National Mortgage News articles from August 2008

National Mortgage News archives from August 2008

MER Stages Fire Sale.
August 4, 2008... NEW YORK -- An affiliate of private equity firm Lone Star, which has held investments in two surviving subprime firms, also has purchased problematic mortgage-related assets with a gross notional value of $30.6 billion for $6.7 billion from...

Bush Signs Major Housing Bill.
August 4, 2008... WASHINGTON -- Now that President George Bush has signed the housing bill, the hard work of implementing its provisions begins in the midst of a weak market and tight credit conditions. Treasury secretary Henry Paulson said last week that he...

Bonds Get U.S. Push.
August 4, 2008... WASHINGTON -- Hoping to revive the private label MBS market, the Treasury Department last week issued a best practices guide aimed at underwriters that are interested in issuing "covered bonds" backed by nonconforming loans. "The private...

Bill Builds on National Registry.
August 4, 2008... WASHINGTON -- Starting next August, banks and thrifts will have to list their loan officers on the Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System and Registry that will be used to track all mortgage originators and get rid of "bad actors" in the...

Tech to Aid Wholesale.
August 4, 2008... PLEASANTON, CA -- As more and more lenders exit wholesale, LOS vendor Ellie Mae says it is helping three new wholesale operations re-enter the space with a totally electronic process based on the company's Dynamic Loan Screening tool, and the...

Some HELOCs Cut.
August 4, 2008... RICHMOND, VA -- SunTrust Mortgage here - which ranks 10th among all residential wholesalers - has pulled the plug on home-equity lending through mortgage brokers. Officials at the company confirmed the change to National Mortgage News late...

Home Price Drop Hits Record.
August 4, 2008... NEW YORK -- U.S. home prices were down by a record 15.8% in May from the level recorded a year earlier, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller home price index. For the second month in a row, all 20 of the metropolitan areas tracked by the...

GMAC Posts $2.5 Billion Net Loss in 2Q.(Financial report)
August 4, 2008... NEW YORK -- GMAC Financial Services here posted a second-quarter net loss of $2.5 billion, of which $1.9 billion is attributable to losses at Residential Capital LLC, Minneapolis. For the same period last year, GMAC Financial Services had...

OCC Seizes Former Wholesaler.
August 4, 2008... SCOTTSDALE, AZ -- A local financial institution, which had once been a top 40 mortgage wholesaler, has been taken over by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, along with an affiliated institution. OCC has seized First National...

FASB Delays Rule Affecting $10.5 Trillion in Bonds.
August 4, 2008... WASHINGTON -- The Financial Accounting Standards Board has delayed implementation of a rule (FAS 140) that could force issuers of securitized assets - including mortgages - to post more capital on bonds guaranteed and held off balance sheet....

'Short' Order Is Extended.
August 4, 2008... WASHINGTON -- The Securities and Exchange Commission has extended its emergency order designed "to enhance protections against naked short selling in the securities of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and primary dealers at commercial and investment...

FBR Takes Loss Of $25.1 Million.
August 4, 2008... ARLINGTON, VA -- Friedman Billings Ramsey Group Inc. here saw a net loss for the second quarter of 2008 of $25.1 million (-$0.17 per share), compared with net earnings of $10.2 million ($0.06 per share) for the same period one year earlier. The...

Editorial: A Net Positive.(Editorial)
August 4, 2008... The new federal housing bill at press time early last week appeared to be shaping up to be a net positive for the mortgage industry and welcome news given the tough times the business has seen recently. But we hope the often-unpredictable...

Open Forum: Confronting Challenges.
August 4, 2008... Mr. Bernanke's semiannual monetary policy report to the Congress is presented as our Open Forum. (Second of two parts.) In the housing sector, activity continues to weaken. Although sales of existing homes have been about unchanged this...

Considering Securitization Developments.
August 4, 2008... Mortgage-related investors had some securitization-related developments to process last week at press time along with Merrill Lynch's decision to sell billions of dollars in problematic real estate finance assets, the massive housing bill's...

ASF Seeks to Rebuild Investor Confidence in MBS and ABS.
August 4, 2008... NEW YORK -- The American Securitization Forum has launched ASF Project RESTART, an industry-developed initiative to help rebuild investor confidence in mortgage- and asset-backed securities, restore capital flows to the securitization markets...

Fitch: CMBS Servicers Processing Loan Assumptions Faster.
August 4, 2008... CHICAGO -- Commercial mortgage-backed securities loan servicers are cutting down loan assumption processing times without compromising underwriting quality, according to Fitch Ratings. At the same time, Fitch said there still are opportunities...

