The mortgage industry got a sneak peek at the much-anticipated annual audit of the FHA’s finances last week, and it came as a pleasant surprise. The FHA’s Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund outperformed initial projections, prompting positive expectations for next week’s important audit report. The FHA’s final quarterly report...[Includes one data chart]
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Top FHA officials maintain that there is hope for the FHA short refi program, but unwillingness by servicers to write down principal has many industry experts tempering their expectations for the program, which has struggled out of the gate. “In my view, we need to push hard...
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The FHA’s share of the mortgage market continued its slide in the third quarter of 2010, its third consecutive quarterly drop, dipping it below the 20 percent threshold for the first time since the second quarter of last year. FHA originations increased...[Includes one data chart and one graph]
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A recent change in Ginnie Mae’s net worth requirement for single-family program participants is not expected to have a large impact on issuers, although some might have some difficulty complying with a new liquid asset requirement. Meanwhile, Ginnie mortgage-backed securities issuance increased...[Includes one data chart]
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The Mortgage Bankers Association is urging the FHA to ensure that the program’s underwriting policy balances “clear, specific guidance with the ability of the lender to exercise the judgment necessary” in any manual underwriting decision. In last week’s comment letter, the MBA recommended...
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The FHA will soon begin taking steps to address faulty foreclosures of FHA-insured mortgages as a result of the recent foreclosure mess dominating headlines, with many of the actions expected to be “significant,” according to a recent alert from Patton Boggs LLP. Action is expected...
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Obama administration officials this week announced a new pilot program that will offer creditworthy borrowers FHA loans to make energy-saving improvements to their homes. These “PowerSaver” loans will offer homeowners up to $25,000 to make energy-efficient improvements including...
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