Despite the vocal support of progressives, especially advocates of principal reduction of GSE-held loans, Rep. Watt’s nomination to head FHFA is far from a sure thing.

It looks like a sweet deal for Nationstar: Merrill Lynch helps sell its unsecured debt and then off loads some of its legacy MSRs to the nonbank.

Any successor to the GSEs that operates with a federal guarantee should charge the same guaranty fee price for all sellers, regardless of size, the trade group says.

We continue to hear reports that certain commercial banks are discouraging their residential loan officers to take the state test and get licensed.

Speculators have been gobbling up GSE junior preferred and common, hoping for a payout down the road tied to either the resumption of dividends or money that might come from a recovery fund.

Since 2008, big banks have largely held their non-agency jumbo originations in portfolio, seeing better execution than non-agency MBS issuance, but all that could be changing.

Even a fraction of the shadow inventory falling into foreclosure could considerably swell HUD and GSE ownership of REO properties.

According to industry sources, the FHA recently sent out administrative letters to a handful of residential lenders. Meanwhile, yet another new subprime originator has emerged.

The estimated $119 billion in purchase-mortgage originations during the first quarter was up 15 percent over the level at the same point in 2012.

Through the first quarter of 2013, 1.1 million borrowers have received permanent HAMP modifications, well below the 3 million to 4 million the Obama administration projected when launching the program in 2009.