Pols: More on Foreclosures.
August 4, 2008... WASHINGTON -- Congress has just passed legislation designed to avert foreclosure and increase refinancing options for troubled borrowers, but some leaders on Capitol Hill think more legislation is needed to protect homeowners from foreclosure....

Roundup: Ameriquest Scratch-and-Dent Classes' Grades Slip.
August 4, 2008... NEW YORK -- Thirty-one tranches from seven scratch-and-dent transactions issued by Ameriquest/Quest Trust X have been downgraded by Moody's Investors Service. Moody's said the downgrades are part of a wider review of all residential...

Lydian Forms FHA Outsourcing Subsidiary.
August 4, 2008... BOCA RATON, FL -- Realizing that more and more lenders are looking to get into FHA but have little real experience on how to process these loans, Lydian Data Services here has established Lydian Data Government Services, a new subsidiary...

Roundup: Construction Loan Seen as Largest in U.S. in '08.
August 4, 2008... NEW YORK -- Global private equity firm The Carlyle Group, Extell Development Co. and RREEF have secured a $613 million construction loan for the development of two luxury residential buildings at Riverside South on Manhattan's Upper West Side....

The Landmark Housing Bill - Key Mandates.
August 4, 2008... President George Bush signed the massive housing bill (H.R. 3221) that is designed to shore up the mortgage and housing markets by expanding the Federal Housing Administration mortgage insurance programs and strengthening regulation and...

U.S. Bancorp's Downside Seen as Limited Given Tough Market.
August 4, 2008... MINNEAPOLIS -- U.S. Bancorp saw net income slide 18% in the second quarter from the year-earlier period, but analysts and investors praised the firm for navigating through a difficult credit environment. The company earned $950 million in the...

Earnings Halved at WestAmerica.
August 4, 2008... SAN RAFAEL, CA -- WestAmerica Bancorporation saw its second-quarter income fall to half the level from the second quarter of last year, with the company's investment in the preferred stock of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac proving to be a...

Facing Charges at FNB, Cardinal.
August 4, 2008... ASHEBORO, NC -- FNB United Corp. here said it took a goodwill impairment charge of $1.8 million, or $0.16 per share, related to its Dover Mortgage Co. unit. The charge reduced second-quarter earnings for FNB United to $140,000, or $0.01 per...

Correction.(Correction notice)
August 4, 2008... Daniel H. Jacobs is chief executive officer of 1st Metropolitan Mortgage, Charlotte, N.C. His title, as stated in a recent article based on misinformation from a press representative, was incorrect. (c) 2008 National Mortgage News and...

FHA Specialist Exits Wholesale.
August 4, 2008... MELVILLE, NY -- Ideal Mortgage Bankers Ltd. here is exiting the wholesale lending business, which operates under the name Ideal Mortgage, to concentrate on expanding Lend America, its retail lending platform. The company specializes in doing...

Roundup: WaMu Covered Bonds on Review.
August 4, 2008... NEW YORK -- Moody's Investors Services here has placed on review for possible downgrade the rating of euro-denominated debt securities issued by the WM Covered Bond program. The move affects 6 billion euros ($9 billion) of covered bonds....

People.
August 4, 2008... CALIFORNIA Irvine-Thompson National Properties said that Theresa Hutton has joined the company as senior vice president, due diligence. Previously, Ms. Hutton was vice president, due diligence at Grubb & Ellis Realty Investors,...

Prime FRM Trend Accelerates.
August 4, 2008... WASHINGTON -- The second half of 2007 showed the mortgage originations market moving even more towards a fixed-rate, prime credit business, according to the latest Mortgage Bankers Association Mortgage Originations Survey. "Long-term rates...

Correction.(Correction notice)
August 4, 2008... Daniel H. Jacobs is chief executive officer of 1st Metropolitan Mortgage, Charlotte, N.C. His title, as stated in a recent article based on misinformation from a press representative, was incorrect.

Earnings Halved At WestAmerica.(Equities)
August 4, 2008... SAN RAFAEL, CA-Westamerica Bancorporation saw its second-quarter income fall to half the level from the second quarter of last year, with the company's investment in the preferred stock of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac proving to be a significant...

Facing Charges At FNB, Cardinal.(Equities)
August 4, 2008... ASHEBORO, NC-FNB United Corp. here said it took a goodwill impairment charge of $1.8 million, or $0.16 per share, related to its Dover Mortgage Co. unit. The charge reduced second-quarter earnings for FNB United to $140,000, or $0.01 per share,...

FASB Delays Rule Affecting $10.5 Trillion in Bonds.
August 4, 2008... WASHINGTON-The Financial Accounting Standards Board has delayed implementation of a rule (FAS 140) that could force issuers of securitized assets - including mortgages - to post more capital on bonds guaranteed and held off balance sheet. ...

