Investors are starting to receive additional details on the loan types — including information on Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) Savers and FHA modified loans — that issuers are placing in Ginnie Mae-guaranteed MBS.
On Ginnie Mae HECM pools, the secondary market agency will disclose, on a monthly basis, the number, and remaining principal balance of HECM Saver loans.
Ginnie Mae president Ted Tozer said "detailed and timely disclosure information" on this segment of the market should enhance an investor's ability to assess the performance of the securities, allowing issuers to sell their products in the secondary market at better prices.
The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) created the HECM Saver product in early October. The loan is less expensive, but has a reduced payout than the standard reverse mortgage. (The disclosures on HECM Saver loans will be available on Ginnie Mae's Web site shortly.)
The secondary market agency also will provide disclosures on the number, and percentage of modified loans in Ginnie Mae MBS. Starting in February, the disclosures will break out Home Affordable Modification Program or HAMP modifications from proprietary mods.
The government will disclosure the concentration of FHA 'Short Refinance' loans in Ginnie MBS pools. The fledging FHA program is designed to encourage investors to write down conventional underwater loans to 97.5% of the current appraised value, allowing the mortgage to be refinanced into a new FHA-insured loan.
FHA has received 35 short refi loan applications so far.
