RMBS

Capacity constraints at mortgage lenders that limited the amount of refinancings they could process in November, meant business was held over into December resulting in prepayment speeds being unexpectedly higher last month.

The Consumer Finance Protection Bureau's qualified mortgage regulation will provide more clarity to the definition of a qualified residential mortgage as proposed under Dodd-Frank legislation, said analysts at Fitch Ratings.

Moody’s Investors Service, Kroll Bond Ratings and Fitch ratings have assigned Aaa'/'AAA'/'AAA' ratings respectively to the class A notes issued by Redwood Trust’s RMBS.

The December FOMC minutes have cause doubts of whether the Fed will tweak asset purchases under QE3 but analysts at Barclays said MBS purchases are likely to stay the same.

The private-label mortgage-backed securities market can make more of a comeback this year due to factors like the agencies’ rising guarantee fees, scarcity of higher-yielding assets for investment and home price appreciation.

Bank of America Corp. reached agreements with Fannie Mae to settle all repurchase and certain other claims surrounding mortgage loans originated by Countrywide Financial Corp from 2000 through 2008.

The notion that higher g-fees will, on their own, lead to a revival of the private-label MBS market is a fantasy.

The collateralized debt obligation (CDO) may not have a great reputation, but it has an important strength: versatility.

Barclays Capital weighed in on the effects of updated valuations for mortgage-backed securities held by U.S. insurers.