Industry officials who have studied the issue contend that the Treasury Department does not have the legal right to give Fannie and Freddie back to their junior and common shareholders. In short, it would take an act of Congress.

According to figures compiled by Inside Mortgage Finance, in the fourth quarter brokers facilitated roughly 9.8 percent of all originations, one of the lowest readings ever.

Major contributors to the jumbo MBS include New Penn Financial with a 25.5 percent share, Prospect Mortgage and Prospect Lending with a combined 20.4 percent share and Quicken Loans with a 15.5 percent share.

The TV ad we viewed is so glowing in praise that one might think the GSEs themselves produced it.

Several mid-sized nonbanks that earned a ton of money during the refi boom of the past two years are in the hunt to buy the production assets of other companies, hoping to snatch additional market share away from commercial banks. Moreover, some mortgage advisors that ply their trade in the mergers and acquisitions space believe that unless origination volumes improve rapidly, the “roll-up” of the mortgage industry could be fierce by the end of 2014. According to recent production figures compiled by Inside Mortgage Finance, the residential finance industry is coming off its worst origination quarter in 14 years. Rick Roque, a principal in the boutique advisory firm Menlo Company Global, anticipates...

Since late last year, the FHFA has required that any Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac MSR sale of $5 billion or more – roughly 5,000 loans – be approved by the agency.

Under the original conservatorship agreement, the GSEs are allowed to maintain a small capital buffer, but within three years that buffer will be reduced to zero.

MBA believes the imposition of compensatory fees has morphed into a risk-sharing mechanism that shifts the costs of the prolonged foreclosure process from the GSEs onto mortgage servicers.

Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, D-ND, a co-sponsor of the Johnson-Crapo bill, also said the measure is moving forward. “This train is leaving the station,” she said. But whether it makes it to the floor of the Senate is another matter.

As far as pricing goes, if g-fees are raised Fannie and Freddie could earn more money – cash that ultimately would wind up at the Treasury Department, which sweeps most of their earnings each quarter.