CFPB Now Accepting Complaints About Online ‘Marketplace’ Lenders. The bureau is now taking complaints from the public about online marketplace lenders, including companies that play in the mortgage space. “When consumers shop for a loan online we want them to be informed and to understand what they are signing up for,” said CFPB Director Richard Cordray. “All lenders, from online startups to large banks, must follow consumer financial protection laws. By accepting these consumer complaints, we are giving people a greater voice in these markets and a place to turn to when they encounter problems.” The bureau also released a consumer bulletin that outlines tips for consumers who are considering taking [with exclusive data chart] ...

After starting 2015 with a net decline in supply of outstanding single-family mortgage securities, the market began to rally and ended the year with a modest gain. A new analysis by Inside MBS & ABS reveals that total residential MBS in the market reached $6.412 trillion at the end of last year, an 0.5 percent increase from the third quarter and up 1.0 percent from yearend 2014. The growing supply of residential MBS slightly outpaced the 0.3 percent increase in home mortgage debt outstanding, resulting in a 64.2 percent securitization rate in the fourth quarter. There are...[Includes two data tables]

JPMorgan Chase is preparing to issue the first non-agency MBS that will comply with a securitization safe harbor established by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. in 2010, according to presale reports published this week. The $1.89 billion Chase Mortgage Trust 2016-1 received preliminary AAA ratings from Fitch Ratings and Moody’s Investors Service. According to Fitch, Chase will sell only the subordinateclasses to investors, retaining the senior tranche, which accounts for 87.7 percent of the MBS. To meet the FDIC safe-harbor requirements, Chase will also retain...

When the Securities and Exchange Commission issued a final rule in August 2014 setting disclosure requirements for publicly-registered MBS and ABS, one of the outstanding provisions was whether to apply the loan-level disclosure requirements to private-placement 144A deals. More than 18 months later, it’s unclear whether the SEC will increase disclosure requirements for private placements, though industry participants expect that some action is in the works. Charles Sweet, a practice development leader at the law firm of Morgan Lewis, noted that the SEC asked the Structured Finance Industry Group to submit refreshed comments regarding the outstanding provisions included in the so-called Regulation AB2 final rule. “They are...

The Federal Housing Finance Agency this week filed a request to transfer lawsuits brought by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac shareholders in four district courts to the U.S. District Court in Washington. The government-sponsored enterprise regulator hopes to ward off future “copycat” cases and those where plaintiffs may be encouraged to “shop” for the best forum, based on the ruling. FHFA said it is certain that the number of pending complaints challenging the quarterly U.S. Treasury sweep of Fannie and Freddie net income will continue to grow. As a result, the agency said the transfer would be more efficient and benefit the parties and courts. “The claims and relief sought in each of the four related cases are...

Social Finance, the fledgling “marketplace” lender, is funding enough home mortgages on a monthly basis that it’s now scouting for opportunities in the secondary market, according to lending officials who have met with the firm’s management team. Among the options being considered is raising money to form a real estate investment trust, a vehicle that would provide a balance sheet where whole loans could reside. However, it’s unclear at this point if Social Finance, or “SoFi” as it is known, has any plans for securitizing residential product. Company officials including Michael Tannenbaum, who serves as vice president of mortgages for the startup, and William Jarve, in the firm’s capital markets group, declined...

The Federal Reserve’s Open Market Committee decided this week, as expected, to delay its next rate increase, citing concerns about global economic and financial developments, leaving the federal funds target range at 0.25 percent to 0.50 percent until June at the earliest, according to a consensus of market participants and observers. “Our decision to keep this accommodative policy stance reflects both our assessment of the economic outlook and the risks associated with that outlook,” said Fed chair Janet Yellen after the committee’s two-day meeting concluded Wednesday afternoon. Looking ahead, then, with appropriate monetary policy, the FOMC continues...

The development of the “deal agent” concept and the recommendations to standardize documentation are crucial to the revival of the non-agency MBS market, according to the Urban Institute. However, more work needs to be done to refine and implement the principles underlying the deal-agent concept and document standardization, said Laurie Goodman, director of the Housing Finance Policy Center at UI, in a new report. Many investors remain...

Increases in demand on the FHA single-family program are having collateral implications for the integrity of Ginnie Mae’s MBS programs, including the potential for more fraud, warned the Department of Housing and Urban Development inspector general. Testifying during a recent Senate budget hearing, HUD Inspector General David Montoya said Ginnie issuer defaults historically have been infrequent, involving small to moderate-size issuers. “However, major unanticipated issuer defaults beginning in 2009 have led...

After his request was rejected by the Federal Housing Finance Agency, Tim Pagliara, director of Investors Unite, filed a lawsuit in state courts this week seeking to gain access, as an individual stockholder, to the corporate records of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. With Fannie chartered under Delaware’s law and Freddie under Virginia’s jurisdiction, Pagliara, along with several other shareholder plaintiffs, argue that the U.S. Treasury Department’s sweep of the GSEs’ profits is illegal under state law. His suit, in particular, focuses on allowing him to inspect the books and records of Fannie and Freddie to get a better idea of the circumstances surrounding the sweep. Under the terms of the net worth sweep, the GSEs...