REITs

An effort by the Federal Housing Finance Agency to examine membership rules for the Federal Home Loan Bank System is reigniting an argument over whether to allow more nonbanks in or impose tougher barriers.

The agency plans to conduct a review of how it regulates the 11 Federal Home Loan banks amid concerns that some companies are inappropriately seeking a back door into the Home Loan Bank System.

Instead of marketing securities backed by commercial property mortgages, STORE Capital chooses the more esoteric option of securitizing the income from its triple-net leases – a similar strategy to REITS such Spirit Realty Capital and SCP Financial.

OBX 2019-INV2 is a private-label RMBS pool of 1,087 of agency-eligible investor-property loans.

The trio of malls collateralizing the new mortgage include two well-performing mall as well as a troubled Florida super-regional shopping center.

Two Harbors Investment Corp., which grew its servicing portfolio by 22% in the fourth quarter, priced a common stock offering to raise funds to buy more rights as well as mortgage-backed securities.

Continued diversification of its business lines and better margins in its securitization activities helped Redwood Trust overcome steep mortgage origination declines and post nearly 14% annual growth in net income during the third quarter.

The unique approach Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are each taking with their credit-risk transfer products is quickly becoming a key point of differentiation that's rekindling competition between the government-sponsored enterprises.

Laurel Davis, VP, credit risk transfer at Fannie Mae, explains why the switch to a REMIC structure for CAS is important, and why it took so long.

The structure reduces counterparty risk in the GSE's benchmark Connecticut Avenue Securities program; it also expands the investor base.