The advance business of the 12 Federal Home Loan Banks continued to shrink again in the fourth quarter of 2010, dropping 24.2 percent from the previous year to $478.59 billion, according to preliminary figures released by the FHLBank Office of Finance. The decline came...[Includes one data chart]

Securitization remained the dominant method of financing new residential mortgages during 2010 despite the fact that the non-agency MBS market remains in shambles. Some 84.9 percent of the $1.570 trillion of home loans originated last year were pooled...[Includes one data chart]

Top mortgage banking operations reported a significant downturn in production-related earnings during the fourth quarter of 2010, but the aggregate results mostly reflected severe buyback expenses at one of the industry’s largest lenders. A new Inside Mortgage Trends analysis of earnings reports from nine mortgage lenders found...[Includes one data chart and one graph]

Jumbo mortgage production held up better than overall mortgage originations in 2010, and the non-agency sector for the first time in two years edged past agency-funded jumbo lending. Total jumbo mortgage originations – production of new home loans exceeding $417,000 – rose...[Includes two data charts]

The Mortgage Bankers Association this week announced that FHA Commissioner David Stevens will take over as the next president and CEO of the trade association, concluding a two-year stint at the government agency. Stevens will take over... [Includes one data chart]

The amount of home mortgage debt outstanding declined for the 11th consecutive quarter during the final three months of 2010, sinking to its lowest level since the end of 2006. The Federal Reserve last week reported there was $10.55 trillion of single-family mortgage debt outstanding at the end of 2010, down 0.6 percent from the third quarter. Since peaking...[Includes two data charts]

Similar lawsuits seeking to stop the implementation and enforcement of the Federal Reserve’s final rule prohibiting certain payments to mortgage loan originators (MLO) have been filed in federal district court in Washington, DC. In recent filings, the National Association of Mortgage Brokers and the National Association of Independent Housing Professionals sought...

Discussion over the size of civil fines to be imposed on mortgage servicers continues in the wake of a draft term sheet of the settlement agreement proposed by state attorneys general that was floated last week. A spokesman for Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller said...

Having different compensation formulas with different wholesale lenders could expose an honest mortgage broker to charges of illegal steering under the Federal Reserve’s loan originator compensation rule taking effect April 1. The California Association of Mortgage Professionals warned...

The Department of Housing and Urban Develoment defended itself against criticism by its own internal watchdog by underscoring steps it has taken to strengthen its ability to target and review high-risk, federally insured mortgage loans. Responding to a recent negative evaluation by its Office of the Inspector General, HUD said...