Bank of America and MBIA announced a settlement this week of a long-running dispute regarding representations and warranties on mortgages securitized by Countrywide Financial. The settlement benefits non-agency MBS wrapped by MBIA, according to industry analysts. The settlement applies to all outstanding rep and warrant claims and all other claims between the bank and bond guarantor. BofA agreed to pay MBIA approximately $1.6 billion in cash and remit to MBIA all of the outstanding notes in the firm that BofA acquired in December. BofA also will terminate...

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners recently proposed changes to modeling values of insurance company holdings of non-agency MBS and commercial MBS. The proposal could increase loss forecasts and prompt some sales of the securities, according to analysts. The NAIC proposed using the Treasury strip curve as the discount rate in determining the net-present value of expected loss for modeled securities, as opposed to using each security’s coupon rate to determine expected losses. The standard-setting group governed by state insurance regulators noted that the Treasury strip curve is a risk-free curve. “Using a consistent risk-free rate for all modeled securities in calculating the expected loss reflects...

Securitization of income-property mortgages jumped 23.0 percent from already strong levels during the first three months of 2013, according to a new Inside MBS & ABS market analysis. A total of $47.61 billion of commercial MBS were issued during the first quarter, including a variety of non-agency deals as well as multifamily MBS issued by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae. That was the strongest level since structured finance markets tanked in 2008. The previous post-crash high was...[Includes one data chart]

The commercial MBS market is starting to catch fire. Moreover, a new report from Fitch notes that commercial delinquencies continued to fall last year, a trend that will continue.

RAIT Financial Trust, Philadelphia, is funding roughly $60 million to $70 million a quarter in multifamily and low-balance commercial loans, product that is winding up in MBS issued by Barclays Capital and Citigroup Securities. According to Jason Stewart, an analyst with Compass Point Research & Trading LLC, the company also has a line of credit from Credit Suisse, and is working on a $100 million to $150 million deal that could be ready by the third quarter. A publicly traded real estate investment trust, RAIT is...

Will FHA need a government bailout? Better read the new Obama budget document.

Inside MBS & ABS found big gains in the securitization of most commercial property types, including a huge surge in mortgages on hotels and motels.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development is tightening its oversight of principals in FHA-insured multifamily properties by requiring lenders to clear all requests for additional insurance commitments that exceed $250 million with HUD before approval. Recently issued guidance describes how lenders can obtain pre-approval from HUD when principals have FHA-insured assets greater than $250 million, including the proposed additional commitments. The department is concerned that FHA may be taking on too big a risk with such principals. HUD pre-approval is required to ...

National MI, the Emeryville, CA-based mortgage insurer started by former executives at The PMI Group, has yet to write its first policy, but may soon.