Tag Archives: Investors

In an effort to keep the mortgage market running as smoothly as possible, Freddie Mac issued Monday temporary guidance for lenders to continue approving loans for eligible borrowers during the federal shutdown. Dave Lowman, EVP of single-family business at the GSE, said the bulletin is intended to give lenders the certainty to continue approving and delivering new mortgages that meet Freddie Mac guidelines to eligible borrowers, such as federal employees and contractors, during the temporary shutdown.

Velocify, a provider of cloud-based intelligent sales automation software, announced it will be hosting a unique online Mortgage Sales Summit to educate industry professionals on sales strategies and tools to take advantage of the ongoing shift in loan demand.

The Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) Mortgage Credit Availability Index (MCAI) decreased 0.7 percent in September to 110.7. "Credit availability tightened last month as more lenders removed program offerings with loan terms greater than 30 years and/or interest-only features, similar to the trend we observed last month," said Mike Fratantoni, MBA's VP of research and economics. "[W]e believe this reflects lenders' implementation of the Ability to Repay/Qualified Mortgage regulation which comes fully into effect in January."

In California, Stearns Lending, Inc., appointed Kathleen L. Vaughan to the newly created role of EVP of national third-party production.

Investment bank FBR's third-quarter mortgage originations estimate is $349 billion, a 29 percent decline over the quarter. The abating refinance market is a major drag on the mortgage industry, and, "[w]e do not believe that there will be a strong enough increase in the purchase market this quarter to offset the loss in refi volume," FBR stated. FBR estimates a 46 percent decline in refinances in the third quarter and a 2 percent rise in purchase originations.

In the latest of its consumer education videos, Zillow recently sat down with the Bipartisan Policy Center's (BPC) Barry Zigas to discuss the center's ideas for GSE reform.

As part of its ongoing efforts to diversify its mortgage services, Newbold Advisors has tapped the talents of 25-year veteran Jim Horne. He will serve as managing director in the firm's Washington, D.C., office. Horne has decades of diversified corporate and consulting experience, primarily in financial services companies.

According to Lender Processing Services' data, the monthly prepayment rate--historically a good indicator of refinance activity--has dipped more than 30 percent in the months since May, with mortgage interest rates climbing nearly 100 basis points in that same time. As a result of those shifts, the percentage of borrowers in loans with interest rates high enough for refinancing to make sense has dropped significantly, says Herb Blecher, SVP for the technology and analytics firm.

Lender Processing Services, Inc. (LPS), announced that AmeriFirst Home Mortgage has completed the implementation of LPS' MSP mortgage and consumer loan servicing platform.

While consumers are still "generally positive" on average about housing and the economy, attitudes over the last few months suggest optimism has hit a plateau, Fannie Mae says. While September's survey results show attitudes leading up to the October shutdown, they do not necessarily reveal its full effects (or those of the pending debt ceiling debate), the company noted. Those results should be seen in the surveys for October and the following months.