Prices finally eased back with the 10-year note yield rising from 1.85% last Friday to over 2.0% by mid-afternoon today as markets added risk on a break from adverse headlines out of Europe.

State attorneys general will meet Monday to discuss a potential settlement with bank servicers over the robo-signing scandal, according to a spokesman for Iowa AG Tom Miller.

Roughly $30 billion of Freddie Mac servicing rights that once belonged to the now defunct Taylor, Bean & Whitaker Mortgage Corp. could hit the market next month, according to officials close to the auction.

Regulators and a Home Loan bank have asked First Horizon National Corp. for information about some of its securitizations, executives said Friday.

Bank of America has raised a $388 million CLO for Symphony Asset Management.

Bank of America mid-week told its retail loan officers nationwide that the lender will halt, for now, originations of cash-out refinancings, citing what it calls a “surge of refinancing activity” and capacity problems.

It appears that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are starting to see their market shares erode. The same might be said of Ginnie Mae.According to figures compiled by ASR sister publication National Mortgage News, the three mortgage guarantors accounted for 84.54% of originations in the third quarter, compared to 91.75% in 2Q.

Robust attendance is expected at the American Securitization Forum's (ASF) ASF 2012 to be held in Las Vegas' ARIA hotel and convention center starting this Sunday, Jan 22. The conference will last until Wednesday, Jan 25.

Moody’s Investors Service made some drastic cuts today in the ratings of Greek structured finance deals, significantly shortening the distance between the highest rated transactions and the sovereign.

Student loan giant Sallie Mae, which has had a difficult few years, reported lower delinquencies and charge-offs, and declining operating expenses, helped fuel a 14% rise in fourth quarter earnings, to $511 million.

The overall character of the mortgage loans backing Redwood Trust's latest RMBS were consistent with "high-quality underwriting," said Standard & Poor's in an unsolicited commentary on the transaction.