National Mortgage News articles from August 2003

National Mortgage News archives from August 2003

Inside Track.
August 4, 2003... OPEN FORUM Constructive Competition 4 EQUITIES Records Earned by Two MIs But Persistency Still an Issue 6 HOME BUILDERS Pulte's Income Hits Record 10 SECURITIZATION FICC Plans More Efficiency in Its MBS...

Freddie Mac Mess 'Hurts Rates'.
August 4, 2003... The fallout from Freddie Mac's accounting scandal has pushed up mortgage rates and it will crimp originations this year, according to Fannie Mae's chief executive, Franklin Raines. In a wide-ranging press conference, Mr. Raines said the...

Freddie Mac Mortgage Holdings-Purchases.
August 4, 2003... ($ in Mils) (2002-2003) (part 1 of 2) Year/ Total Retained PCs Held Port. Grwth Month Portfolio in Port Rate(1) Sept $530,694 $327,835 3.60% Oct ...

Axio IPO: the Wave of the Future?
August 4, 2003... Can a company that doesn't even rank among the top 50 producers go public and have Wall Street fall all over them? And, with the bond market tanking and mortgage rates rising, will the runup in stock prices lead to more mortgage equities?...

Mozilo: Volume Off 35%.
August 4, 2003... Mortgage volumes are off 35% since May, according to one of the top executives in the industry, but there are a couple of silver linings for the business if interest rates continue to climb. Angelo Mozilo, chairman and chief executive of...

10-Year Soars: Refis Down 50%.
August 4, 2003... The rate-indicative 10-year Treasury yield at press time last week had soared as high as 4.4% from the low of 3.11% seen June 13 - a level that some believe could definitively bring the refinancing boom to an end if sustained. "If we stay...

Dividends Rising: Strong Mortgage Earnings and Favorable Tax Policies Have Led Firms to Increase Their Pay Out to Shareholders.
August 4, 2003... Company New Dividend Percent Change Goldman Sachs $0.25 108% Citigroup $0.35 75% Fidelity National Finacial $0.18 50% Wells Fargo ...

DFI Concerned, But Okays Wells Fargo Deal.
August 4, 2003... The Department of Financial Institutions in Washington state said that it "could not disapprove" the merger of Wells Fargo Financial and Pacific Northwest Bancorp, even as it expressed "serious concerns about certain issues." The DFI is...

Correction.(Correction Notice)
August 4, 2003... The photo of Mark Brickell that ran in the July 28 edition of National Mortgage News should have been credited to the American Banker-International Swaps and Derivatives Association. The AB is owned by the same company as this publication. We...

Administration Pressing FHLB System to Register Stock.
August 4, 2003... After nearly a year of talks, the Bush administration is pressing the Federal Home Loan Banks to voluntarily register their stock with the Securities and Exchange Commission. "We now ask that you accept Exchange Act compliance and SEC...

A Mini-FHA in Montana.
August 4, 2003... An Indian Housing Authority in rural Montana is making a couple of bold moves towards ending the mortgage drought on its Native homelands ot only is it actually making mortgages to some of its own clients, it is also guaranteeing repayment of...

Constructive Competition.
August 4, 2003... Excerpts of Mr. Hawke's remarks before the Federalist Society in Washington recently are presented as our Open Forum. Today the relationship between state and federal banking authorities can perhaps best be described as one of constructive...

Records Earned by Two MIs But Persistency Still an Issue.
August 4, 2003... For two of the four publicly traded mortgage insurance companies, the second quarter brought record earnings. But MGIC reported a decline in its earnings and PMI said in June that it would not meet second quarter and 2003 consensus estimates....

Mortgages Fuel J.P.-Chase Gains.
August 4, 2003... J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. in the second quarter earned $1.83 billion net income, or $0.89 per share, 78% higher than reported results for the second quarter of 2002. Like many other Wall Street firms, J.P. Morgan Chase cited strong contributions...

