Tag Archives: Investors

Rising interest rates brought down mortgage activity last week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA).

Led by a surge in gasoline prices, retail sales rose 1.1 percent in February, the Census Bureau reported Wednesday. Economists had expected an increase of 0.5 percent. In January, retails sales rose 0.2 percent.

The Los Angeles Times obtained more than 1,600 pages of FDIC settlements from 2007 through 2013 addressing a variety of behaviors (ranging from reckless lending to inflated appraisals). According to the report, many of these settlements went unannounced, sparing the institutions from negative attention. These "no-press-release arrangements" sometimes help FDIC close deals with defendants in the least costly manner possible.

Commercial and multifamily mortgage debt in Q4 was up by $21.8 billion, or 0.9 percent, from the previous quarter and up $29.7 billion, or 1.2 percent, from the fourth quarter of 2011.

After dipping into negative territory last month, consumer sentiment inched up in March, according to the Consumer Reports Index. The index's sentiment measure improved to 50.7 in March from a reading of 48.9 in February. The greatest improvement among income brackets was seen in lower-income households earning less than $50,000--that index climbed 3.7 points. Besides sentiment, the index report tracks consumer responses on four other key measures: financial troubles, stress, retail activity, and employment.

Richard Cordray, director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), sat once again on Tuesday in front of the Senate Banking Committee, this time to present his case to continue leading the consumer agency. While some had expected a contentious round of questioning from Republicans critical of CFPB in its current form, the proceedings were generally cordial, with Cordray and commitee members agreeing to work together to maximize transparency and accountability at the bureau.

Avon, Connecticut's Norcom Mortgage welcomed Frank Haran to the team as VP of business development. Haran has worked in the industry for more than 30 years and served most recently as first EVP for McCue Mortgage in New Britain, Connecticut.

The number of layoffs fell 4.0 percent to 1,507,000 in January, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Tuesday in its monthly Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) release. The layoff total was the smallest since the JOLTS reports began in December 2000.

As the industry prepares to implement the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's (CFPB) new ability-to-repay rules, Federal Reserve Governor Elizabeth Duke warns new consumer protections may come at a cost to the industry as lower-quality-credit borrowers are precluded from the housing market. As the broader economy continues to improve, household formation will increase, according to Duke, "but if credit is hard to get, these will be rental rather than owner-occupied households."

According to Fitch Ratings, prime RMBS mortgage pools issued since 2010 had an average conditional prepayment rate (CPR) of about 42 percent, more than twice as fast as the rates of outstanding prime loans securitized in earlier vintages. Generally speaking, Fitch explained high refinance activity tends lead to more "performance volatility" since loans remaining in mortgage pools are usually of poorer quality. However, Fitch is seeing a different trend this time around.