The Federal Reserve’s move to reduce its purchases of agency mortgage-backed securities may eventually change the relative costs and benefits of financing new production through Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae. “We’re in an environment where I think banks are going to get interested in at least the more attractive credit risks and holding those in portfolio,” said Mark Calabria, director of financial regulation studies at the libertarian Cato Institute in Washington, DC. “So, to me, the most important question going forward over the next two years for the MBS market is how much of this [new production] is going to make its way into MBS and how much will be held on balance sheets as whole loans.” Calabria predicted...

Morgan Stanley notes: “The agreement in principle is subject to final approvals by the parties. In connection with the settlement, the company will record an addition to legal reserves of $150 million, which will have the impact of reducing income..."

The nation’s third largest FHA servicer also admitted that it failed to inform the government mortgage insurers when its own internal reviews discovered more than 500 defective loans that never should have been submitted for coverage.

“This situation consisted of sexually charged behavior and comments from the supervisory staff and participating mortgage bankers, which resulted in a sexist and uncivil atmosphere,” the EEOC said of the JPM workplace.

Federal regulators have, for all intents and purposes, completed their work on the qualified residential mortgage standard. This means the final rule’s release could be imminent.

Treasury’s “Third Amendment” to the PSPA – which replaced the quarterly GSE dividend payment with a “net worth sweep” of all company profits – was the culmination of a calculated administration effort, according to former Solicitor General Ted Olson.

The HUD chief told Hispanic real estate professionals that in today’s market, mortgage credit is too hard to obtain for consumers with low credit scores.

The rating service singles out Ocwen Financial, Nationstar Mortgage, Walter Investment Management, Quicken Loans, Provident Funding and PennyMac Loan Services, all of which have significantly increased their MSR portfolios.

The starting salary for the CEO is said to be about $450,000 plus benefits, which is roughly double what the new director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, Mel Watt, earns.

A veteran player in the jumbo ARM market said one investment bank in particular has “had lots of layoffs.”