HARP 2.0s Captured Audience Boosts Mortgage Bankers Near-Term Earnings
April 19, 2012
Lenders should expect at least a short-term boost in profits from the Federal Housing Finance Agencys recent tweaks to the Home Affordable Refinance Program, analysts say, but HARP 2.0s long-run effectiveness to the pool of underwater borrowers remains an open question. Since January, the industrys largest mortgage servicers, including Wells Fargo and JPMorgan Chase, have seen a significant uptick in new refinance applications for HARP 2.0. This quarter should be one of the strongest quarters for mortgage banking weve seen in quite some time, said FBR Capital Markets Paul...(Includes one data chart)