Mortgages

Tight inventory and heightened competition kept prime purchasers at bay as property values continued their summer surge, according to Fannie Mae.

Late payments on office loans have trended upward recently, but longer lease periods may mitigate the potential for distress in that sector, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.

The regulation of cryptocurrencies gains momentum abroad while a number of hurdles must be cleared before lenders and banks can handle them at scale in the U.S.

A ClimateCheck score measures the risk of disaster at the zip-code level over the period of a 30-year mortgage.

While the hot market’s actual and forecast home price gains were key drivers of Fannie’s results, they also present a challenge to the affordable housing mission that it’s working to address.

The number of people exiting pandemic-related payment suspensions starting in September will be daunting to process, according to a Black Knight report published Monday.

While the numbers were higher than they were a year earlier, the decline comes at a time of year that usually produces some of the best returns for sellers.

Concerns about foreclosure and a crowded market led to an increase in listings at lower price points in the second quarter.

A hike in guarantee fees charged to lenders for the companies’ backing of loans was due to expire this year, but lawmakers now want to extend it to raise $21 billion for the bipartisan package.

Such applications have declined on an annual basis for the past three months, but overall weekly numbers increased due to a jump in refinances amid plummeting rates.

States have the option of adopting the oversight framework issued by the Conference of State Bank Supervisors, which resembles capital and liquidity plan proposed by the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

The potential amendments could expand coverage but also add new record-keeping and systems requirements for large banks handling custodial accounts.

The trust scales back on its office concentration, and increases multifamily and retail exposure. The latter's concentration is higher than all YTD averages since 2019.

The guarantor has for the first time proposed a risk-based capital requirement for companies not subject to other federal regulation. The industry says the plan, which would impose a heavy charge for servicing portfolios, could drive lenders away from government-backed programs.

Soaring home prices and the abundance of all-cash offers that the deep-pocketed can afford makes home buying even harder for the average borrower, according to a Redfin report.

The relatively low share of borrowers who were distressed in June adds to signs that the offramp from government relief measures may not lead to an overwhelming wave of foreclosures.

The meager increase suggests the largest boost in inventory possible would likely still leave the backlog of homes on the market at historic lows.

Despite lower numbers, refi applications continued trending strongly, while purchases fell close to lows from more than a year ago.

Meanwhile, the average new-home mortgage price climbed to a new all-time high, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

As rising home valuations force first-time home buyers out of the market, expect to see non-owner-occupied loans to increase.