Equity Office Reports Decline in Its Net Income During Q2.
August 4, 2003... Equity Office Properties Trust, the largest real estate investment trust by market capitalization, has reported net income of $149.9 million for the second quarter ($0.37 per share), compared to $166.5 million ($0.40 per share) for the second...

FNIS Earns $15.3MM On a Net Basis.
August 4, 2003... Fidelity National Information Solutions booked $142.3 million in revenue during the 2nd quarter of 2003, up from $92.1 million a year earlier. The company reported net earnings of $15.3 million for the quarter, up 68% from the $6.2 million in...

Net Income Up At Accredited.
August 4, 2003... Accredited Home Lenders Holding Co. here reported record net income of $25.8 million, or $1.25 per share, for the second quarter. That's an increase of 307% from the same period a year earlier, the company said. The company also reported...

Pulte Homes Acquires Sivage-Thomas Homes.
August 4, 2003... Builder and mortgage lender Pulte Homes here has reported that it has acquired Sivage-Thomas Homes, Albuquerque, N.M., for an undisclosed purchase price paid in cash. "In Phoenix, Sivage-Thomas delivered 600 homes primarily to first-time...

Earnings Roundup: Pulte's Income Hits Record.
August 4, 2003... Strong domestic gains that far outweighed weakness in its international markets helped Pulte Homes here and its Pulte Mortgage Corp. affiliate earn record net income of $122 million in the second quarter, up from $90.4 million during the same...

Ryland Earns $54 Million in 2Q.
August 4, 2003... The Ryland Group Inc. here has earned net income of $54 million in the second quarter, up from $44.7 million during the same period last year as gains from homebuilding and Ryland Mortgage unit profits outweighed some increases in its expense...

Beazer USA EPS reach $3.01.
August 4, 2003... Builder, mortgage originator and title services provider Beazer Homes USA Inc. here saw net income rise to $40.7 million in the quarter ended June 30, the third quarter in its fiscal year. Beazer's net income during the same period the previous...

Analyst Eyeing Loan Underwriting.
August 4, 2003... Though mortgage delinquencies and foreclosures to date have been relatively moderate, there is some concern that lenders have liberalized their underwriting standards to the point that loan performance could become problematic, a homebuilder...

MERS Commercial Gets Started with Bank of America Loan.
August 4, 2003... MERS Commercial has officially opened for business, with a $300 million loan closed by Bank of America earlier this month. The electronic loan registry system - designed for use by issuers, master servicers, custodians, originators and...

Some Stockholders Oppose Prime M&A.
August 4, 2003... Two institutional shareholders of Prime Retail have objected to the consideration proposed by the retail real estate investment trust for series A preferred stockholders in connection with its proposed merger with The Lightstone Group. ...

Market Participants Had Been Anticipating MERS Commercial's Launch.
August 4, 2003... The Mortgage Electronic Registry System will benefit commercial users by eliminating the need to do assignments, thereby reducing costs, Bear Stearns managing director Deborah Schiavo noted, during a panel session on the future of technology at...

CRE Transactions at a Glance.
August 4, 2003... * Holliday Fenoglio Fowler has closed a $38.5 million acquisition loan for Inglewood Office Center, a 536,733 sq. foot Landover, Md., office property. * U.S. Restaurant Properties has raised $16 million from the sale of 16,000 shares of...

Roundup: FICC Plans More Efficiency in Its MBS Operations.
August 4, 2003... The Fixed Income Clearing Corp. has announced plans to develop central counterparty capabilities for the clearance and settlement of mortgage-backed securities, which it says will "significantly reduce risk, lower costs and bring increased...

Fitch Moves on Indymac MH.
August 4, 2003... YORK-Four classes of IndyMac Manufactured Housing Contract pass-through certificates have been downgraded by Fitch Ratings. The downgrades were as follows: series 1997-1, class M, from BBB to B; series 1998-1, class M, from BBB to B; series...

