The portfolio holdings of first-lien residential mortgages at banks and thrifts continued to increase during the third quarter of 2016, according to a ranking and analysis by Inside Nonconforming Markets. Banks and thrifts held $1.93 trillion in first liens at Sept. 30, up 1.6 percent from the previous quarter and a 3.9 percent increase compared with the third quarter of 2015. Originations and acquisitions of mortgages – both jumbos and non-jumbos ... [Includes one data chart]

The denial rate on jumbo mortgages varies significantly among lenders, according to an Inside Nonconforming Markets analysis of data from the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act. Among the top 25 lenders, denial rates for jumbo applications in 2015 ranged from a low of 2.3 percent to a high of 76.8 percent. Overall, the top 25 lenders denied 18.1 percent of the $367.49 billion in total unpaid principal balance for jumbo-mortgage ... [Includes one data chart]

LendSure Mortgage, which originated its first loan in July 2015, contributed mortgages with a total unpaid principal balance of $14.62 million to a nonprime mortgage-backed security recently issued by an affiliate of Lone Star Funds. The lender focuses on non-qualified mortgages via the broker channel. LendSure, headquartered in San Diego, was founded by former executive managers from Accredited Home Lenders, a prominent subprime lender before the financial crisis ...

Spring EQ recently launched operations, focusing on home-equity loans. The nonbank was co-founded by Jerry Schiano, president and CEO of New Penn Financial, a position he will also retain. HEL lending is dominated by banks and credit unions. However, Schiano said Spring EQ aims to compete with other types of lenders. “I want to help underserved borrowers who are currently relying on high-rate personal loans and credit cards or refinancing with large up-front fees,” he said ...

Fitch Ratings assigned a subprime servicer rating to Citadel Servicing in late December, an indication that Citadel will be involved with rated nonprime mortgage-backed securities. Citadel received an RPS3- rating with a stable outlook. Such level 3 servicers demonstrate proficiency in overall servicing ability, according to Fitch. “The servicer rating and stable outlook reflect Citadel’s experienced management team, adequate risk management practices and moderate use of technology ...

Redwood Trust is preparing to issue a $343.28 million jumbo mortgage-backed security, according to a presale report by Kroll Bond Rating Agency. Sequoia Mortgage Trust 2017-1 will include mortgages from 132 lenders, led by Quicken Loans with a 7.8 percent share. Servicing for loans in the MBS will mostly be handled by Shellpoint Mortgage Servicing. Redwood will retain 1.0 percent of the dollar volume of the MBS, according to KBRA. Three firms ... [Includes two briefs]

Ginnie Mae guaranteed a total of $507.46 billion of single-family mortgage-backed securities in 2016, its biggest annual volume ever, according to a new analysis and ranking by Inside FHA/VA Lending. That was up 16.4 percent from the agency’s previous record of $435.80 billion set in 2015. (Those figures include MBS backed by FHA home-equity conversion mortgages, which are not included in the table below or in the rankings on pages 3-5.) In 2016, Ginnie guaranteed $497.03 billion of MBS backed by traditional forward mortgages, also a record, which was up 16.9 percent from the previous year. The biggest factor in last year’s record-setting production was the boom in VA lending, particularly VA refinance loans. Issuers securitized a record $203.03 billion of VA loans last year, up 33.0 percent from the 2015 total. Some 54.3 percent of those loans were refinance transactions. Total VA refi loan ... [4 charts]

“It was a record month for us,” said Angel Oak executive Mike Fierman.

Ever since the nation’s financial crisis, commercial banks and other depositories have dominated the second-lien business and likely will continue to do so in the coming years, but that isn’t stopping nonbanks from testing the waters once again. According to research by Inside Mortgage Finance, several nonbanks have slipped back into the market, albeit with muted production volumes. And many of the firms that have crept back in are partnering with depositories. The reason for the strategy is...

For years, TransUnion has worked to get mortgage lenders and the GSEs to adopt VantageScore, a move that is still under consideration, according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency.