A group of four senators has asked the Obama administration and regulators to reject plans by municipalities to use eminent domain to acquire underwater performing mortgages, warning of a dire impact upon the entire mortgage lending space if such a proposal takes root. In a letter dispatched last week to Treasury Secretary Jack Lew and Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan, the bipartisan quartet of senators expressed their dismay that the administration “has been largely silent” on Richmond, CA’s proposal to seize performing mortgages, then refinance them into an FHA product.

The mortgage insurance industry is anxiously awaiting new risk-to-capital rules from the Federal Housing Finance Agency, hoping that the regulator will go easy on an industry that is beginning to recover from a years-long debacle and reclaim market share from the FHA. Private MI executives close to the matter told Inside Mortgage Finance that the FHFA will likely issue a minimum risk-to-capital ratio of 18:1, a tougher standard than the current 25:1, but there is also talk of a phase-in period and “bifurcation” for legacy versus new companies. According to its securities filings, National MI, a new MI, has agreed...

House Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling does not have the votes needed to pass the Protecting American Taxpayers and Homeowners Act in the House and, unless he is willing to be flexible on certain key issues, the package may not reach the House floor at all in this Congress, according to industry lobbyists. Talk that Hensarling, R-TX, may make another push to get the PATH Act to the House floor surfaced this week following an opinion piece he published in the Nov. 27 issue of the Washington Times. In that op-ed, the chairman focused on the bill’s FHA reform component. Hensarling underscored...

Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae still provide most of the funding for home loans originated in 2013, but the non-agency sector has been making a stealthy comeback, according to a new analysis and ranking by Inside Mortgage Finance. Conventional-conforming loan production declined by 24.5 percent from the second quarter of 2013 to the third quarter, dropping to an estimated $275.0 billion. Although that still accounted for 59.8 percent of total production for the period, it was the lowest quarterly volume in conventional-conforming lending since the third quarter of 2011. Government-insured lending continued...[Includes two data charts]

Mortgage credit availability, loan quality and lenders’ ability to foreclose on distressed properties remain big issues as lenders try to adjust to a more difficult, more complex regulatory environment, according to industry participants in a symposium hosted last week by the Urban Institute. While private capital is available, potential investors are wary of investing in the new environment of qualified and non-qualified mortgages and on mortgage companies and ventures that have drawn much regulatory scrutiny, panelists said. The average credit scores on a conventional-conforming purchase loan has increased...

The Department of Housing and Urban Development has issued guidance clarifying FHA lenders’ obligation to report voluntarily instances of fraud, misrepresentation and any other material findings in connection with the origination, underwriting and servicing of FHA-insured loans. Compliance experts say the guidance in Mortgagee Letter 2013-41 is a shot across the industry’s bow – a reminder to lenders about existing FHA policy requiring them to self-report fraud and misrepresentation to the FHA. Upon notification, the FHA works with the lender on any potential mitigation actions. In the inaugural issue of Lender Insight in June, the FHA reported ...

For the first time in five years, private mortgage insurers surpassed all government-insurance programs in the third quarter of 2013 as the largest provider of primary MI coverage in the mortgage market, according to the latest analysis from Inside FHA Lending affiliate Inside Mortgage Finance. The private MI industry showed that it has rebounded from the post-financial crisis by reporting $59.03 billion in new insurance written during the third quarter, down 3.2 percent from the previous quarter but clearly better than the FHA and VA production numbers for the same period. Data showed the two government agencies posting ...

The Department of Housing and Urban Development is considering an industry request to delay the implementation of a proposal requiring FHA lenders to perform a financial assessment of all prospective borrowers of Home Equity Conversion Mortgage loans. In remarks during the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association’s recent annual meeting in New Orleans, FHA Commissioner Carol Galante said HUD is still studying the comments and will need more time to implement the rule. In September, the FHA published a notice in the Federal Register seeking comment on the financial assessment proposal. The proposal is currently in ...

With the FHA high-cost loan limit set to decline from its current statutory level of $729,750 to $625,500, the same level as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, nobody appears to be pushing for an extension. The temporary maximum loan limit for FHA is set to expire on Dec. 31, unless Congress votes for another extension, which appears unlikely, according to mortgage industry analysts. Neither lawmakers nor the White House have shown support for maintaining the current FHA high-cost loan ceiling. Although no one has conceded that the FHA lending ceiling will go down for certain areas, there has been no effort to ...

Many condominium properties continue to struggle to meet stringent FHA requirements while many condo projects are being denied approval despite the easing of FHA approval requirements in recent years. Panelists at a recent National Association of Realtors conference in New Orleans said condos are often the most affordable homeownership option for first-time homebuyers, single borrowers and senior citizens, especially when purchased with FHA financing. Condominium loans are among the strongest performing loans in the FHA portfolio, they added. However, FHA data show that ...