Finance

The departing CEOs of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac oversaw significant cultural and operational shifts that made the housing finance system safer and more responsive to market needs, but a tough job lies ahead for their successors.

Industry downsizing resulted in an increase in critical defects found in closed mortgages as loan packaging errors continued to rise during the first quarter, according to Aces Risk Management.

Wells Fargo Home Lending is tapping eOriginal to launch an electronic note program, marking a step forward for the mortgage industry's push toward a more digital process.

The REIT is purchasing another $500 million of credit risk transfer notes through Fannie's L Street Securities program; this is its first deal rated by Fitch.

Mortgage-related earnings at five banks were lower due to the effect of higher interest rates on loan volume this year, even though late-season homebuyers improved consecutive-quarter origination numbers at three companies.

Mike Cagney’s current venture, Figure Technologies, is offering consumers the ability to apply online for home equity loans and get funding in as little as five days.

Home price index swaps, treated as a second lien on a property, will be used to reduce the default risk associated with low down payment mortgages, one of the program's creators said.

Mortgage applications fell last week as rates for the 30-year fixed conforming loan topped 5% for the first time since 2011, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported.

HSBC will pay $765 million to settle allegations that it sold defective residential mortgage-backed securities in the run-up to the financial crisis, resolving one of the London-based bank's last significant legal challenges with the U.S. government.

D.R. Horton is selling more homes, but its cancellation rates also are higher in the company's primary fiscal year results, a sign that rising mortgage rates may be affecting the market.

Rising interest rates, both current and the prospect for future increases, took a toll on consumers' outlook on the housing market during September, according to Fannie Mae.

Wells Fargo is planning its first post-crisis offering of bonds tied to U.S. home loans without government backing, according to people familiar with the matter.

Intercontinental Exchange, the owner of the New York Stock Exchange, has purchased the remaining equity in Merscorp Holdings it did not already own.

Builder Lennar Corp.'s purchase of CalAtlantic's financial services operations boosted its mortgage segment's earnings in the third quarter as the acquisition offset declines in per-loan profits and refinancing.

First Foundation sold loans to Freddie Mac to free up space for higher-yielding credits. It then bought the securities that were formed to replace other, lower-yielding assets through an often overlooked program.

Similar to estimates published by Moody's and Morningstar, the data provider reckons that more than half of the loans are securitized by Fannie, Freddie or Ginnie.

Commercial and multifamily mortgage debt outstanding grew by 1.6% during the second quarter, benefiting from improved property values and low interest rates, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Residential mortgage loan exchange provider Maxex has closed a new $38 million funding round it will use to improve and expand various aspects of its platform.

Increased competition among non-qualified mortgage lenders leading to lower starting interest rates for borrowers should result in fewer of these loans prepaying within one year of origination, said Standard & Poor's.

Moody's sees $10.7 billion of securitized commercial mortgages at risk, Morningstar just $1.49 billion; both say loans in Freddie Mac K-deals account for a significant portion of exposure.