A GSE investor in Kentucky lost her case last week when the court dismissed claims that the government damaged Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac by implementing the net worth sweep of the GSEs’ profits. Arnetia Robinson alleged that her investments in Fannie and Freddie were “materially damaged” when the Federal Housing Finance Agency and the Treasury Department amended the existing preferred stock purchase agreement in 2012. According to court records, Robinson was seeking declaratory and injunctive relief that would prevent enforcement of portions of the PSPA. She contended that the sweep violates the Housing and Economic Recovery Act and said the Treasury acted “arbitrarily and capriciously.”

An increase in interest rates will help boost originations of non-agency nonprime mortgages, according to panelists at a webinar hosted by Inside Mortgage Finance this week. Higher interest rates will make it less attractive for prime borrowers to refinance, which could force lenders to look for volume elsewhere, including the nonprime market. Purchase mortgages account for a large share of the nonprime loans originated in recent years and higher interest rates could also increase nonprime mortgages aimed at debt consolidation. Matthew Nichols, CEO of Deephaven Mortgage, said...

The House Financial Services Committee this week marked up, mostly on party lines, a comprehensive alternative to the Dodd-Frank Act that would, among other things, create a legal safe harbor for mortgage loans that are originated by a lender and then held in portfolio on its balance sheet. Democrats unanimously opposed the bill and refused to offer a single amendment, continually railing against Wells Fargo and accusing the Republicans of wanting to take the nation “back to the regulatory Stone Age.” The bill passed...

Although single-women borrowers are more likely to pay their mortgages on time than single-male borrowers, they tend to pay higher mortgage rates and are more often denied credit. Those findings come from a new Urban Institute study that merged Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data for 2004-2014 with CoreLogic data on loan performance. A combination of a male and female borrower (usually in that order) accounted...

Lone Star Funds is preparing to issue a $216.97 million MBS backed by newly originated nonprime mortgages, according to presale reports published this week. The deal will help the market for new nonprime MBS outpace issuance of jumbo MBS, at least momentarily. Last month, Deephaven Mortgage issued a $154.33 million MBS backed by new nonprime mortgages and Angel Oak Capital Advisors issued a $132.65 million MBS, neither of which received credit ratings. Lone Star’s COLT 2016-2 is scheduled to close next week. Two jumbo MBS were issued...

After a difficult year so far, sales of mortgage servicing rights are beginning to pick up a head of steam this fall with the hope that the fourth quarter could turn out be a barn-burner. According to interviews conducted by Inside Mortgage Finance this week, servicing advisors for the most part are feeling mildly optimistic about the final three months of the year, although they all admit the obvious: an unexpected drop in rates could spoil the party. But that may not...

Hundreds of industry participants have written to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to express their opposition to or support of the bureau’s attempt to resolve some of the ambiguity associated with its Truth in Lending Act/Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act Integrated Disclosure Rule. Title insurers say the CFPB missed a chance to fix a major problem: confusion about title premium charges. Real estate agents say the bureau is making things better for consumers by allowing lenders to share disclosures. One title insurance professional noted...

Hundreds of title agents across the U.S. responded in an organized letter-writing campaign and flooded the CFPB’s inbox with negative comments about the bureau’s attempt to clarify a number of issues related to its controversial TILA/RESPA Integrated Disclosure Rule, otherwise known as TRID.One title insurance professional commented that the CFPB missed an opportunity to change the closing disclosure’s calculation of title fees. “Consumers around the country continue to receive inaccurate information at the closing table about their title insurance costs,” she said. “This provision of the rule defeats the bureau’s own mission to provide consumers with a better understanding of their transaction.” The title agent urged the CFPB to fix this problem immediately so consumers will have a clear ...

Scores of real estate professionals have written to the CFPB to express their support of the TRID 2.0 provision that would enable the sharing of mortgage origination documents between lenders and real estate professionals. Carol Barkstrom, principal broker/owner at Connections Realty in Richmond, VA, told the CFPB, “Thank God you are proposing to make this change. We as agents being denied access to closing documents has been a huge problem.” Previously, real estate professionals “have always had access to disclosure documents to catch possible mistakes and omissions and to explain the meaning of all the pieces and parts of the closing documents to our selling and buying clients,” she added. However, with the original TRID rule, the bureau’s attempt to ...

The TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosure rule helped improve communications with no impact on closing times, according to some real estate agents. But other agents reported that the new disclosure rule caused significant delays in closing purchase mortgages. The disparity in findings is contained in the newest Campbell/Inside Mortgage Finance HousingPulse Tracking Survey, which asked real estate agents to describe their best/worst experience with lenders this year. TRID, as might be expected, received a number of mentions. An agent in California said lenders have been much better at communication since TRID took effect in October. “I feel that TRID keeps them more aware of the timelines they need to adhere to,” the agent said. And a sales professional in Maryland said homebuyers’ ...