The state attorneys general announced last month that they finally reached a settlement with the five largest servicers over improper foreclosure and servicing practices.

In recent Senate comments, Federal Reserve Governor Elizabeth A. Duke said that "the failure of the housing market to respond to lower interest rates as vigorously as it has in the past indicates that factors other than financial conditions may be restraining improvement in mortgage credit and housing market conditions." She is absolutely correct. Aside from the overhang of problem loans, housing remains weak because dislocations in the primary mortgage market have limited the availability of mortgage funds. Unless mortgage lending moves to a stronger footing and can better serve the broad housing market, home prices will remain under pressure.

With the housing market apparently showing long awaited signs of stability, it's not hard to understand why a program allowing investors to purchase the government's stock of real-estate-owned (REO) homes in bulk and rent them out is generating so much buzz.

As securitization players seek out new collateral, their relationship with the government has lurched between friend and foe.

The first two months of the year saw a handful of European originators launch tenders to buy back their structured finance bonds.

New regulations in Brazil are steering small and medium-sized bank originators toward building more, and bigger, mezzanine tranches into their securitizations, typically done through the receivable investment-fund (FIDC) vehicle.

Two major themes that have been dominating the MBS market so far in 2012 are the third round of quantitative easing, or QE3, and refinancing activity associated with the changes to the Home Affordable Refinancing Program, dubbed HARP 2.0.

Bond insurer MBIA reported experiencing losses in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Bond insurer Assured Guaranty reported a net loss per share despite mostly positive results for the fourth quarter of 2011.

The Obama administration's plan to refinance underwater borrowers with private-label mortgages was supposed to be dead on arrival – but it appears Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama, the ranking Republican on the Banking Committee, wants to hear more.

SLM Corp., more popularly known as Sallie Mae, is going to issue a transaction under its SLM Student Loan Trust 2012-2.

Fannie Mae, in a new Securities and Exchange Commission filing, said that in late January it cut off Bank of America from selling most types of loans to the GSE because of “delays” by the lender in making good on outstanding buyback requests.