Just how hot is the jumbo MBS market? Consider this: Some $3.95 billion in non-agency jumbo MBS was issued in the first quarter, compared with $3.46 billion in issuance in all of last year.

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

The independent foreclosure review process established by federal regulators for 14 servicers was “deeply flawed,” Rep. Maxine Waters, D-CA, said on Thursday in response to a report on the reviews by the Government Accountability Office. Waters said she will introduce legislation next week to address problems relating to use of outside contractors for enforcement actions.

Nationstar Mortgage clarified that the non-agency MBS it plans to issue in the second quarter of 2013 is an asset-backed security with servicing advances from non-agency mortgages. Genworth U.S. Mortgage Insurance, a unit of Genworth Financial, Inc., announced on Friday that it will offer 24 training classes in April to help mortgage lenders and servicers improve their efficiency and build their business. Fannie Mae President and CEO Tim Mayopoulos said this week that it would be a “mistake” for official Washington to allow the prospect of the newly profitable GSEs to continue to slow walk efforts on housing finance reform.

The head of the Mortgage Bankers Association is pleased with the Obama administration's efforts to boost lending to borrowers with weaker credit.

Home prices nationwide jumped in February by the largest margin in seven years, said CoreLogic while the SEC has decided to allow public companies to Twitter and Facebook.

New non-agency MBS settlements and issuance.

Profits on originations by independent mortgage banks and mortgage subsidiaries of chartered banks declined in the fourth quarter of 2012 compared with the previous quarter, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac suffered lower losses on their nonprime mortgage holdings in 2012 compared with previous years as mortgage performance has stabilized and investor demand for vintage non-agency mortgage-backed securities has increased.

Twenty state regulators adopted uniform tests for mortgage loan originators on Monday, easing compliance for MLOs doing business in multiple states. State testing has been required since 2009 due to the Secure and Fair Enforcement for Mortgage Licensing Act.