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Inside Mortgage Finance

July 2, 2015

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GSE Business Volume Continued Growing in 2Q15; Purchase-Mortgage Market Strengthens

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac saw a robust 22.3 percent increase in their single-family business during the second quarter of 2015, according to a new Inside Mortgage Finance ranking and analysis. The two government-sponsored enterprises issued a combined $232.36 billion of single-family mortgage-backed securities during the second quarter. It was their strongest quarterly production level since the third quarter of 2013, and it lifted ... [Includes three data charts] Read More

GSEs Bump Up Private MI Capital Requirements For Future Lender-Paid Mortgage Insurance

Private mortgage insurers will have to hold more capital for lender-paid mortgage insurance, but the changes will only apply to business written after Jan. 1, 2016. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac this week announced that lender-paid MI coverage will be subject to a 1.10 “multiplier” for mortgages with loan-to-value ratios above 90 percent. Mortgages with LTV ratios of 90 percent or less will be subject to a 1.35 percent multiplier. The government-sponsored enterprises ... Read More

Lenders Face Higher Standard of Conduct in Wake of SCOTUS Ruling on Disparate Impact, Attorneys Say

Late last week, the Supreme Court of the United States delivered some long-sought clarity on the legitimacy of disparate-impact claims brought under the Fair Housing Act in the case of Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs v. The Inclusive Communities Project, Inc. The highest court in the land validated the position of various lower courts, regulatory agencies and administrations over the last four decades that disparate impact is ... Read More

One Potential Loser in GSE AU Systems Becoming Free: Mortgage Cooperatives

When Fannie Mae recently announced that its automated underwriting system would be free for all seller-servicers, matching a move made by Freddie Mac, lenders everywhere rejoiced. But not the nation’s mortgage cooperatives, which stand to lose business because the advantage of their “buying power” (with Fannie and Freddie, at least) is now greatly reduced. “Co-ops basically lose their main benefit,” said Mat Ishbia, president and CEO of United Wholesale Mortgage ... Read More

Mortgage M&A Train Continues: Fast-Growing Pingora Being Sold to a REIT, Farmers Bank Sells Call Center

Earlier this year, Pingora Asset Management was out in the market trying to raise another $500 million to buy mortgage servicing rights, but wasn’t having much luck, according to industry sources. But in late June it found something a little more enticing: a buyer to acquire the entire company and its affiliate, Pingora Loan Servicing, without its existing book of receivables. As soon as Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and other vested parties approve the purchase, the new owner will be ... Read More

Servicers Large and Small Oppose Plan by States To Impose Capital Requirements on Nonbanks

Capital requirements and standards proposed by state regulators for nonbank servicers appear to be unnecessary, according to trade groups representing servicers. State regulators issued the proposal in March, seeking to ensure that nonbanks conduct their servicing operations in a safe and sound manner and have strong consumer protections in place. “It is not clear that nonbank mortgage servicers require a prudential regulatory regime,” a group of 37 state ... Read More

Factors Beyond Interest Rates Limiting Originations of Adjustable-Rate Mortgages

Originations of adjustable-rate mortgages in the past seven years have been well below production seen before the financial crisis. While low interest rates have contributed to limiting originations of ARMs, industry analysts suggest that other factors will continue to constrain ARM production even when interest rates rise. An estimated $41.0 billion in ARMs were originated in the first quarter of 2015, down 10.0 percent from the previous quarter and off ... Read More

Dueling Reports Offer Contrasting Analyses of FHA’s Financial Condition, Some Trends Indicate Improvement

The FHA is either close to achieving full recovery or nearing collapse and needing a potential taxpayer bailout, depending on which of two opposing views is more persuasive. The conflicting views stem from the latest analyses of the FHA’s health conducted by Potomac Partners, a mortgage industry consultancy, and the American Enterprise Institute’s International Center on Housing Risk. Both reports looked into FHA risk, mortgage performance, delinquency rates ... Read More

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