Prime FRM Trend Accelerates.
August 4, 2008... WASHINGTON-The second half of 2007 showed the mortgage originations market moving even more towards a fixed-rate, prime credit business, according to the latest Mortgage Bankers Association Mortgage Originations Survey. "Long-term rates...

'Short' Order Is Extended.
August 4, 2008... WASHINGTON-The Securities and Exchange Commission has extended its emergency order designed "to enhance protections against naked short selling in the securities of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and primary dealers at commercial and investment banks"...

Fitch: CMBS Servicers Processing Loan Assumptions Faster.(Servicing)
August 4, 2008... CHICAGO-Commercial mortgage-backed securities loan servicers are cutting down loan assumption processing times without compromising underwriting quality, according to Fitch Ratings. At the same time, Fitch said there still are opportunities for...

Quarterly Volume Sinks.
August 11, 2008... WASHINGTON -- Residential loan production fell by 26% in the second quarter to just $589 billion, according to preliminary survey figures compiled by National Mortgage News and the Quarterly Data Report. However, the sample is based on just...

GSE Share Spikes.
August 11, 2008... WASHINGTON -- Whatever the prevailing notion might be on the short-term future of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, one fact not in dispute is something called their "loan purchase" market share. The two mortgage investing giants - which are...

FHA Production Jumps by 48%.
August 11, 2008... WASHINGTON -- The Federal Housing Administration's single-family loan business is really taking off with the higher loan limits and despite all the grumbling about FHA's short-term experiment with risk-based pricing, lenders are not going to...

Indy Still in Reverse.
August 11, 2008... WASHINGTON -- Even though IndyMac Bancorp is now a ward of the government, its reverse mortgage lending division is still funding loans to senior citizens. "It's business as usual at Financial Freedom," said a spokesman for the Federal...

More Pain for MI Companies.
August 11, 2008... NEW YORK -- If the quarterly financial results are any indicator, the mortgage insurance industry is not close to turning the corner yet. The PMI Group Inc., Walnut, Creek, Calif., reported a net loss for the second quarter of 2008 of...

Connecticut AG Joins Growing List of Countrywide Plaintiffs.
August 11, 2008... HARTFORD, CT -- Connecticut attorney general Richard Blumenthal is the latest state AG to file suit against mortgage giant Countrywide Financial Corp. for allegedly pushing consumers into deceptive, unaffordable loans and workouts, and charging...

NYU Prof: Cost of Crisis Will Top $2T.
August 11, 2008... NEW YORK -- By the end of next year financial institutions will be looking at $2 trillion in writedowns due to the current credit crisis, according an economics professor at New York University. Speaking on CNBC early last week, Nouriel...

VA Faces Subprime Hurdles.
August 11, 2008... WASHINGTON -- More military veterans are turning to the Department of Veterans Affairs for purchase mortgage loans, but VA is limited in its ability to help vets refinance out of unaffordable subprime loans. Congress recently passed a major...

EDITORIAL: Not a Happy Anniversary.(Editorial)
August 11, 2008... A year ago this week, the collapse of two Bear Stearns subprime hedging funds signaled that the liquidity crisis in the B&C market was not just a cyclical correction but the ongoing disaster it has continued to be. The failure of Bear...

OPEN FORUM: Examine Risk Management.
August 11, 2008... Mr. Reich's remarks at the American Bankers Association Summer Meeting in Orlando, Fla., recently are presented as our Open Forum. Our industry and the economy overall have been hit hard by a continuing housing downturn. The economy remains...

Despite Relatively Strong Performance, New CMBS Slow.
August 11, 2008... Although the performance of the commercial mortgage-backed securities sector has held up well when compared to residential, it appears issuance has slowed notably this year, especially over the summer. New issuance of U.S. CMBS has dropped...

Consumer Understanding of Credit Improves Modestly.
August 11, 2008... WASHINGTON -- Consumer understanding of credit scores remains poor even though according to a recent survey it has improved over the past year. Moreover, customers fail to understand the dollar cost of a low credit score. A credit score...

FirstAm Delays Business Split.
August 11, 2008... NEW YORK -- The First American Corp., Santa Ana, Calif., is delaying the split of its financial services and information solutions businesses. The company had planned to spin off the financial services business into a new company, which would...

Thornburg Loosens Reins on Tender Offer.
August 11, 2008... SANTA FE, NM -- Thornburg Mortgage here has amended the terms of a preferred stock tender offer that executives say is key to its survival, reducing the percentage of aggregate preferred shareholders that must agree to it to complete it to 66...

Analyst Raises One REIT, Lowers Another.
August 11, 2008... NEW YORK -- RBC Capital Markets real estate analyst Mike Salinsky has raised his rating on BRE properties to "outperform" while lowering his rating on UDR to "sector perform." At the same time, the analyst raised his price target for BRE, a...

Imperial Capital Buys Alt-A CMOs.
August 11, 2008... LA JOLLA, CA -- Imperial Capital Bancorp's second-quarter net income was trimmed by an increase in the loan loss provision, but the company has also bet that the time is right to increase its stake in alt-A mortgage assets at a time when many...

Origen Loses $4.8MM in 2Q.
August 11, 2008... SOUTHFIELD, MI -- Origen Financial Inc., a real estate investment trust that had been a major lender and servicer in the manufactured housing sector, had a net loss of $4.8 million (-$0.19 per share) for the second quarter, compared with net...

Treasury Unveils 'Best Practices' Guide for Covered Bonds.
August 11, 2008... BERLIN -- Treasury's release of "best practices" for covered bonds is a step forward when it comes to developing a U.S. market for the European-style debt instruments, according to Louis Hagen, executive director of the Association of German...

Mortgage Insurance: A Hole In The Net?
August 11, 2008... Looking at the financial results of the publicly traded mortgage insurance companies, it is difficult to work up any optimism about the business. These companies are all suffering from having to pay claims because of the massive increase...

Fitch: Fundamental Questions for Future of MI Business.
August 11, 2008... There are "fundamental questions" regarding the future composition of the mortgage insurance industry, according to a report from Fitch Ratings, New York. The latest report, "Delinquencies and Losses Are Up," is a follow-up to a report...

UG Celebrating 10 Years in Israel.
August 11, 2008... GREENSBORO, NC -- In a time when negative stories are flooding newspapers everywhere regarding the mortgage industry, a positive headline comes as AIG United Guaranty subsidiary EMI-Ezer Mortgage Insurance Co. Ltd. recently celebrated its 10th...

Helping to Stop Foreclosures.
August 11, 2008... A pair of mortgage insurers are becoming more actively involved in efforts to help homeowners avoid foreclosure through private and public partnerships. Radian Guaranty, Philadelphia, recently joined the Hope Now alliance as a member. It...

SML Now Offers MI Search Capabilities.
August 11, 2008... PORT WASHINGTON, NY -- Due to user demand and as a result of the tightening of loan origination guidelines in the mortgage industry, a provider of loan search and pricing services for the mortgage industry is now offering its users the ability...

Triad Reports $198MM Net Loss.(Financial report)
August 11, 2008... WINSTON-SALEM, NC -- Triad Guaranty Inc. here reported a net loss for the second quarter of $198.2 million (-$13.36 per share) compared with net income of $12 million ($0.80 per share) for the same period one year earlier. Two weeks after...

Fannie Hikes 'Adverse Market' Fee.
August 11, 2008... WASHINGTON -- Fannie Mae is doubling its "adverse market" delivery fee to 50 basis points, but it is also adjusting its loan prices so many borrowers with mortgage insurance will not feel the impact. Starting Oct. 1, Fannie lenders will...

Fraud Dents Stewart's 2Q Results.
August 11, 2008... NEW YORK -- Stewart Information Services Corp., Houston, has revised its second-quarter earnings as a result of the discovery of more fraudulent activity. Originally, the company reported a $26.6 million loss (-$1.47 per share) for the period....

Morgan Stanley to Advise on GSEs.
August 11, 2008... WASHINGTON -- The investment banking firm Morgan Stanley will be advising Treasury secretary Henry Paulson on his new responsibility to prop up Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac if the two mortgage giants are suddenly unable to finance their...

Nehemiah: Fight for Downpayment Assistance Not Over Yet.
August 11, 2008... SACRAMENTO, CA -- The signing into law of a housing bill, which among other measures is designed to improve the performance of Federal Housing Administration loans and bans seller-funded downpayment assistance, looks like the end of the ride...

Gains Boost Ambac's 2Q Results.
August 11, 2008... NEW YORK -- Ambac Financial Group. Inc. said that under U.S. accounting rules it generated net income of $823.1 million in the second quarter despite mortgage-related losses. But the company said it would have taken a net loss for the...

Freddie's Fate Hinges on 'Recovery'.
August 11, 2008... WASHINGTON -- Facing future losses of between $16 billion and $42 billion - most of which are tied to subprime and alt-A loans - Freddie Mac is betting its survival on its ability to recapture loan loss reserves and related charges. At...

