The Obama administration’s 2011 budget plan released this week includes an expected bid to raise FHA insurance premiums and a somewhat surprising proposal to tinker with the mortgage-interest tax deduction – but the massive package does not include a blueprint for dealing with the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac conservatorships that many had anticipated. As part of its proposed budget...
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More borrowers were able to refinance through Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac programs targeted to equity-strapped homeowners in late 2009, adding more flavor to what proved to be an unusual year in mortgage refi activity. According to data from the Federal Housing Finance Agency, some 34,458 borrowers used the Home Affordable Refinance Program to get a new loan through Fannie and... [Includes one chart]
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The private mortgage insurance industry’s roller-coaster ride is expected to continue in 2010, propelled by rising mortgage delinquencies, unemployment, increased foreclosures, more policy rescissions and with a few bright spots due to ongoing loan modification efforts. Analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods and Fitch Ratings are less than optimistic in their outlook for...
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The Obama administration last week announced revisions to documentation requirements under the Home Affordable Modification Program to expedite moving homeowners from trial to permanent loan modifications. The Department of the Treasury and the Department of Housing and Urban Development unveiled the changes in an effort to remove a major obstacle to efficient transition from a trial...
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An official from the Obama administration put his best spin on recent Treasury Department statistics concerning the Home Affordable Modification Program but admitted that the initiative presents a few difficult challenges. But while the blame for the program’s struggles are tossed around like a hot potato, some servicers say their industry should be doing more to help...
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The federal government agencies that have dominated the mortgage market for the past two years show no signs that they will lead the market toward a more relaxed approach to credit that could boost production levels this year. New leadership at the Department of Housing and Urban Development is trying to balance the sometimes competing interests of stimulating the housing market and managing...
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Supporters of covered bonds hope the continuing struggles in the U.S. housing market, stagnation in the credit markets and lingering uncertainty about what to do with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will convince policymakers to establish a legal framework for covered bonds in this country. “We have tried at least two times before to bring covered bonds to the attention of the U.S. market...
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The retained mortgage portfolios of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac gradually shrank over the course of 2009, ending the year at their lowest levels since they were thrown into government conservatorship back in the third quarter of 2008. Together, the two government-sponsored enterprises held $1.528 trillion in their retained mortgage portfolios at the end of... [Includes one chart]
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