Capital markets

In addition to hinting at a March rate hike, the central bank this week announced an intention to have Treasury securities make up a greater share of its holdings, which has implications for securitized home loans.

The change aims to streamline the processing of certain pandemic-related loan options that accommodate lower monthly payment amounts for borrowers with long-term economic hardships.

The researchers found that the disparities that emerged from the analysis of 1.8 million appraisals from 2019 and 2020 were statistically significant.

In a Senate confirmation hearing, the acting Federal Housing Finance Agency director echoed her predecessor’s view that restructuring of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac should fall to Congress, and pointed to measures aimed at mitigating risk for the agencies.

The Duty-to-Serve goals currently under review drew some objections from a coalition of affordable housing groups last year.

Mortgage performance in November was improving, coming close to crossing a key threshold for pandemic-era recovery, but Omicron raises questions about whether that trend will continue.

The Alabama bank is buying Clearsight Advisors to add to its booming capital markets division.

Under the Federal Housing Finance Agency rule, the GSEs would need to lay out how levels will change under a variety of stress tests, including required ratios separately proposed for amendment.

New securitizations of mortgages on energy-efficient rental housing totalled $12.7 billion during the first 11 months of this year, suggesting 2021’s total will come close to matching 2020’s $13 billion.

Acting Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Sandra Thompson and the Housing Policy Council say the new amounts are not good for affordable housing.