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Inside MBS & ABS

January 18, 2013

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Jumbo MBS Market Showed Signs of Recovery In 2012, Regulatory Fog Slowly Starting to Lift

The non-agency jumbo MBS market in 2012 posted its best year since the cratering of the U.S. housing market and financial market collapse back in 2008, and increased regulatory clarity may spur the recovery further in 2013. A total of $3.46 billion of non-agency jumbo MBS were issued last year, according to a new ranking and analysis by Inside MBS & ABS. In the pre-crash years, that level of issuance didn’t add up to a decent week in productivity. But last year’s prime non-agency MBS issuance was...[Includes three data charts] Read More

Ability-to-Repay Rule to Stymie New Jumbos, Raise Costs for Borrowers, Despite Certainty for Market

The ability-to-repay “qualified mortgage” final rule released last week by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau will likely impair access to and the cost of jumbo and nonprime mortgage loans, in spite of the market clarity and certainty it provides, according to many market observers. Wall Street MBS analyst Laurie Goodman and the rest of her MBS strategy group at Amherst Securities said the implications for jumbo mortgage is that loans with debt-to-income ratios greater than 43 percent will not be made by most lenders, as these mortgages will not qualify for QM status. “The penalties for making non-QM mortgages can be... Read More

Mixed Views on Impact of Basel Changes for Non-Agency MBS

Recent changes announced by the Basel Committee for pending capital standards will increase demand from private capital for non-agency MBS, according to industry participants, but some say the benefit may be muted. Last week, the Basel Committee adjusted the liquidity coverage ratio for Basel III capital requirements by expanding the definition for “high quality liquid assets” to include Level 2B assets. Among the assets newly eligible are certain residential MBS rated AA or higher, subject to a 25.0 percent haircut. “The Basel Committee made... Read More

Moody’s Updates Non-Agency Servicer Criteria, Includes Trustee, GSE Data

Moody’s Investors Service recently implemented a significant overhaul of its methods for assessing servicers of non-agency MBS, replacing criteria issued in 2001. Among other changes, the new standards expand the data sources Moody’s will look at to include more timely figures from trustees and servicing performance for the government-sponsored enterprises. The analysis by Moody’s includes monthly loan-level data from the servicer if provided on a timely basis, monthly performance data from the trustee when available, and GSE servicing data as needed. Previously, the rating service largely relied on loan-level portfolio data from servicers. “The trust data is... Read More

ReadyCap Launches Multifamily Program, Will Tap Private Placement Market in ‘13

ReadyCap Commercial LLC, a startup based in Irvine, CA, issued its first loan approval a few days ago, and hopes to issue a commercial MBS by the fall. The company’s forte is what it calls “low balance” commercial mortgages, including multifamily, office, industrial and retail properties. Its loan size menu ranges from $500,000 to $5 million, company CEO Steve Skolnik told Inside MBS & ABS. Skolnik, who until last June headed commercial services at Aurora Bank FSB, is... Read More

KBW: ‘Robust Growth’ Driving Single-Family REO-to-Rental’s Emergence to an Asset Class

During the next 12 to 24 months, investors should expect “robust growth” from the historically fragmented single-family real estate-owned-to-rental market as it emerges into an institutional asset class, according to analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods. The KBW report noted that despite the market’s traditionally limited funding source of capital – retail or smaller institutional investors – its horizons are expanding. “Investor interest has increased... Read More

Inside Mortgage Finance Publications, Inc., Settles Copyright Infringement Case for More Than $250K

Inside Mortgage Finance Publications, Inc. announced this week that it has just settled a major copyright infringement dispute with a large national financial institution for more than one quarter of a million dollars. Without admitting any infringement, liability or wrongdoing, the financial institution agreed to pay IMFP to settle charges that it had violated federal copyright laws by making unauthorized copies of Inside Mortgage Finance. IMFP alleged that the financial institution had engaged in ongoing in-fringement, distributing infringing copies of dozens of registered issues to a group of non-subscribing employees. “We never like... Read More

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