As the year draws to a close and many of us reflect on its events, make predictions, and set goals for the new year, the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) is doing the same. In an interview included in SmartBrief's 2012 Best Of reports, SIFMA CEO Tim Ryan spoke of the regulatory progress and the lack thereof that has taken place in 2012 and his organization's concerns and expectations for the year ahead.

Keefe, Bruyette & Woods (KBW), a boutique investment bank and broker-dealer, is predicting "more of the same" for the mortgage market in 2013.

The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) has assembled a GSE Single Family Task Force to revisit the association's 2009 proposal for the future of the secondary market and to further discourse on this topic. The task force will work in two phases. First, they will review the 2009 position and determine potential issues during a transition. Next, they will put together a "roadmap" for the transition.

After rising economic growth in the third quarter, overall economic growth is expected to decline this quarter and in early 2013, according to Fannie Mae. However, the GSE anticipates further strengthening in the housing market. Economists anticipate economic growth of less than 2 percent for the first half of 2013 followed by more accelerated growth for the remainder of the year. However, while the overall economy remains dismal, Fannie's economists finds a bright spot in the housing market.

With fluctuations in rental and owner markets over the past few years, it can be difficult to determine whether one is better off renting or owning. In Manhattan, renting is currently the more financially viable option, according to a new study by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

Hurricane Sandy's impact on non-agency residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) may not be nearly as bad as originally expected.

Outstanding commercial/multifamily debt increased in the third quarter, marking a full year of quarterly increases, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). In dollar volume, commercial/multifamily mortgage debt rose $6.6 billion over the quarter, bringing the national total to $2.38 trillion. The greatest third-quarter increase in commercial/multifamily debt was seen in agency and GSE portfolios and mortgage-backed securities, a sector that reported an increase of $9.4 billion.

The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) has released its mortgage loan limits for 2013.

Independent mortgage bankers are seeing increasing origination volumes and profits, according to a report by the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA).

The Treasury announced Tuesday it will sell the remainder of its shares of American International Group, Inc. common stock. The move brings Treasury's stake in the company to an end. Together, Treasury and the Federal Reserve invested $182.3 billion to stabilize the failing insurance behemoth in September 2008 at the start of the financial crisis. In addition to recouping the total $182.3 billion, the Treasury incurred a positive return of $5 billion, while the Federal Reserve received a positive return of $17.7 billion.