Nearly 3.0 million non-prime mortgages are likely to qualify for modifications under the Obama administration’s Home Affordable Modification program. While 76.0 percent of subprime mortgages outstanding are eligible for the program, according to analysts at...
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The Home Affordable Modification program and a modification safe harbor for servicers pending in Congress have increased tensions between non-prime servicers and mortgage-backed security investors. The Treasury Department said the HAM program is not intended to override MBS...
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Portfolios of skittish lenders remain the only outlet for jumbo mortgages at the moment, as investors have avoided the collateral, even when backed by the government-sponsored enterprises. Issuance of jumbo non-agency mortgage-backed securities fell 96.1 percent from 2007 to...
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The House approved legislation with cramdown provisions last week, setting the stage for another cramdown showdown in the Senate. H.R. 1106, “The Helping Families Save their Homes Act,” passed the House on a 234-to-191 vote, largely on party lines. The legislation would give...
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The House could vote on strong anti-predatory lending legislation as soon as this month, according to Rep. Barney Frank, D-MA, chairman of the House Financial Services Committee. Frank said the legislation will be stronger than a bill that passed the House in 2007. In fact, he...
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An increase in first-time homebuyers – one of the few generally positive aspects of the subprime mortgage boom – “most likely has been overstated,” according to new research by the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland. Yuliya Demyanyk, a senior research economist currently...
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Another subprime titan ceased lending last week as HSBC said it will stop making subprime mortgages and wind down its HSBC Finance subprime operation. The exit includes the closure of 800 branches in 46 states and 6,100 employees. HSBC bolstered its subprime presence six years...
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With new subprime originations all but extinct, non-prime lenders continue to focus their efforts on helping troubled borrowers. Delinquencies and loan modifications increased again while foreclosure actions stalled in the fourth quarter of 2008. The volume of subprime...
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