Lew Sichelman

WASHINGTON—A “small fraction” of the nation’s 3,000-plus counties will be impacted when the formula that determines the conforming loan limit changes on Oct. 1., according to an analysis by the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

Six years ago, when the market was flying down the road in overdrive, economist Mark Zandi drew the ire of homebuilders when he predicted housing was about to drive off a cliff. Now, Zandi's singing a different tune. And the builders love it.

The Mortgage Bankers Association is projecting a 28% jump in purchase money originations in 2011. And even though refi originations are expected to fall off the cliff, the MBA is still looking for a $1 trillion year.

The surge in refinancing, now down to a virtual trickle, was officially pronounced dead and gone at the Mortgage Bankers Association's annual secondary market conference in New York.

Despite a decrease in sales, existing homes in Texas still managed to retain their value in the first quarter, according to the latest report from the state's Realtors group.

John Dickinson may have been more eloquent when he wrote the "Liberty Song" in 1768. But David Stevens, the new president and chief executive of the Mortgage Bankers Association, emphasized the same point at the group's annual secondary market conference in New York.

As the debate warms up about the future of housing finance, panelists at the Mortgage Bankers Association's annual secondary market conference were unanimous in their endorsement of the 30-year-fixed rate mortgage.

It will take a decade or more to work out all the kinks in the forthcoming merger of the Truth in Lending and Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act into a single, integrated disclosure, a top banking industry official said.

Six years ago, when the market was flying down the road in overdrive, economist Mark Zandi drew the ire of home builders when he predicted housing was about to drive off a cliff. Now, Zandi's singing a different tune. And the builders love it.

With a good size jump in starts in March, the California Industry Research Board is now looking for an overall increase in production this year.

BALTIMORE—A year ago, the folks who work in Freddie Mac’s multifamily section were sitting around waiting for the phones to ring. Now they can’t keep up.

For the first time in four years, the number of foreclosures has fallen in the tri-county South Florida region, according to the latest report by CondoVultures.

A growing share of loans originated by banks are coming through their wholesale/correspondent channel, according to the American Bankers Association's annual real estate lending survey.

For the first time in 13 years, Georgia won't be among the top ten states for mortgage fraud when LexisNexis releases its annual MARI fraud index on May 2.

You're never going to guess which big-time housing market has enjoyed the greatest year-over-year price gains?

A year ago, the folks who worked in Freddie Mac's multi-family section were sitting around waiting for the phones to ring. Now they can't keep up.

It will take a decade or more to work out all the kinks in the forthcoming merger of the Truth in Lending and Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act into a single, integrated disclosure, a top banking industry official said.

A class action suit has been filed against Saxon Mortgage, a servicing division of Morgan Stanley, claiming that the company uses the Home Affordable Modification Program to lure customers into making "trial" payments on loans it has no intention to modify on a permanent basis.

With the comment period drawing to a close on a federal rule that would all but eliminate private transfer fees, Virginia has become the 24th state to either restrict the controversial levies or ban than outright.

Investment bankers and mortgage industry executives are frequently criticized in the media for their supposedly exorbitant compensation packages — but wait until you see what the top officers at some of the nation's publicly traded home builders earned in 2010.