Fannie, Freddie and Ginnie issued a combined $742 billion of single-family MBS in the second quarter, smashing a record set back in 2003, the mother lode for mortgage business.
Record-low mortgage interest rates powered a surge in refinance activity in agency mortgage-backed securities platforms during the second quarter of 2020, according to a new Inside Mortgage Trends analysis.
“CRT secondary markets have remained open throughout this crisis,” Freddie Mac's Mike Reynolds told Inside Mortgage Finance. “They were dramatically impacted by the COVID liquidity technical, as all markets were, but I think its important for your readers to know that trading still occurred."
Although the outlook for mortgage-investing REITs has improved since the Fed began buying agency MBS in March, it has not necessarily been evident in their dividends.