Tag: finance

Weekly interest rates on single-family loans moved higher, with 15-year rates taking the biggest hit. The spread between adjustable and fixed rates has recently thinned, pushing more borrowers into fixed rates.

Mortgage borrowers who have the best profiles were offered annual percentage rates of 3.75 percent during November for 30-year fixed-rate loans used to finance home purchases.

That turned out to be the same APR that borrowers with the same profiles were offered by home lenders during the preceding month.

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From:: Financing

The Government National Mortgage Association has imposed restrictions on refinances of home loans guaranteed by the Department of Veterans Affairs.

In 2016, Ginnie Mae changed its program rules to address the rapid refinance and churning of VA mortgages. But the problem still persisted.

Then, prompted by criticism from Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts), it formed a task force with VA to further address the issue.

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From:: Financing

Home lenders were more flexible with loan approvals last month than at any time since the financial crisis. Jumbo conditions eased most as investor offerings expanded.

A standardized quantitative index for mortgage credit, the Mortgage Credit Availability Index, landed at 182.4 for the month of November 2017.

Historical data for the index indicate that last month’s level turned out to be the most flexible period for mortgage credit since at least 2008.

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From:: Financing

A television advertisement being run by a group that has the support of Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts) seeks to stop the Trump administration from gutting the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

President Donald J. Trump last month appointed Mick Mulvaney to serve as acting director of the CFPB despite the outgoing director’s attempt to put his own person in charge.

Democrats protested Trump’s move, claiming that the president was violating the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act with his appointment.

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From:: Financing

Issuance of residential mortgage-backed securities filled with jumbo mortgages, nonprime loans and reverse mortgages is forecasted to rise next year, while credit standards are likely to ease.

The RMBS market is expected to continue to expand during 2018. Issuance will be robust across deal types as performance remains steady thanks to a strong housing market and macroeconomic fundamentals.

As was the case this year, next year’s issuance is expected to include deals securitized by new issuers that are backed by a wider array of assets — possible with diverse structural elements.

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From:: Financing

Quarterly mortgage originations increased at Caliber Home Loans Inc., as did the size of its servicing portfolio. But the company reduced its payroll by nearly 200 people.

As of Sept. 30, 2017, Caliber serviced 498,030 single-family loans that had a collective unpaid principal balance of $114.202 billion.

The Irving, Texas-based organization disclosed those details and more as part of the Mortgage Daily Third Quarter 2017 Mortgage Origination Survey.

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From:: Financing

New monthly business at the Federal Housing Administration turned lower and is likely to recede even further. Reverse mortgage applications exploded ahead of premium changes. FHA delinquency deteriorated.

At the end of its fiscal-year 2017, insurance was in force on 8,578,803 residential loans for $1.3031 trillion, according to an analysis of data reported by the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

FHA’s book of business was comprised of $1.1588 trillion in single-family loans, $0.1433 trillion in home-equity conversion mortgages and $0.0010 trillion in Title I loans.

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From:: Financing

Mortgage applications took off this past week, with refinances leading the way. As refinance share widened to a nearly three-month high, adjustable-rate share was at an almost 11-month low.

A nearly 5 percent seasonally adjusted escalation from one week previous was recorded for the Market Composite Index for the seven-day period that concluded on Dec. 1.

But the index, a measure of retail single-family loan application volume, skyrocketed 47 percent from the week ended Nov. 24 when seasonal factors are disregarded.

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From:: Financing

A bill that would reduce regulation for smaller financial institutions and make it easier for consumers to get mortgages has been passed by a key Senate committee.

The Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief and Consumer Protection Act was passed Tuesday by the Senate Banking Committee.

About 30 large financial institutions would be exempted from stricter oversight put in place by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection of 2010.

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From:: Financing

Loan performance on securitized commercial real estate loans improved for the fifth consecutive month, with office loans faring best. But the holiday season isn’t being kind to retail.

Delinquency of at least 30 days on loans that are included in commercial mortgage-backed securities was 5.18 percent as of Nov. 30.

That turned out to be a 3-basis-point improvement from the previous month, the fifth month in a row the rate was down, and the lowest rate since January.

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From:: Financing