Tag: finance

An increase in the federal funds rate, and the likelihood of further increases, was followed by a surge in stock and bond prices. The increase was already built into mortgage rates.

On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve Board announced that its Federal Open Market Committee decided to raise its benchmark short-term rate 25 basis points.

In addition, the Fed indicated that expected economic conditions could warrant two more quarter-percentage-point rate increases this year and three next years.

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From:: Financing

The volume of loans used to finance a home purchase is expected to see a 60 percent quarter-over-quarter surge as refinances drop.

Residential loan originators are forecasted to generate $349 billion in mortgage production during the first-three months of this year.

Business is then expected to jump to $433 billion in the second quarter then decline to $419 billion during the following three months.

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From:: Financing

Several pension funds are claiming victory in a lawsuit originally filed nearly a decade ago over alleged losses suffered from mortgage-backed securities investments.

A number of worker pension funds, including lead plaintiff the New Jersey Carpenters Health Fund, filed a complaint in 2008 against NovaStar Mortgage Inc.

The plaintiffs claim they were misled into believing that the MBS they bought, which were filled with subprime home loans, were safer than they actually were.

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From:: Financing

Nationstar Mortgage LLC has been hit with a civil penalty, though the amount of the fine is minimal. The penalty is tied to noncompliance with the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act.

In a previous filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Nationstar Mortgage Holdings Inc. revealed it was in negotiations with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

The Coppell, Texas-based firm said that it was negotiating a civil money penalty over the CFPB’s allegations that Nationstar had failed to comply with HMDA reporting requirements.

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From:: Financing

As refinances took up a smaller share of monthly residential loan originations, government share widened, and loan approvals got easier.

Conventional loans accounted for 63 percent of all mortgages that were originated during February — the thinnest share since August 2015.

Conventional share of residential production was two-thirds the previous month, while it was 65 percent during the same month last year.

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From:: Financing

The Trump bump has spread to the home building industry, with builders more optimistic now than they’ve been in nearly a dozen years.

The Housing Market Index, a gauge of the single-family construction industry, climbed to 71 in March — the highest reading since June 2005.

An index of more than 50 is an indication that there are more U.S. home builders who view conditions as good than who view them as poor.hile the West saw a three-point decline to 76.

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From:: Financing

Although interest rates on residential loans have increased to the highest level in nearly three years, mortgage applications rose with refinances leading the way.

After making adjustments for seasonal factors, the Market Composite Index for the week that ended on March 10 moved up 3 percent from the prior week.

Without making any seasonal adjustments, the index — a measure of mortgage loan application volume — increased 4 percent from the week ended March 3.

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From:: Financing

As the sale of Banc of California Inc.’s mortgage business approaches, the financial institution has disclosed plans to layoff more than a hundred employees.

In a Form 10-Q filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 1, the Irvine, California-based firm revealed a deal to sell its mortgage business.

According to the filing, an agreement was reached on Feb. 28 for Caliber Home Loans Inc. to purchase the mortgage banking assets of Banc Home Loans.

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From:: Financing

A pair of transactions, one a closed sale and the other a loan offering, include more than $3 billion in Federal National Mortgage Association loans.

Bids are being taken on approximately 7,600 re-performing Fannie Mae loans that have an aggregate unpaid principal balance of $1.65 billion.

The residential loans were previously delinquent. But payments on the mortgages have since been brought current without any loan modifications.

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From:: Financing

From the board room to the C suites, mortgage firms are making executive changes. In addition, two companies made management changes in their wholesale divisions.

EJF Capital disclosed in a Schedule 13D filing that it intends to nominate two candidates to the board of directors of Mount Laurel, New Jersey-based PHH Corp.

PHH said in a March 9 statement that it maintains active dialogue with its investors, and its corporate governance committee will review EJF’s board candidates.

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From:: Financing