Some GS Ratings Changed.
August 4, 2003... The ratings on three classes of GS Mortgage Securities Corp. II's commercial mortgage pass-through certificates, series 1999-C1, have been lowered by Standard & Poor's. The ratings on seven other classes of the same deal were affirmed. ...

COMM Classes See Downgrades.
August 4, 2003... Four classes of COMM 2001-J1 commercial mortgage pass-through certificates have been downgraded by Fitch Ratings. The downgrades were as follows: class F, from BBB to BBB-minus; class G, from BBB-minus to BB; class H, from BB to B; and...

BOA MH Ratings Move Lower.
August 4, 2003... Nine classes from five BankAmerica manufactured housing transactions have been downgraded by Fitch Ratings and two others have been placed on Rating Watch Negative. The downgrades were as follows: series 1995-BA1, class B-2, from B to CCC;...

Roundup: Fairbanks-Related Deals Face Fitch Downgrades.
August 4, 2003... Eleven classes in various structured finance deals have been downgraded by Fitch Ratings following a review of 90 subprime and specialty transactions entirely or partially serviced by Fairbanks Capital Corp. The downgrades in DLJ deals...

Fitch Moves on 3 DLJ Classes.
August 4, 2003... Three classes from three DLJ Mortgage Acceptance Corp. mortgage-backed security deals have been downgraded by Fitch Ratings. The downgrades were as follows: series 1996-Q5, class B-1, from A to BB; series 1996-QB, class B-1, from BB to C;...

Delta MBS Class Downgraded.
August 4, 2003... Class B of Delta Funding Corp.'s series 2000-4 mortgage-backed securities transaction has been downgraded from CCC to CC by Fitch Ratings. Fitch attributed the rating action to higher-than-expected loss levels that have depleted the...

Money Store Ratings Change.
August 4, 2003... The ratings on two classes of Money Store Trust series 1998-A mortgage pass-through certificates have been lowered by Standard & Poor's Ratings Services. The rating on class MH-2 was lowered from A to BB and the rating on class BH was...

Moody's Eyes Ucfc Ratings.
August 4, 2003... Twenty-four senior and subordinate certificates from seven manufactured housing securitizations of United Companies Financial Corp. are being reviewed for possible downgrade by Moody's Investors Service. The affected classes of UCFC Funding...

Correction.(Correction Notice)
August 4, 2003... In the July 7 edition of NMN and our NationalMortgageNews.com website, a story incorrectly stated that GreenPoint Financial, New York, was sold after exiting the manufactured housing business. GreenPoint Financial has not been sold MN regrets...

FCRA Gets Permanent Extension.
August 4, 2003... The House Financial Services Committee has approved a bill that permanently extends the Fair Credit Reporting Act and requires lenders to disclose credit scores to mortgage applicants. The committee approved the bill by a 61-3 vote and...

1st American Reaches 90% Coverage.
August 4, 2003... First American Real Estate Solutions here said that it has reached a milestone in expanding its geographic reach by extending its data coverage from 1,800 to 2,000 counties representing 90% of the U.S. population and 93% of mortgage...

1st Tenn Expands With 1st Horizon.
August 4, 2003... Using its mortgage banking operation as the backbone, First Tennessee Bank, Memphis, Tenn., has opened First Horizon Bank here. This is the company's first retail banking expansion outside of its home market. First Horizon is a familiar...

OCC Pre-Empts Georgia Law.
August 4, 2003... The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has issued an order to pre-empt Georgia's anti-predatory lending law and the regulator of national banks also issued proposed guidelines for pre-empting other state lending laws. "It is a...

Is There an OFES in GSEs' Future?
August 4, 2003... Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., and two other Republican senators have introduced a bill to improve the supervision of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that would also give the Treasury Department the authority to limit the amount of non-mission-related...