Ginnie Sets Up New Risk Committee's.
August 11, 2008... WASHINGTON -- Ginnie Mae's business is growing rapidly and its new president Joseph Murin is establishing an internal risk committee and taking other steps to ensure the agency continues to guarantee high-quality mortgage-backed securities. ...

HSBC Impairment Charge up 85%.
August 11, 2008... NEW YORK -- The personal financial services division of HSBC Holdings' U.S. operation booked $6.8 billion in loan impairment and credit risk charges in the first half, according to a new report issued by the company. The London-based bank...

Roundup: Fitch Downgrades More Subprime-Linked CDOs.
August 11, 2008... NEW YORK -- Twenty-seven classes of notes issued by five collateralized debt obligations linked to subprime residential mortgage-backed securities have been downgraded by Fitch Ratings. The affected securities include six classes from...

People.
August 11, 2008... CALIFORNIA Irvine-Thompson National Properties LLC said that Desiree Sipin Runes has joined the company as corporate controller. Ms. Runes was previously assistant controller at Grubb & Ellis Realty Investors, formerly Triple Net...

Mortgages Hit Deutsche Bank.
August 11, 2008... FRANKFURT, Germany -- Deutsche Bank AG took 2.3 billion euros ($3.6 billion) in partially mortgage-related writedowns during the second quarter but generated a net profit of 645 million euros ($1 billion) during the quarter. The writedowns...

Downey Looking for a Buyer.
August 11, 2008... NEWPORT BEACH, CA -- Downey Financial Corp. here, one of the largest thrifts in California, lost $219 million in the second quarter and said it is looking at "strategic opportunities," a code phrase that means the company is for sale. ...

Fitch Revising MBS Loss Criteria.
August 11, 2008... NEW YORK -- Fitch Ratings has updated its new issue criteria for U.S. residential mortgage-backed securities in a new version of its U.S. residential mortgage loss model, ResiLogic. The updates, among other things, reduce credit for loans...

Gains Boost Ambac's 2Q Results.
August 11, 2008... NEW YORK-Ambac Financial Group. Inc. said that under U.S. accounting rules it generated net income of $823.1 million in the second quarter despite mortgage-related losses. But the company said it would have taken a net loss for the quarter...

NYU Prof: Cost of Crisis Will Top $2T.
August 11, 2008... NEW YORK-By the end of next year financial institutions will be looking at $2 trillion in writedowns due to the current credit crisis, according an economics professor at New York University. Speaking on CNBC early last week, Nouriel...

FTC May Act on Servicer.
August 18, 2008... LAS VEGAS -- The Federal Trade Commission may be nearing "a significant enforcement action" involving a major mortgage servicer, according to an attorney who spoke at the Western States Loan Servicing Conference here last week. Anand...

House Opposition to Move Grows.
August 18, 2008... WASHINGTON -- Over half of the members of the House of Representatives want the new housing secretary to withdraw a RESPA proposal that the Department of Housing and Urban Development has worked on for nearly six years. The Real Estate...

Wachovia Ups Loss.(Financial report)
August 18, 2008... NEW YORK -- Wachovia disappointed the market in late July by posting an $8.9 billion loss, but the regional banking giant now says that additional legal and market woes pushed the actual second-quarter loss up to $9.1 billion. After...

RG: Loss But MI Capital OK.
August 18, 2008... PHILADELPHIA -- Radian Group Inc. here, in spite of its second-quarter loss, said it has the ability to raise capital internally for its mortgage insurance subsidiary, Radian Guaranty. The company had a second-quarter 2008 net loss of...

JPM Warns on MBS.
August 18, 2008... NEW YORK -- JPMorgan Chase warned in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing that in the third quarter "trading conditions have substantially deteriorated vs. the second quarter," affecting spreads on mortgage-backed securities and loans....

IB Estimates Improving?
August 18, 2008... NEW YORK -- Partially mortgage-related multibillion-dollar writedowns at two foreign-owned corporate parents of U.S. investment banks generated losses for the second quarter but came in relatively close to previous estimates, suggesting that...

Housing Deterioration Increases Fannie's Loss in the Quarter.(Financial report)
August 18, 2008... WASHINGTON -- Fannie Mae saw a higher-than-expected loss of $2.3 billion in the second quarter as the deteriorating housing market took its toll on the company's mortgage business in the form of rising defaults and higher charge-offs ...

FHLBs Post Profit, Increase MBS Purchases.(Financial report)
August 18, 2008... WASHINGTON -- At least one of the three housing GSEs the Federal Home Loan Banks posted a profit for the second quarter and even managed to increase purchases of mortgage-backed securities to provide additional liquidity for the MBS market....