Tag Archives: FHA

Plummeting refinance applications crimped Federal Housing Administration mortgage loan applications over June, according to a report issued by the federal agency, with total volume falling 22 percent less than volume at the same time last year. The FHA attributed the plunge to a 50 percent decline in year-over-year numbers for refinance applications. Data from June last year suggests a sharp decline in refinance loan applications, which dropped from 69,876 to 35,367 last month.

As splintering debt-ceiling negotiations unnerved analysts and ratings agencies, Treasury yields and mortgage rates remained relatively stable over the weekend, reflecting a widespread consensus among investors and market watchers that partisan divisions would soon give way to a grand bargain between policymakers. CNN reported Sunday that House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) refused to agree to a set of conditions at the White House, ending dramatic four-month-long negotiations.

Recent news reports show homebuyers flocking to high-end properties to close rates for jumbo loan mortgages, even as Congress wavers on a proposed bill that would cement higher thresholds for federally insured mortgages.

With recent reports signaling a throwback for public officials involved in debt-ceiling negotiations, housing analysts and market watchers worry about the possible fallout for government-backed mortgages in a default scenario come August. If the federal government defaults on its debt, analysts say, still-brittle mortgage markets will splinter as mortgage rates follow spikes in Treasury yields. Concerns continue to grow after a series of breakdowns between Congress and the White House.

On Tuesday Ginnie Mae gave the green-light to mortgage lender and servicer Carrington Mortgage Services, LLC to issue single-family mortgage-backed securities, allowing the company to package and securitize FHA loans.

On Monday lawmakers introduced a bill that would extend the current conforming loan limits for another two years a deal that could continue federal insurance for homeowners with high conforming jumbo loans. Rep. John Campbell (R-California) and Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-New York) co-sponsored the bill, titled the Conforming Loan Limits Extension Act, which would fix the limit for jumbo loans backed by GSEs Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and the Federal Housing Administration at $729,750.

In a statement released Tuesday, HUD announced the move by multifamily housing deputy assistant secretary Carol Galante to her new role as acting commissioner of the Federal Housing Administration. President Barack Obama picked Galante for the position, with rumors circulating around the Capitol that the affordable housing veteran may receive a nomination for the top role, too.

On Friday lending giant Prudential Mortgage Capital Company announced a joint venture with Perella Weinberg Partners that will allow the two companies to store and originate future commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS). Participation in the re-emerging CMBS market is critical to maintaining our leadership position in the commercial mortgage arena, David Twardock, president of Prudential Mortgage, said in a statement.

Last week Ginnie Mae released a report indicating that it guaranteed millions less mortgage-backed securities in May than April, posting over $25.4 billion.

Last week Churchill Mortgage released a statement announcing its expansion into the Houston market, marking a grab for the mortgage company with branches and services in 25 states.