Finance

Universal American Mortgage Co., the mortgage banking subsidiary of Lennar Corp., one of the nation's largest homebuilders, has acquired certain assets of Colorado-based Pinnacle Mortgage Group.

The hot-button topic of what Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac should charge for loan guarantees is emerging as a key issue in reviving a private-label securitization market.

Second-quarter data show housing activity has lost momentum and may experience only minor improvements in the second half of the year, according to a Fannie Mae's Economic & Strategic Research Group.

There was a time years ago when second liens were the toughest legacy home loan asset to find a buyer for in the secondary market.

The Chicago Federal Home Loan Bank has received regulatory OK to start pilots for its jumbo and government loan conduits.

While Fannie Mae should have a smooth transition to a new system, Freddie Mac might find the path more treacherous.

Several institutions said their underwriters already exclude paid and unpaid medical debt from their calculation, raising questions about what kind of impact the new model will have on lenders.

The ratings agency plans to assess deals based on representations and warranties as well as an analysis of an independent third-party review of data quality and an originator assessment.

Wall Street is running into resistance unloading commercial-mortgage backed securities. After overlooking deteriorating underwriting standards for months, investors are becoming more selective as geopolitical turmoil sparks a flight from risky assets.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency provided its first specifics Tuesday on how it intends to create a single security for mortgage-backed securities guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Even though refinance loans account for the majority of mortgage applications, the refi boom has long been over, and depressed origination volume will keep it that way for some time.

Fitch Ratings may decline to rate or limit the maximum rating on re-performing securitizations if their representations and warranties, rep providers, documentation, due diligence reviews and structures aren't up to snuff.

The overall message – that mini-correspondents were intended as transitions, not permanent business models – means that the loan channel would be examined for consistency with the intended purpose.

Galante's impending departure may signal that the recovery of the federal mortgage insurance fund is nearly complete and an upcoming report will show a healthy capital level.

The issuance of securities backed by mortgage loans on multifamily properties guaranteed by Fannie Mae increased over 30% from the first quarter of 2014.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are relying more and more on their income from loan guarantee fees just at a time when their regulator is considering a proposal to reduce those fees.

Morgan Stanley is returning to the jumbo residential mortgage-backed securities market for the first-time since the housing crisis. The originator is well-known, but the loans are unusual and the geographic concentration is high.

Selling loans into the secondary market was a good strategy for housing finance agencies when rates were falling, but now they are said to be heading back to traditional bond financings to boost their balance sheets.

U.S. non-governmental residential mortgage-backed securities infrastructure may help Canadian players diversify their funding sources. The U.S. might win more key investors back if it had Canada's credit strengths.

Zais Financial Corp., a real estate investment trust in Red Bank, N.J., has acquired the privately owned mortgage company GMFS in Baton Rouge, La., for approximately $61 million.