Nontraditional mortgage forms continue to account for a growing share of the market through the midway point in 2006 – representing 37 percent of current originations – with much of the recent momentum coming from subprime mortgages combining a 40-year amortization with a traditional 30-year term. Interest-only mortgages remain the biggest component of the nontraditional sector, according to the Inside Mortgage Finance MBS Database, which tracked over $1.015 trillion of residential mortgage securities issued during… [One data table included]
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The Department of Justice is investigating a number of mortgage lenders for possible discrimination based on disparities in their 2004 Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data. “To date, we have opened investigations of several lenders, contacted those lenders, and requested additional information regarding their business practices, loan products, and loan data,” said Assistant Attorney General William Moschella in a June 1 letter to Rep. Barney Frank, D-MA, the senior Democrat on the House Financial Services…
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Treasury Department officials are set to meet in the next few days with representatives from the government-sponsored enterprises to discuss possible restrictions on their debt issuance, the key ingredient that fuels portfolio growth and revenue at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The Bush administration is considering requiring quarterly reports from the GSEs that would precisely indicate how much debt they expect to issue and retire over an upcoming quarter. Any issuance that exceeded that amount…
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New mortgage securities issuance by private conduits continues to run well ahead of the pace set last year, thanks to a modest gain in volume during the second quarter. According to the Inside Mortgage Finance MBS Database, a total of $251.35 billion of non-agency mortgage securities were issued by private conduits during the second quarter. That was up 2.5 percent from the first quarter volume, and brought year-to-date issuance to $496.53 billion, an increase of… [Two data tables included]
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When it comes to getting paid, mortgage brokers use a variety of means, including yield spread premiums, points charged to the borrower and other fees. But in this year’s highly competitive mortgage lending environment, most brokers are finding it difficult to charge more than 1 point on prime conforming loans. …
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The FHA reform legislation pending in the Senate could be added into an appropriations bill as early as next week, according to FHA Commissioner Brian Montgomery. Legislators in the House used a similar tactic earlier this year, slipping FHA reform language into an appropriations bill which was easily approved. …
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Ginnie Mae production has been down so long it doesn’t take much of a rebound to look like up. Mortgage-securities issuance under the venerable program surged up 27.9 percent from the first to the second quarter of this year, the biggest increase among all the MBS programs. That brought Ginnie Mae MBS volume to $40.13 billion for the first half of 2006, down 6.6 percent from last year. … [One data table included]
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