The nonconforming mortgage market continued to wilt under the pressure of rising loan defaults, deteriorating house prices and tighter underwriting standards, falling to less than 10 percent of new home loan production during the second quarter of 2008, according to a new analysis and ranking by Inside Mortgage Finance.A meager $4 billion of... [Includes five charts]
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Talks about possible changes to new appraisal standards in a deal between Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight and New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo have hit a brick wall as OFHEO reportedly insisted on more regulatory powers for the independent board that will implement and monitor the standards. Sources familiar with the negotiations said...
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Lenders regulated by the Office of Thrift Supervision reported $107.5 billion in mortgage originations during the second quarter of 2008, down 7 percent from the first three months of the year, according to OTS data released last week. Compared to an estimated 10 percent drop in total originations during that period, the downturn in thrift production was fairly subdued. Thrifts also...
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After four consecutive quarters during which Fannie Mae has lost approximately $9.5 billion, the company’s board finally shook up the management team, forcing three top executives out the door but retaining President and CEO Dan Mudd. Last week, Fannie’s board booted Chief Business Officer Robert Levin, Chief Financial Officer Stephen Swad and Chief Risk Officer Enrico Dallavecchia...
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A controversial bid to reform the mortgage shopping and closing process moved a step closer to reality as the Office of Management and Budget late last month began its review of proposed changes to Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act regulations. The Department of Housing and Urban Development sent a draft final RESPA rule to the OMB for clearance Aug. 21 despite widespread industry and...
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Mortgage lenders support a plan to use the same yardstick for identifying “higher-priced loans” for Home Mortgage Disclosure Act reporting that is now used under the Home Ownership and Equity Protection Act. In a joint comment letter responding to the Federal Reserve Board’s proposed amendment to HMDA reporting rules for higher-priced mortgage loans, a coalition of mortgage and...
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Mortgage industry groups said they were not surprised at all by the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s announcement last week to impose a one-year moratorium on risk-based pricing for FHA mortgages – and then start the program back up again in 2009. The Consumer Mortgage Coalition said HUD’s action was “what everybody expected” following the enactment of the Housing and Economic...
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