower alternative and the industry weighed in as the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee prepared for a markup scheduled for late this week. A noteworthy provision in the Democrats’ proposal would extend qualified-mortgage status for loans originated and held in portfolio – but only if the depository institution has less than $10 billion in assets. The GOP bill would extend this safe harbor to all banks, thrifts and credit unions. The Democratic proposal would bar...
Separate lawsuits against major banks were dismissed last week, providing some insight on how lenders and servicers can defend against claims brought by consumer advocates under the False Claims Act and allegations of redlining and reverse redlining. In 2013, Advocates for Basic Legal Equality alleged that U.S. Bank’s servicing practices violated the FCA. U.S. District Court Judge Jack Zouhary dismissed the lawsuit, noting that the claims were barred by the “public disclosure doctrine.” Larry Platt, a partner at the law firm of K&L Gates, said...
In a ruling that may impact future fair-lending class actions, a federal district court judge in Manhattan has denied class certification in a lawsuit brought by the American Civil Liberties Union and National Consumer Law Center against global investment bank Morgan Stanley. Filed in October 2012, the suit was brought on behalf of African American borrowers in Detroit who obtained subprime loans from New Century Mortgage, a now-defunct originator that sold the loans to secondary-market purchasers, including Morgan Stanley, which then securitized them. New Century originated...
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