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Inside Nonconforming Markets

September 21, 2007

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Investors Ready to Buy Subprime Mortgages, but Predict Delays

Maybe it was the slot machines and free drinks talking, but investors at a conference this week in Las Vegas suggest they are ready to support the subprime mortgage market again. At Information Management Network’s Subprime ABS conference, John Kim, a... Read More

FTC Plans to Crack Down On Deceptive Mortgage Ads

The Federal Trade Commission is poised to crack down on lenders that advertise deceptively, targeting ads that are typically aimed at the subprime market. In letters sent last week, the FTC put more than 200 mortgage advertisers and publishers on... Read More

Fed Defends Rise in HMDA Rate-Spread Loans

The proportion of Home Mortgage Disclosure Act originations that qualified as rate-spread loans increased in 2006, according to data released last week by the Federal Reserve Board. In a preemptive strike, the Fed in its report justified the... [Includes one chart] Read More

Analysts Predict Record Losses on Subprime MBS

Issuance of subprime mortgage-backed securities has dropped to a disturbingly low volume and losses on subprime MBS issued in 2006 are expected to hit record highs. Recent reports by Standard & Poor’s and Moody’s Investors Service try to put the current... Read More

First Franklin Plans Layoffs In Response to Losses

First Franklin, the lender some thought would be impervious to the subprime market’s troubles, is laying off staff as its parent is set to take a hit to its third quarter earnings. The fourth-ranked subprime lender through the first two quarters of this year, First... Read More

Merrill Lynch Continues as Top Subprime MBS Shelf

Merrill Lynch’s shelf registration continued to dominate subprime MBS issuance through the first half of 2007, according to the Inside Mortgage Finance MBS Database. Merrill issued $20.11 billion in subprime MBS off of its shelf... [Includes two charts] Read More

Oxford Funding Eager to Buy Distressed Subprime Loans

While lenders are having a hard time finding investors to buy subprime mortgage-backed securities, some companies are swooping in to purchase subprime portfolios at steep discounts. Since July, Oxford Funding has purchased at least $3 million worth of subprime... Read More

Extent of Foreign Subprime MBS Holdings Debated

Most subprime mortgages are securitized, but it is difficult to determine just who purchases the securities. And with subprime mortgages performing exceptionally poorly as of late, who owns the subprime MBS issued in the past year is a matter of both interest... Read More

B&C News Briefs

A bill offering $200 million toward foreclosure counseling recently passed the Senate. The funding was included in an appropriations... The Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight announced last week that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have implemented federal... Read More