World Will Desist on $100 Fees.
August 4, 2003... World Saving Bank, Oakland, Calif., has agreed to a government order to stop paying real estate agents a $100 fee for filling out and submitting online loan mortgage applications for prospective borrowers. The Department of Housing and...

Mortgage Industry Equity Composite.
August 4, 2003... MIEC Index: 164.4 Change: -0.9 (part 1 of 3) 7/24/03 7/31/03 Wkly % Chg Alltel (AT) 46.77 46.79 0% Countrywide Financial Corp.(CFC) 70.30 66.81...

Publicly Traded 'Subprime' Related Firms.
August 4, 2003... B&C Stock Price Index: 199.3 Change: -5.2 (part 1 of 2) 52 wk/lo 52 wk/hi 7/31/03 Aames (AMSF) 0.35 3.47 2.40 American Business Fin. (ABFI) 5.81 ...

The Changing Nature Of FICO Scores.
August 4, 2003... Subprime Firms and Their Minimums Min FICO Scores (part 1 of 2) Rk Organization Name Location 1 BNC Mortgage, Inc. Irvine, CA 2 Accredited Home Lenders San Diego, CA 3 ...

Thornburg Ups Dividend as It Earns $41.6 Million.
August 4, 2003... Thornburg Mortgage earned $41.6 million, or $0.67 per share in the second quarter, while diversifying its funding strategy with two major transactions. The company also raised its dividend by 9% from the previous year's second quarter to $0.62...

Farmer Mac Earnings Flat in 2nd Quarter.
August 4, 2003... The Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation, better known as Farmer Mac, reported net income of $8.4 million in the second quarter, or $0.70 per diluted share, unchanged from the first quarter. The second quarter net income was up from...

E*Trade Group Reports Earnings.
August 4, 2003... E*Trade Group Inc. here reported GAAP net income of $13 million, or $0.03 per diluted share, and closed $2.9 billion in retail mortgage originations for the second quarter of 2003. On the originations side, that's a 16% increase over the...

Congress 'Won't Act' on Predatory Lending.
August 4, 2003... The Mortgage Bankers Association of America is not expecting any congressional legislation on predatory lending this year or next, its chairman told a group of mortgage bankers meeting here. John Courson, addressing the Western Regional...

Inside Track.
August 11, 2003... OPEN FORUM Competition Good for GSEs 4 EQUITIES PMI Earnings Down Despite International Boost 8 SECURITIZATION Banc of America Large Loan Certificate Series Downgraded 16 INTERNATIONAL Emerging Market...

GSE CEO Fighting Uphill Battle?
August 11, 2003... Will Greg Parseghian survive as chief executive of Freddie Mac? Mortgage executives and stock analysts have been speculating for weeks that the new Freddie Mac CEO might find his neck on the chopping block, especially in the wake of the...

HMDA: Minority Lending Up.
August 11, 2003... Lending to minority homebuyers increased substantially in 2002 while loan denial rates declined, according to the latest Home Mortgage Disclosure Act report. The annual HMDA report shows double-digit increases in lending to minority...

Lehman Buying More of BNC?
August 11, 2003... Lehman Brothers, a major player in the subprime market, plans to exercise options that would allow it to purchase a large stake in BNC Mortgage, Irvine, Calif., sources told National Mortgage News. Not only does Lehman already own a stake...

'Do Not Fax' Relief Asked.
August 11, 2003... Mortgage bankers and brokers - who generate 18% of all faxes - have joined with two other groups to ask for a six-month "emergency stay" of the Federal Trade Commission's recent decision to place business faxes on the same footing as unwanted...

Top Residential Servicers (June 30, 2003).
August 11, 2003... (Dollars in Millions) (part 1 of 2) Rk Organization Name Location 1 Washington Mutual Seattle, WA 2 Wells Fargo Hm Mtg San Francisco, CA 3 Countrywide Fin'l Corp....

