Underwriting

A new Federal Reserve analysis finds rising debt-to-income and loan-to-value ratios over the past two years, while credit scores largely remained the same.

Mortgage lenders offered more cash-out refinance programs at a time when consumers might be coming to terms with the rate environment.

In a study posted weeks after it raised concerns about "junk fees," the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau noted that the amount of borrowers paying discount points doubled from 2021 to 2023, with the increase larger among consumers with lower credit scores.

Fannie Mae's latest forecast now predicts rates to be half a percentage point higher, and volume to be $1.5 trillion lower than previously expected in 2024.

While some said the agency was ignorant of its own rules, one trade group praised the goals of the posting.

Regulatory reform – rather than Biden's proposed solutions – is needed to fix the inventory crisis, some say, but others applauded the president's buyer cost-cutting initiatives.

February was the second consecutive month where lenders eased underwriting, although overall availability remains near record low levels, the Mortgage Bankers Association.

January volume increased 36% compared to the month before and the annual decline in activity was the lowest in almost two years, Optimal Blue said.

Industry consolidation has resulted in fewer conventional and government loan programs being offered to consumers.

Decreasing availability of jumbo and non-QM products accounted for most of November's pullback, as other types of loan offerings saw minimal changes, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.

If the Federal Housing Administration's rulemaking on home equity conversion mortgages were to go into effect as written, borrower contributions would be reduced by thousands of dollars.

The average interest rate for the 30-year loan rose for the fifth consecutive week, according to Freddie Mac, but Treasury yields did move lower.

With prices continuing to increase and the conforming 30-year mortgage rising above 7% in July, the purchase market is in a holding pattern, Black Knight said.

But its operating income missed estimates with servicing income and gain-on-sale margins coming in lower than expected.

Product availability for July remained at levels last seen in 2013 as rates briefly broke above the 7% mark during the month, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.

But mortgage numbers remain historically very low and fall short of pre-pandemic levels, according to VantageScore's latest monthly report.

Renovations, already the leading use for these borrowings, increased their share to nearly two-thirds of the products' market, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.

Ten Western states that benefited from a pandemic-driven boom reported value declines in May, CoreLogic said.

The findings from Standard & Poor's show little impact from the Federal Housing Finance Agency's proposal regarding what information is required to underwrite a conforming mortgage.

Weaker economic conditions, rising interest rates and expected changes in investment returns drove the reduced expectations, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.