Economy

Plans to begin rating securitizations backed by fix-and-flip mortgages may help lenders create new capacity and satisfy growing demand for short-term financing of house flipping projects.

While the London interbank offered rate won't go dark until 2021, the commercial real estate finance industry should start preparing for the transition now, says the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Policymakers should not let mortgage REITs, hedge funds and other firms gain membership through captive insurance companies.

Some in the industry worry the Fed may balk at allowing OCC charter recipients into the payments system, but Otting downplayed those concerns.

Loans in commercial mortgage-backed securities originated after 2009 by nonbank lenders have a significantly higher default rate than those originated by banks, a Fitch Ratings report said.

A lapse in rental-assistance funding, an understaffed FHA and other effects of the government shutdown are causing real harm to families, said the chair of the House Financial Services Committee.

Lagging construction, rising interest rates and the broader economy don't really bode well for buyers of commercial real estate, but most CRE lenders still expect originations to increase in 2019, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

The White House has officially nominated Mark Calabria as the next director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

Steven Mastrovich joins the firm a week after the departure of partner and CRE/CLO specialist Steven Kolyer for Sidley Austin.

The single-family rental market could benefit from more consistent loan terms and expanded secondary mortgage market opportunities, Freddie Mac found in a preliminary test of expanded involvement in the sector.

Freddie Mac issued its first non-low-income housing tax credit forward commitment, providing financing for an affordable housing development in Minnesota.

After 10 years of conservatorship, the new year could finally usher in big steps toward housing finance reform.

Liquidity, products and pricing are the main concerns for the secondary mortgage market in 2019.

Mortgage servicing assets are poised for gains in 2019. But as higher average mortgage rates spur lenders to sell servicing rights and diversify their loan offerings, servicers' work will also get more complicated and costly.

The House Financial Services Committee held a hearing to examine the outgoing committee chairman's bipartisan GSE reform bill, but lawmakers were already looking ahead.

The White House said that Comptroller of the Currency Joseph Otting will serve as acting director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency beginning Jan. 6, after Director Mel Watt’s term ends.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has gotten the ball rolling for financial technology firms trying to operate a national platform, but the FDIC and Federal Reserve should act to remove other policy roadblocks.

Live Oak Bancshares became an SBA juggernaut by making loans, selling them and making more. With economic conditions changing, it is retaining more credits.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency has proposed barring Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from using credit scores developed by VantageScore over concern about conflicts of interest with the joint venture of Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.

Stricter energy regulations for European residential and commercial buildings, effective in 2020, will likely depress cash flow and property values, though the impact will vary by country, according to Moody's Investors Service.