Finance

Whatever path Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac take, the Mortgage Bankers Association would like to see them preserve many of the changes they made while in government conservatorship.

Starwood Capital Group missed two monthly payments on securitized debt tied to five shopping malls anchored by bankrupt department stores including Sears and J.C. Penney.

New Residential Investment Corp., fresh off a substantial first-quarter reduction of its asset holdings, is now planning to securitize the receivables on its $200 billion servicing portfolio of Fannie Mae-owned mortgages.

Unemployment is high. Credit is tight. And scientists are warning that a dangerous second wave of the coronavirus is coming. But somehow, U.S. mortgage companies are having one of their best years in history.

The REIT will add $500 million in capital through a senior secured loan, and it received a $1.65 billion term facility.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency was supposed to finalize its original proposal this month, but will redraft it because it was drawn up before the coronavirus emerged as a concern.

As they prepare to exit government conservatorship, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have enlisted the investment banks to help them boost capital and evaluate market opportunities.

But deal sponsors are primarily restricting property assets to the lower risk multifamily and office buildings that lenders are more confident will weather the economic strains brought by the coronavirus pandemic.

The company could be seeking a cash infusion to handle market difficulties ahead, but representatives are keeping mum on the matter.

Borrowers gained over $6 trillion in home equity since the Great Recession ended and the relative health of the housing market should stave off a coronavirus-induced collapse, according to CoreLogic.

The expected rise in refinance volume overrides pessimism about purchase activity for their businesses.

Mortgage rates increased slightly for the second consecutive week, buoyed early on by positive economic news such as the jobs report that came out last Friday, according to Freddie Mac.

Lenders are cautioning not only that second-quarter provisions might exceed the spike seen earlier this year, but also that credit costs could be elevated into 2021 if the economic slowdown drags on or fears of a second coronavirus wave are borne out.

The Federal Housing Administration's move to insure loans with forbearance could help support homeownership opportunities constrained by the coronavirus if one change was made to it, trade groups said.

Groups representing community banks and credit unions generally support the new percentage-based goals set by the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

The Federal Reserve pledged to maintain at least the current pace of asset purchases and projected interest rates will remain near zero through 2022, as Chairman Jerome Powell committed the central bank to using all its tools to help the economy recover from the coronavirus.

Mortgage investors can take heart knowing the Federal Reserve considers agency MBS a primary arena through which to conduct monetary policy.

The coronavirus market disruption actually caused the company's execs to speed up its return.

If delinquency rates rise, all four stand-alone firms would have a capital shortfall.

Looming economic uncertainties forced mortgage lenders to tighten underwriting standards in May.