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Inside Mortgage Finance

May 26, 2011

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Jumbo Market Holds Up a Bit Stronger as 2011 Downturn Hits All Mortgage Products

Conventional conforming mortgage production took the heaviest hit in new lending during the first quarter as all four corners of the single-family originations market recorded sharp declines, according to a new Inside Mortgage Finance ranking and analysis. Originations of conventional mortgages that meet conforming loan limits sank 40.0 percent from the fourth quarter of 2010, hitting an estimated $213.0 billion. The conventional conforming market still had the biggest role in the market, accounting for 65.5 percent of new originations, but a sharp drop in refinance activity hit the sector hard. Government-insured lending was also... [Includes two data charts] Read More

Industry Groups Urge Caution in Changing FHA Minimum Downpayment, MIP Rules

Industry groups urged policymakers to use caution in considering legislation to reduce FHA loan limits, require higher downpayments and make further changes to mortgage insurance premiums. In testimony before the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Insurance, Housing and Economic Opportunity this week, officials of the mortgage banking and housing industries supported efforts to reform the FHA, Ginnie Mae and the Rural Housing Service to restore stability and strength to the housing sector. But such reforms should strike the proper balance between prudent risk management and providing credit assistance to qualified borrowers, they said. The hearing was called... Read More

Home Purchase Mortgage Activity Remains Weak As Distressed Properties and Cash Sales Color Market

Home purchase mortgage activity is limping along in 2011 as high levels of both distressed properties and cash sales continue to weigh down the housing market. According to new numbers released by the Campbell/Inside Mortgage Finance HousingPulse Tracking Survey, the Distressed Property Index decreased slightly in April but still remained at an elevated level of 47.7 percent. An abundance of distressed properties in the housing market is cutting into home purchase lending. The new HousingPulse Survey results show that the share of damaged real estate owned – the hardest sector of home sales to obtain traditional financing – jumped from [Includes one graph] Read More

Delinquency Rates Still Aren’t Stellar, but Improvement In the First Quarter May Reflect Turn for the Better

Mortgage delinquency rates improved in almost all categories, and although they’re still high, it could signal a positive turning point, according to recent reports. The Inside Mortgage Finance Larger Servicer Delinquency Index showed an overall delinquency rate at 10.27 percent in the first quarter, down from 11.25 percent in 4Q10, and the lowest seen since the 9.39 percent rate in 1Q09. Improvements were seen in every category of delinquency from last quarter. Loans 30-60 days delinquent went from 2.81 percent to 2.41 percent, 60-90 days delinquent from 1.25 percent to 1.01 percent and loans over 90 days delinquent from... [Includes one data chart] Read More

FHFA Director Defends Regulatory Discretion, Comments On Second Set of GOP Fannie, Freddie Wind-Down Bills

The head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency urged House Republican sponsors of various bills aimed at reforming Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to include the government-sponsored enterprises’ regulator as part of the solution to avoid the problem of the two sides working at cross purposes. “FHFA and the enterprises are facing challenging times as Congress considers legislation to restrict, transform and wind down the enterprises,” said Edward DeMarco, acting director of the FHFA, during a hearing in the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance and GSEs this week. “During this period, I respectfully ask that... Read More

Fed’s Loan Originator Compensation Regulation Still Leaves Key Compliance Questions Unanswered

Industry representatives are making headway in obtaining clarification from the Federal Reserve on various aspects of the agency’s controversial regulation on loan originator compensation. But there are a number of key questions that still have to be addressed, and until they are, lenders need to proceed carefully, according to a top official at one of the nation’s largest mortgage lenders. One area in which the industry needs clarification has to do with compensation based on “time spent” as it pertains to different loan programs and products, and whether compensation can be established on a loan-by-loan basis or by... Read More

California AG Steps Up Foreclosure Probe, Swells Crusade Of Investigators Digging Into Mortgage Practices

California Attorney General Kamala Harris this week announced a new mortgage-fraud investigating force to monitor and prosecute deviations from the mortgage processes required by law. The new group, called the California Attorney General’s Mortgage Fraud Strike Force, will be composed of attorneys and investigators from the state Department of Justice (both civil and criminal), and will oversee processes such as mortgage loan origination and the way mortgage-backed securities are marketed to investors. “We will work to safeguard the homeowner at every step of the process – from origination of a loan to its securitization – and we will... Read More

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