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Inside Mortgage Finance

December 11, 2014

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Jumbo Originations Continued to Shine in 3Q14 With Boost From Agency-Conforming Activity

Jumbo mortgage lending and securitization remained one of the bright spots in the home-loan business during the third quarter of 2014, according to a new Inside Mortgage Finance analysis. A total of $81.8 billion in mortgages exceeding the traditional $417,000 conforming loan limit were produced during the third quarter, up 15.4 percent from the second quarter of 2014. Total mortgage originations were up 11.3 percent over the same period. Total jumbo activity included...[Includes three data charts] Read More

Quicken Completes LPMI ‘Sale’ in 60 Hours, Gives Up Profits for Exposure; Other Wholesalers May Follow Suit

Quicken Loans, the nation’s largest nonbank lender, recently offered a lender-paid mortgage insurance “sale” through loan brokers, committing $100 million to the effort and wrapping up the promotion in roughly 60 hours. According to Tod Highfield, vice president of loan production at Quicken, the sale wasn’t designed to hit any volume targets per se, but was meant to heighten the firm’s profile among certain segments of the origination market, namely brokers, credit unions and community banks. The offer was pitched... Read More

Fannie and Freddie Roll Out Much-Anticipated 3 Percent Downpayment Option, Mortgage Industry Response Tepid

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac this week officially announced 97 percent loan-to-value ratio programs to a mixed industry response. Fannie’s low-downpayment option will be available through its MyCommunityMortgage program, as well as for refinances and other non-MCM mortgages. Freddie will offer its 3 percent downpayment product as a purchase or no-cash-out refinance in its Home Possible Advantage program. The biggest difference between the two is... Read More

Underwriting Overlays Remain a Concern, GSEs and Lenders Seen as Sharing the Blame

Democrats in Congress and consumer advocates remain concerned about tight underwriting standards for mortgages, particularly due to overlays established by lenders. However, at a hearing this week by a subcommittee of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, there was a lack of consensus on what causes underwriting overlays. “Instead of matching the creditworthy borrower at the lower end of the distribution with affordable loans, these borrowers are being cut out of the market entirely,” said Sen. Robert Menendez, D-NJ, chairman of the Banking Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation and Community Development. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-MA, suggested... Read More

Treasury Calls for Servicing Reforms Beyond Capital Requirements, Including Changes to Compensation

The migration of mortgage servicing rights from “more tightly to less tightly regulated parts of the financial system” should be addressed by regulators, according to the Treasury Department’s Office of Financial Research. The OFR, which was created by the Dodd-Frank Act to serve the Financial Stability Oversight Council, said Basel capital requirements have created incentives for banks to sell MSRs to nonbanks. In its annual report, the OFR cautioned that nonbanks aren’t as well regulated as banks. “Mortgage servicing activity and the accompanying risks appear... Read More

Treasury Increases Incentives for Non-Agency HAMP, GSE Program Differences Remain

The Obama administration announced increased incentive payments for borrowers in the non-agency Home Affordable Modification Program along with an increase in funds for borrowers that need relocation assistance as part of a short sale or deed-in-lieu of foreclosure. Meanwhile, there are concerns that the HAMP program for mortgages serviced by the government-sponsored enterprises hasn’t been extended to match the non-agency program. The changes to the non-agency HAMP were announced late last week by the Treasury Department and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. HAMP borrowers will be eligible... Read More

CFPB’s HMDA Rulemaking to Exacerbate Fair Lending Enforcement Environment

If mortgage lenders thought fair lending compliance was tough now, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s pending Home Mortgage Disclosure Act rulemaking may well turn enforcement into a hornet’s nest in the very near future, according to one top attorney. “The data to be reported under the CFPB’s proposal is likely to inflame the current fair lending regulatory environment,” said Warren Traiger, counsel at the BuckleySandler law firm, during a webinar this week sponsored by Inside Mortgage Finance. “The Dodd-Frank Act itself specified... Read More

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