Fun fact: Refi applications are up 176% from last year.

The pipeline of unresolved buyback claims also grew during the first three months of the year, although repurchase activity in general remains at subatomic levels.

Compared to the same period a year ago, warehouse lines of credit to nonbanks increased by a mouthwatering 41.9%.

MBA is seeking assurances that nonbank lenders can access the Fed’s Main Street Loan Program.

Jim Parrott: “It seems to me, it would be extremely helpful for them to add non-agency lending as acceptable collateral under these TALF programs, whether at the MBS level or at the loan level."

Bank and thrift holdings of Ginnie Mae MBS rose 5.0% in the first quarter and investment in agency CMOs increased 3.4% from the end of 2019.

“Some companies are higher and some are lower,” said Charbonneau, “but the range has moved up.”

Close to 40% of loans in a planned non-QM MBS from Starwood Non-Agency Lending are subject to COVID-19-related forbearance. The relief rate on a deal from Verus Mortgage Capital is 7%.

At an estimated $106 billion, wholesale-broker production represented 15.8% of first-lien originations in early 2020, the sector’s biggest share since the financial meltdown...

Next stop: The Fannie/Freddie re-IPOs?