NC AG, Others Balk at Pre-emption of Georgia Lending Law.
August 11, 2003... The Comptroller of the Currency's pre-emption of the Georgia anti-predatory lending law is not sitting well with state bank supervisors and others who are concerned that OCC wants to expand its pre-emption powers and override other state laws....

Two Stocks Recover After Quick Declines.
August 11, 2003... The stock of NovaStar Financial Inc. here saw a quick steep decline between July 31 and Aug. 4, nearly 13 months after a similar event. Separately, Thornburg Mortgage Inc., Santa Fe, N.M., also saw unusual activity with its stock during the...

Agency MBS Prepayments Soar to 'Unprecedented Heights'.
August 11, 2003... Prepayment rates for agency mortgage-backed securities rose to "unprecedented heights" in the July reporting period, according to the Bear Stearns Prepayment Commentary. The record speeds extended even to the lowest MBS coupons, and two...

A Modest Proposal.
August 11, 2003... How about this for a modest proposal: eliminate downpayment requirements for minority and low-income borrowers. That's what Angelo Mozilo, chairman and chief executive of Countrywide Financial Corp., proposed at the recent Western Regional...

Competition Good for GSEs.
August 11, 2003... Mr. Pollock recently testified before the Senate Governmental Affairs Subcommittee on Financial Management xcerpts of his statement are presented as our Open Forum. The Chicago FHLB provides mortgage financing products to and is entirely...

Rates Hit a One-Year High But Show Signs of Pausing There.
August 11, 2003... If you disliked the upward moves in the rate-indicative 10-year Treasury yield seen recently and the one-year high reached in the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate, then you probably will be happy to hear that it looked last week like we...

PMI Group Buys Controlling Stake in FGIC from GE Capital for $2.16 Bil.
August 11, 2003... An investor group led by PMI Group has agreed to buy Financial Guaranty Insurance Co. here from General Electric Capital for $2.16 billion. After the deal closes, PMI will own 42% of FGIC, an insurer of municipal bonds and securitizations...

Fairbanks Questions Ex-Exec's Criticism.
August 11, 2003... A former president of Fairbanks Capital, Mark Finston, has gone on record criticizing the company's aggressive growth strategy and saying he advised the board about his concerns, but a spokesperson for the company said Mr. Finston left...

PMI Group Earnings Down Despite International Boost.
August 11, 2003... The PMI Group Inc. here reported second-quarter earnings of $69.5 million, or $0.77 per share, down from $81.1 million or $0.88 per share one year prior. However, The PMI Group did not take any impairment related to Fairbanks Capital...

MBS Gains Help Charter One in 2Q.
August 11, 2003... Charter One Financial here, the parent of Charter One Bank, earned net income of $166 million in the second quarter, or $0.72 per diluted share. That was an 18% increase in earnings per share from the year earlier period, fueled by...

Short Sellers Viewed As Concern at ASFS.
August 11, 2003... America's Senior Financial Services here is making an effort to identify short-sellers of its shares on the Over-the-Counter Bulletin Board Exchange and said it may move to certificate-only trading. Adopting certificate-only trading would...

Earnings Roundup: Flagstar's Loans Serviced, Originations Hit Records.
August 11, 2003... Flagstar Bancorp set quarterly company records in earnings and mortgages serviced for the second quarter of 2003. Company assets also passed $10 billion for the first time. Flagstar earned $85.6 million in the quarter ending June 30, 2003,...

Suntrust Net Income Drops.
August 11, 2003... Net income at SunTrust Banks Inc. dropped from the second quarter of 2002 to the second quarter of this year, even as mortgage production rose to $13.4 billion from $5.7 billion. In the quarter ending at the end of June, net income totaled...

Fiserv Reports Record Earnings.
August 11, 2003... Fiserv says its revenues for the second quarter of 2003 for processing and services were $659.1 million, a 17% increase over the $563.6 million it pulled in the second quarter of 2002 et income per diluted share for the quarter was $0.40 per...

