The ATR survey was sent to 53 mortgage-originating entities, mostly mortgage bankers with some independent mortgage brokers and other originators. No credit unions or savings and loans responded.

In an earnings call this week, company founder and Executive Chairman Bill Erbey offered no further insight as to when the sale will be approved.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency ordered the two GSEs to sell at least 5 percent of their “less-liquid” mortgage assets, meaning whole loans and non-agency securities. CMBS are arguably the most liquid of these.

Morgan Stanley has agreed tentatively to pay $275 million to the Securities and Exchange Commission to resolve an investigation into certain subprime MBS which the company sponsored and underwrote in 2007. The SEC has yet to sign off on Morgan Stanley's settlement proposal, which includes being charged for violation of federal securities laws and payment of disgorgement and penalties totaling $275 million without admitting to or acknowledging any wrongdoing. In an annual SEC filing, the New York-based bank said...

Kara Stein, a commissioner at the Securities and Exchange Commission, said the SEC needs to take action regarding the rating services. It was one of many recent MBS-related calls for action directed at the SEC, from the agency's leadership, Congress and industry analysts. "We need to finally and firmly address the conflicts of interest in asset-backed securitizations and the provision of credit ratings," Stein said in a speech late last week. She noted...

The Securities and Exchange Commission was set to vote on a final rule earlier this month that would set new disclosure requirements for non-agency MBS, but the agency is still considering how the final rule should be applied as industry participants clamor for further changes. The SEC this week re-opened the comment period regarding the pending requirements for disclosures on MBS and ABS, the so-called Reg. AB2 rule. The rule was first proposed in 2010 and re-proposed in 2011. The comment period on the second proposal closed...

The House of Representatives this week is expected to vote on the amended version of H.R. 3370, the Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act, which would provide comprehensive reform and longer-term relief from skyrocketing premiums in the National Flood Insurance Program. But there is a possibility that the vote could take place next week as Republicans and Democrats continued to negotiate on proposed changes and further protection for homeowners who face hefty rate increases caused by the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2012, sources said. Congress passed the act to address the NFIP's solvency problems. Authored by Reps. Michael Grimm, R-NY, and Bill Cassidy, R-LA, H.R. 3370 builds...

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac reported significant profits during the fourth quarter of 2013, capping a year in which rising guaranty fees had little impact on the market share of the two government-sponsored enterprises. Fannie reported net income for 2013 of $84.0 billion, compared to $17.2 billion in 2012, but over half of last year's earnings (roughly $45 billion) came from recaptured deferred tax assets. The company reported fourth-quarter earnings of $6.5 billion, its eighth consecutive quarterly profit. After it makes its next dividend payment to the Treasury Department in March, Fannie will have paid...

Increased regulation of mortgage brokers has prompted some to switch their business models to become so-called mini-correspondents. Industry lawyers suggest that being a mini-correspondent can offer benefits to those previously working as brokers, but the switch also comes with significant changes to business practices. "If you're a broker, think about what this is going to mean: higher net-worth requirements, warehouse lending, new compliance systems, new software systems to develop and generate the disclosures, and more importantly, significantly higher liability," Jonathan Jaffe, a partner at K&L Gates, said this week during a webinar hosted by the law firm. 'So there's a trade-off there if you're a broker thinking about converting," he said. Some brokers see...

Walter Investment, the parent of Green Tree, said it anticipates meeting with the regulator in the near future to get a better understanding of its concerns and to see if the matter can be resolved.