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Inside Mortgage Finance

November 25, 2005

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Jumbo, Conforming Markets Post Strong Production Gains in 3Q05; Subprime and HEL Sectors Cooler

New origination of prime, conventional mortgages that exceed the purchase limits for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac was the strongest area of growth in the rising home loan originations market of the third quarter of 2005. A new market analysis and ranking by Inside Mortgage Finance shows an estimated $170.0 billion of prime jumbo mortgages were originated during the third quarter. That was up a very healthy 32.8 percent from… Read More

Reform May Be Getting Less Attention, But HUD Keeps Up RESPA Enforcement

The Department of Housing and Urban Development is trying to improve its ability to enforce the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, even though the effort to overhaul the rules implementing the 1974 law has been pushed back on the agency’s agenda. HUD earlier this month floated a proposal to develop a new electronic filing system for gathering RESPA complaints and last week announced a $150,000 RESPA settlement with a New… Read More

OTS Sounds Another Warning About Risky Alternative Mortgage Products

Federal regulators continue to bang the drum in warning about the risks associated with alternative mortgage products – especially pay-option ARMs. In recent months, the Federal Reserve Board, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Office of Thrift Supervision have all sounded off on the dangers – and the benefits – associated with nontraditional mortgage products. In general, the regulators have cautioned that banks and… Read More

New Survey of Mortgage Brokers Highlights the Convergence of Prime, Alt A and Subprime Markets

The mortgage production business has become a much diversified market in 2005 as most originators now routinely offer a varied menu of prime, Alternative A and subprime loans. That’s one of the many conclusions found in a new nationwide study of mortgage brokers and their views towards wholesale lenders. According to the study, there has been a significant convergence of the prime, Alt A or low doc, and subprime mortgage… Read More

Closed-end HELs Less Popular as Borrowers Flock to HELOCs, New CBA Survey Suggests

Homeowners remain eager to use their home-equity to finance new spending and consolidate other debt, a study released last week by the Consumer Bankers Association suggests. But the study also points to a shift in the industry landscape, with more borrowers apparently opting for open-ended lines of credit over traditional closed-end second mortgages. The CBA study polled 39 banks, thrifts, and credit unions, including such heavyweights as Bank of America... Read More

Despite Changes to Boost FHA Business, Most Lenders Need More Convincing

Nearly half of FHA lenders do not expect an increase in their FHA business as a result of the recent changes implemented by the Department of Housing and Urban Development to boost its single-family mortgage insurance program, an informal poll conducted by Inside Mortgage Finance shows. The results were from a quick survey of participants in an FHA audio conference last week hosted by Inside Mortgage Finance Publications, which discussed... Read More

Will Immigrants Continue to Fuel Mortgage Demand as National Security Concerns Evolve?

Housing and mortgage forecasters have pegged a significant share of future business on the expanding immigrant population, but there has been some speculation recently that harsher immigration policies in a post 9/11 world could lead to slower-than-expected growth rates.A report released by the Fannie Mae Foundation in 2001 concluded that immigrants would play a key role in a 12 million net increase in new households during the current decade... Read More

Analysts Say Fannie and Freddie Have Turned The Corner on Business and Regulatory Issues

Analysts at Lehman Brothers are pleased that the government-sponsored enterprises are dealing with the regulatory and financial difficulties that have dogged the companies during the past couple years, but Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac still face challenges to regaining their traditional place in the mortgage market. “It’s been a tough couple years,” said Bruce Harting, a Lehman analyst who tracks the GSEs. “We feel that we’ve gone through an inflection... Read More

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