Secondary markets

Experts review scenarios that could cause Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell to reverse course on a decision this week that left some lenders breathing a sigh of relief.

BofA Securities Inc. predicts that single-family rental securitizations — which repackage a single loan tied to multiple properties — will fall to just $2 billion for the rest of 2022 as Federal Reserve rate hikes send shivers across the industry.

Historically tight underwriting reinforced by regulation and third-party reviews could be buffers, so long as manufacturing standards for production and servicing hold up as residential mortgage companies downsize, according to KBRA.

A larger share of cash-out loans and slowing home-price growth is leading to expectations of more serious delinquencies down the road, according to Milliman.

Even though a Compass Point report states the pair have validated the credit scoring model and could implement it in the first quarter of 2023, interested parties would not verify it.

A mix of new distress and declining cures drove the uptick, according to dv01.

Updated counterparty requirements recently coordinated with the Federal Housing Finance Agency affect a constituency that has kept growing, albeit at a slightly slower pace, according to new mortgage-backed securities research.

Some housing numbers have been weaker than expected because affordability remains relatively low, outweighing slightly higher refinancing that has an upside for lenders but a potential downside for servicers.

The REIT did not issue a securitization in the period because of the upheaval, but found a more receptive marketplace in July.

The changes, which appear to be separate from a controversial nonbank proposal that's pending, will reduce red tape for credit unions and housing finance agencies and clarify a calculation for loans eligible for repurchase.

The agency also put out a request for public comment on the role of fintech in housing finance.

Inflation and higher interest rates are hurting distressed borrowers, but low unemployment, remaining forbearance and loss mitigation options are still blunting their impacts, recent loan-performance numbers suggest.

Delinquencies are likely to rise if both interest rates and inflation continue their upward movements, a DBRS Morningstar report said.

The government-sponsored enterprises divested themselves of the largest share of these loans since they first began selling them in 2014, a Federal Housing Finance Agency report found.

The 18.5% increase in Fannie Mae's and Freddie Mac's purchase authority was the driver of a 41% decrease in higher balance originations between December and January.

The former lender’s abrupt closure Wednesday and First Guaranty’s recent bankruptcy filing highlight difficulties in the current mortgage environment despite nonbanks being on stronger financial footing than their counterparts of 14 and 24 years ago.

The move builds on the government-sponsored enterprise’s previous program that facilitated the collection of more rent payment records from tenants who work with its multifamily borrowers.

Rising interest rates eliminated any refinance incentive for 30% of the loans analyzed by Standard & Poor's, marking a turnaround from the start of the year when prepay speeds were expected to increase

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac asked originators to resubmit applications that contained errors and adjust sold mortgage information due to incorrect life-of-loan representations and warranties.

The inability to include both types together in standard loan pools has been one of the hurdles to the adoption of digital collateral.