Issuance of single-family MBS backed by newly originated loans rose 12.3% from the third to the fourth quarter, while primary-market production was up just 7.9%. (Includes data chart.)

Fannie's massive CAS deal backed by seasoned HARP loans drove credit-risk note offerings to a record $4.54 billion in the fourth quarter of 2019. (Includes data chart.)

Secondary market investors, especially hedge funds and private equity firms, are bidding up the price of non-qualified mortgages. That’s good news for sellers, but can it last?

The loans covered by the GSEs’ loan performance data have much lower default rates than those in their full book of business, according to the AEI.

While the Fed was shrinking its agency MBS portfolio by $54.5 billion during the third quarter, commercial banks increased theirs by $56.2 billion and money managers added $23.8 billion. (Includes two data charts.)

In gubernatorial election years, banks cut the dollar volume of jumbo loans they originate or purchase by 13% to 25%, a Fed study shows.

The average daily trading volume in agency MBS reached a yearly low in August as rates troughed. A rebound could lay ahead. Or maybe not.

Year-to-date CLO issuance lagged behind the pace set in 2018 because of a slowdown in refinance transactions. Octagon Investment Partners was the most active sponsor at midyear.

New issuance of credit-risk debt notes by the GSEs fell 25.5% sequentially in the second quarter, but surging MBS production in recent months will likely spur increased CRT activity in the second half of the year.

Mortgage-investing REITs continue to tap the equities market. And it’s occurring at an odd time: The Dow Jones Industrial Average is gyrating like a drunken puppet.