Tag Archives: Investment

The market remains a dim one for new single-family homes, according to an index jointly released by Wells Fargo and the National Association of Home Builders. The index registered confidence at 15 on a 0-to-100 scale, staying largely the same since July. The low confidence follows a hit taken by homebuilding companies in the stock market last week. Analysts and economists weighed in with MReport about how slowing momentum in home construction and sales, as reflected by homebuilder confidence, impacts job creation and consumer confidence.

In an endeavor to get ahead of mortgage-related woes from the financial crisis, mortgage giant Bank of America has offered to sell a chunk of its mortgage portfolio servicing rights to GSE Fannie Mae, according to the Wall Street Journal. The sale of bad loan rights to the government entity may shift new bulk onto federal balance sheets at a time when the GSE recently posted second-quarter losses and announced plans to petition the government for more taxpayer funds.

While Treasury yields plummeted on low notes sounded by investors over panicked markets, recently downgraded GSEs Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac continue to see spikes in interest from investors over their mortgage-backed debt. The Financial Times attributes the investor rush to the market bonanza created by the Federal Reserve, which decided Tuesday to keep interest rates at historically low levels until 2013. Some analysts say the investor rush to agency debt could crimp financing for U.S. federal debt and potentially frustrate mortgage rates.

Manic markets at home and fiscal crises overseas sent investors scurrying last week to buy up Treasury debt, a trend that sent mortgage rates plunging. Experts say the low mortgage rates are unlikely to boost sales.

Standard & Poor├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós sent markets into a tailspin Monday when it downgraded credit ratings on debt for mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, citing majority ownership by the federal government, whose own ratings the agency pulled down to AA+. Showing no remorse, the ratings agency also downgraded debt ratings for 10 Federal Home Loan Banks across the country. The dual downgrades represented a vote of no confidence by S&P that helped create selloff frenzy on Wall Street.

A recent ruling by U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C., faulted the Securities and Exchange Commission for failing to perform a sufficiently thorough economic impact analysis before it moved forward with a new rule, according to Bloomberg News. The decision could roll over onto provisions established by the Dodd-Frank Act, delaying those provisions and preventing new rules from going into effect. Analysts say the court ruling may delay more Dodd-Frank rules.

Better credit and revenue health seem to be the influencing factors behind strong quarterly earnings reports from BOK Financial Corporation. The company├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós net interest revenue rose by nearly $4 million between the first and second quarters of this year, while revenue from fees and commissions also increased by over $4 million.

CoreLogic├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós international operations are making news in India, with the announcement that Cognizant will buy CoreLogic Global Services Pvt. Ltd. for a reported $50 million. The acquisition of CoreLogic Global, better known as CoreLogic India, will likely make Cognizant the third largest information technology services entity in the country, ousting Wipro Ltd. Lenders using the new program will benefit from a high level of customization, including the ability to tailor the alert system.

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.

Oregon's senior citizens with reverse mortgages will no longer be eligible for the state├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós tax deferral program. The initiative recently announced that reverse mortgage applicants won├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ót be considered for the program. Homeowners already using the deferral advantage were told in July that they are required to reapply for the statewide program no later than July 25. Additional alterations to the program's format include more stringent asset limits, stricter income criteria, and a five-year minimum for prior residency in the qualifying home.