One of the hallmarks of the Dodd-Frank bill was the creation of the Office of Financial Research (OFR), an agency dedicated to collecting and sifting data from financial firms to help predict the next crisis.

U.K. mortgage origination is unlikely to grow more than marginally next year thanks to economic uncertainty and steep borrowing costs faced by originating banks, according to a release by Standard & Poor's. As a result, the agency estimates that the volume of RMBS placed with investors in 2012 could hover around €45 billion ($60 billion), a hair over this year's figure.

Next year there will be a worsening of covered-bond issuer credit quality and a continued deterioration in the sovereingns' financial condition.

Fannie Mae recently told its seller/servicers that all mortgage insurance rescissions, cancellations and claim denials tied to loans it bought must be reported to the agency immediately.

The drop over 3Q11 of commercial and multifamily loans is a credit positive for CMBS, according to Standard & Poor's in a note released this morning.

CRE debt and equity provider CWCapital hired Todd Trehubenko as managing director in multifamily based in its Needham, MA office. The firm is a subsidiary of CW Financial Services.

The European Central Bank (ECB) has relaxed its collateral requirements for repo eligibility in a move that encourages new ABS activity.

A new German auto securitization deal backed by €427.1 million ($570.9 million) of auto loans from GMAC Bank GmbH joined Europe's new-issue pipeline.

Even with the housing market stabilizing and a settlement between megaservicers and state AGs on the horizon, the mortgage industry shouldn't expect an increase in originations next year, according to a new forecast from Keefe, Bruyette & Woods (KBW).

Arch Bay Capital, Irvine, Calif., is testing the use of borrower rewards for timely payment, with the aim of driving better performance, refinancing or modifications.

Arrow Electronics has increased to $775 million its existing asset securitization program.

November was the fourth consecutive month of CMBS delinquency decreases, but office properties are still a concern heading into the next year, according to the latest delinquency index results from Fitch Ratings.