SIB's Eps Come In At $0.45.
August 11, 2003... Staten Island Bancorp reported diluted earnings per share of $0.45 in the second quarter, beating the $0.42 estimate made by analysts at Sandler O'Neill. But Sandler O'Neill still ranks the stock as a "hold," with a price target of $21 per...

'Downpayment Assistance Should Focus on Keeping Buyers Housed'.
August 11, 2003... Although the downpayment assistance provider industry has achieved wide recognition, "in order for it to validate its existence," providers must focus on how to add value to the transaction by helping buyers keep their homes, Richard Ferguson,...

'Liberty Bond' Sees 1st AH Funding.
August 11, 2003... The New York City Housing Development Corp. has closed a $5.4 million construction loan that will fund the first affordable housing development to benefit from the Liberty Bond Program and has approved five affordable housing transactions...

Nehemiah Initiative Funding AH Loans.
August 11, 2003... Nehemiah Community Reinvestment Fund here has started the "Moving People from Homelessness to Homeownership" national initiative, which will fund short-term low interest affordable housing loans of anywhere from $10,000 to $750,000. "By...

Pact Aimed at Providing Affordable Home Loans to Latinos.
August 11, 2003... The eagle is about to land for Latino families who are interested in homeownership. Under a new alliance with Freddie Mac, Hispanic families in about a dozen markets will be offered affordable home loans designed specifically at helping...

REIT Transactions at a Glance.
August 11, 2003... * LTC Properties has filed a registration with the SEC for the public offering of 3 million shares of preferred stock, the proceeds of which it intends to use to pay off mortgage debt and also its LOC. * Omega Healthcare Investors has...

RE Cycle Change Strengthening the 1031 Market?
August 11, 2003... The 1031 Exchange market has gained steam in the last year due to changes in the tax laws, and industry participants believe that the bottoming out of the real estate cycle presents further opportunities to make use of this tax provision. ...

Roundup: Multifamily Sector Downturn Appears to Be Bottoming Out.
August 11, 2003... The downturn in the multifamily sector might be bottoming out, the latest survey by the National Multi Housing Council indicates. In the multifamily industry trade association's July 2003 quarterly survey, three of the four indices it bases...

'Shortfalls a CMBS Concern'.
August 11, 2003... Moody's Investors Service has identified unanticipated interest shortfalls as an emerging problem for the commercial mortgage-backed securities industry. This has led to some downgrades and watch listing and more are expected, the rating...

MuniMae Earns $30.6 Millon.
August 11, 2003... Municipal Mortgage & Equity has reported net income of $30.6 million ($1.05 per share) for the second quarter, compared to $2.9 million ($0.11 per share) for the comparable period of 2002. The investor in multifamily debt and equity has...

RAIT EPS Pegged at $0.40.
August 11, 2003... RAIT Investment Trust has reported net income of $8.4 million for the second quarter ($0.40 per common share), compared to net income of $11 million ($0.62 per common share) for the second quarter of last year. For the six months ended...

Roundup: U.S. CMBS Issuance at $37.32 Billion in 1H '03, RBS-GC Says.
August 11, 2003... Domestic issuance of commercial mortgage-backed securities for the first half of the year was $37.32 billion, by RBS Greenwich Capital's reckoning (international issuance for the period is estimated at $5.38 billion). The company recently...

TWo GC Classes Downgraded.
August 11, 2003... Classes A and IO of Greenwich Capital Acceptance Inc.'s commercial mortgage pass-through certificates, series 2001-ZC-1, have been downgraded from A1 to A3 by Moody's Investors Service. The transaction consists of a single fixed-rate...

TrizecHahn Classes Put on Watch.
August 11, 2003... Classes E-3 and E-4 of TrizecHahn Office Properties Trust, series 2001-TZH, have been placed on Rating Watch Negative by Fitch Ratings due to deteriorating performance. The rating agency said the portfolio's stressed net cash flow had declined...