Economy

The beleaguered bank said it is selling 74 loans totaling about $2.6 billion to a subsidiary of Kennedy-Wilson Holdings. The move is part of a plan to pursue strategic asset sales, trim expenses and shore up its balance sheet.

While the mortgages from this Community Development Financial Institution lack income verification, the borrowers' credit is actually near prime, according to DBRS Morningstar.

During her opening remarks before lawmakers Tuesday, the head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency reiterated that borrowers with strong credit profiles are not being penalized to benefit those with poorer scores.

The government-sponsored enterprise only tweaked the two-year mortgage origination forecast, with a $6 billion reduction for 2023, but an increase of $7 billion for 2024.

Jobs numbers, inflation data and the continued debate over raising the debt ceiling are factors applying upward pressure.

The legislative proposals backed by Republican members of congress seek to undo the latest cross-subsidized adjustments to loan fees that two large government-related mortgage investors charge.

Stronger than expected demand and home prices drove the latest forecast.

Economists lowered their projections for the consumer price index as well as the personal consumption expenditures price index for every quarter through the first half of 2024, according to the latest Bloomberg monthly survey.

Banks could be in for a long, slow trickle of bank failures and consolidation in the coming months and years, particularly if inflation persists and interest rates keep rising. A downturn in commercial real estate could add to banks' problems.

As FDIC seeks a buyer for the remaining assets left after its sale of most of Signature Bank to Flagstar Bank, the agency has announced $60 billion in deposits — including some New York City commercial real-estate loans — will be on the market by this summer.