A handful of nonbank lenders are stepping up to the plate, offering mortgages to borrowers who are just one day removed from a foreclosure or short sale. But there’s a catch: many of the lenders willing to extend such credit want at least 20 percent down. Also, as it turns out, the trend is being funded by commercial banks that are serving as the end investors in the product. Two banks – one in California and one in New York – were identified...

Originations of purchase mortgages were strong in the second quarter of 2015 and through the start of summer, according to industry participants. In recent months, demand for home purchases has been driven by current homeowners and first-time homebuyers, two groups that are particularly reliant on mortgage financing. “The purchase market has been stronger than people expected in the second quarter,” said Paul Miller, a managing director at FBR Capital Markets. Kevin Hester, chief lending officer at Home BancShares, said...

New issuance of non-mortgage ABS increased in most major product categories during the second quarter of 2015, although a slowdown in floorplan deals dampened the party slightly. The ABS market generated $54.15 billion in new issuance during the second quarter, a gain of 5.8 percent from the first three months of 2015. It was the strongest new issuance figure since the financial market meltdown, with the previous high ($54.22 billion) coming in the third quarter of 2007. ABS issuance has climbed...[Includes two data tables]

JPMorgan Chase has released an expansive look into third-party due diligence findings on a pending jumbo MBS under new disclosure requirements from the Securities and Exchange Commission. The increased loan-level disclosures could boost investor confidence in new non-agency MBS. Documents filed through the SEC’s electronic system and posted on the agency’s website include detailed, loan-level reports from three due diligence firms that examined mortgages set to be included in JPMorgan Mortgage Trust 2015-4. American Mortgage Consultants, a due diligence provider, said...

The average daily trading volume in agency MBS fell to $183.7 billion in June, the lowest reading of the year and another sign that all is not well for anyone who makes their living off of actual trading as opposed to being involved in new issuance. “There are a lot of people out there buying on credit and keeping MBS,” said Christopher Whalen, a senior managing director in the Financial Institutions Ratings Group at Kroll Bond Rating Agency. Whalen added...

A bipartisan pair of lawmakers from the House of Representatives found fault with the Obama administration this week for not making housing finance and reform of the government-sponsored enterprises a priority. Failing that, they’re not certain there would be enough support from both sides of the aisle to get a comprehensive bill pushed through the pipeline and signed by the president. “I don’t think the White House has sent a positive signal about participating in this process,” said Rep. Randy Neugebauer, R-TX, during a housing finance reform discussion in Washington, DC, this week sponsored by the Bipartisan Policy Center. “It’s such a big lift. You need to make sure that if you’re going down that road, that you have the opportunity to accomplish something.” His colleague, Rep. John Delaney, D-MD, agreed...

In the eyes of some Federal Reserve watchers, Fed chief Janet Yellen has become a master of making every public appearance a bit of a Rorschach test, giving fans and critics alike just enough of what they want to hear to reinforce their pre-existing viewpoints. Her semi-annual Humphrey-Hawkins testimony on Fed monetary policy before Congress this week was another prime example of this, with Wall Street types hopeful of a rise in interest rates sometime later this year, and contrarians increasingly unconvinced and dismissive. For instance, labor markets are showing...

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray tried to sooth industry concerns about regulatory enforcement of the controversial integrated disclosure rule immediately following its implementation on Oct. 3. Appearing before the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, Cordray amplified previous statements regarding compliance with the so-called TRID rule, which makes major changes to consumer disclosures under the Truth in Lending Act and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act. “We worked...

The mortgage lending industry widely supports the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s proposal to extend to Oct. 3, 2015, the effective date of its transformative integrated-disclosure rule under the Truth in Lending Act and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act. But more needs to be done, say those who have commented on the planned delay. The American Bankers Association, for example, said, “Given the unique circumstances posed by the TRID rulemaking, the only way to realistically ensure an orderly transition to the new regulatory framework – and to guarantee uninterrupted service to consumers – is to institute a subsequent supervisory transition period that restrains enforcement and liability during a three-month period following the proposed effective date.” For a variety of reasons, the ABA urged...

The CFPB rang the credit card industry’s bell last week, compelling JPMorgan Chase to refund at least $50 million to consumers and to pay $136 million in penalties and payments to settle an enforcement action related to allegations of selling bad debt and robo-signing documents. The lender also must pay a $30 million penalty to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency in a related action. According to CFPB officials and attorneys general from 47 states and the District of Columbia, who collaborated in bringing the action, Chase sold credit card accounts to debt buyers that included amounts that were inaccurate, settled, discharged in bankruptcy, not owed, or otherwise not collectible. Debt buyers then sought to collect the faulty ...