Servicing

Property-level insurance and funds fronted by servicers appear to mitigate the potential losses from damages and repairs in the Gulf Coast from the massive storm.

Blackstone Group, which led Wall Street's initial foray into the single-family rental business, is making a new investment in suburban houses at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic is pressuring traditional commercial real estate.

If it makes landfall as a Category 3 storm as was initially projected, damage from Hurricane Laura's surge could potentially devastate 432,810 residential properties in Texas and Louisiana, according to CoreLogic.

The number of loans going into coronavirus-related forbearance decreased for the ninth consecutive week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Dana Wade, a former OMB official, says a strong capital footing will help the Federal Housing Administration weather an uptick in delinquencies and ensure the mortgage market is viable once the economy recovers.

With the moratorium still in place, mortgage foreclosure activity fell 83% in July compared to the year before and 4% from June, according to Attom Data Solutions.

Though overall forbearance share is down, the number of extensions is rising as coronavirus hardship filings surpass the 90-day mark that delineates the end of traditional forbearance plans.

Rising equity levels lifted borrowers across the spectrum in the second quarter, according to Attom Data Solutions.

The mortgage servicing rights package going up for bid adds to signs that the market for large offerings is becoming more active.

The number of loans going into coronavirus-related forbearance fell for the seventh straight week, but the Mortgage Bankers Association predicts the rate will increase if the number of coronavirus cases continues to rise.

The enhanced jobless benefits in the coronavirus relief law enacted in March helped limit delinquencies and maintain consumer spending, analysts say. In their follow-up stimulus plan, Senate Republicans want to cut those benefits from $600 to $200 a week.

A likely weathervane for how single-family rentals are being affected by the pandemic, the $826.2 million securitization by FirstKey Homes is ultimately secured by income stemming from home rentals located in current COVID-19 hotspots including Florida and Arizona.

The number of loans going into coronavirus-related forbearance dropped for the sixth consecutive week, as the growth rate fell 6 basis points between July 13 and July 19, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

The measures currently ensuring mortgage companies have sufficient cash to cover advances aren't necessarily sustainable, warns Ted Tozer, a senior fellow at the Milken Institute and a former government official.

The number of loans going into coronavirus-related forbearance dropped for the fifth straight week, as the growth rate plummeted 38 basis points between July 6 and July 12, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Mortgages taken out to fund business operations can now be modified in bankruptcy. That’s a relief to borrowers — particularly with business failures expected to increase as the pandemic drags on — but a possible headache for banks and investors that hold the loans.

A strong housing market prior to the pandemic and the subsequent coronavirus-related moratorium helped to pull foreclosure activity down to historic lows in the first half of 2020, though that could all change soon, according to Attom Data Solutions.

The number of loans going into coronavirus-related forbearance fell for the fourth consecutive week, as the growth rate plummeted 21 basis points between June 29 and July 5, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

The amount far surpassed that of any other servicer required to purchase Ginnie Mae-backed loans that were 90 days past due.

Tricon American Homes launches the fifth securitization since mid-May secured by loans that finance institutional ownership and management of single-family residential rental homes.