Daily Dose

Mortgage applications for new home purchases and refinance applications both experienced increases as home prices recover, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association June 2015 Builder Application Survey and Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending July 10, 2015.

As the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act prepares reach its fifth anniversary, a new report found that although the majority of the rules set forth in this act have already been implemented by various federal regulated agencies, there are several reform rules that have yet to be enacted, including rules for executive compensation, derivatives, and consumer debt.

Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen had a busy week, making semi-annual appearances before the House Financial Services Committee on Wednesday and the Senate Banking Committee on Thursday. In both hearings, Yellen addressed the subject of the much-anticipated federal funds range increase.

SunTrust Banks, Inc. reported a net income increase of 14 percent to $467 million available to common shareholders, according to the bank’s Q2 2015 earnings statement released Friday. Comerica reported that their Q2 2015 earnings reached $135 million, or $0.73 cents per share in their earnings statement also released on Friday. Last quarter, the bank reported a net income of $134 million and $151 million for the Q2 2014.

The U.S. Census Bureau and HUD jointly announced today in a press release new residential construction statistics for June 2015 finding single-family building permits rose slightly, while housing starts and housing completions both declined.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Thursday published the first in a new series of monthly reports that highlight key trends found in the complaints the consumers submit to the Bureau. The monthly reports will provide the public and the marketplace with insight into the hundreds of thousands of complaints the CFPB receives from consumers on financial products and services.

Regulators are hindering much-needed competition in the banking industry and placing consumers and taxpayers at risk, according to a report released on Thursday from the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) titled "A Bird in the Hand and No Banks in the Bush." The report also noted that this lack of competition in banking furthers the same too-big-to-fail rationale that led to past bank bailouts.

Builder confidence in the market for newly built, single-family homes in July reached new heights not seen since November 2005. According to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index released Thursday, builder confidence hit a level of 60 in July, while the June reading was upwardly revised one point to 60.

Investment banking firm, Goldman Sachs reported their highest first half net revenues in five years at $9.07 billion, according to the firm’s Q2 2015 earning statement released Thursday. Citigroup also experienced significant year-over-year growth in their net income with revenue reaching $4.8 billion for the bank, compared to $181 million for the same quarter last year, according to the bank’s earnings statement also released on Thursday.

Prominent Democrats on the Senate Banking and House Financial Services Committees recently brought concerns about the a Federal Housing Administration lending proposal that could make it easier for lenders with a criminal history to continue accessing taxpayer-backed mortgage insurance.