GSEs

Mel Watt, down payment, homeownership, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, FHA

Fannie said it will immediately begin accepting applications for fixed-rate 97% loan-to-value financing of borrowers with FICO scores as low as 620. Freddie, meanwhile, took a more cautious approach, delaying the start of the program, requiring credit counseling, and in some cases only allowing FICO scores as low as 660.

With some proposals still outstanding, mortgage bond market participants are concerned that eminent domain attempts would spread if a municipality makes inroads with a proposal.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have set terms for letting borrowers put down as little as 3% of a home's cost to get mortgages, a step criticized by Republican lawmakers as a return to risky lending.

Officials at Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae all heaped praise on nonbank mortgage lenders for stepping up to provide loans for home purchases at a time when many banks have scaled back.

Six years after a global financial crisis exacerbated by the lack of transparency in the market for U.S. mortgage debt, regulators are planning only a small step toward offering the public more information on trading.

Principal reductions for underwater borrowers would cost approximately $89 billion, according to Black Knight.

Mortgage rates for 30-year loans fell for a fourth week, reducing borrowing costs to the lowest level in a year and a half.

The Federal Housing Finance Administration has advised private mortgage insurers that it will delay the release of revised capital standards.

Interest rates for conforming mortgages have fallen to their lowest level in over a year and a half, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Nonbank mortgage servicers are already in the crosshairs of regulators. Now they will face even more scrutiny from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Delinquency rates for commercial and multifamily mortgages declined in the third quarter, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Despite the opinions of many that low-down-payment mortgages didn't cause the housing crisis, the fact is that these types of loans did contribute mightily to the bubble that burst.

Freddie Mac announced its first K-deal that includes a manufactured housing community loan.

Freddie Mac said that rates for 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages dropped this week to 3.97%.

Mortgage applications decreased last week as both refinance and purchase activity fell.

Having fought many battles with Congress over curbs to bond and other programs that affect affordable housing, John Murphy expects the challenges will continue as he retires from the National Association of Local Housing Finance Agencies after 30 years as its executive director.

A final judgment against Bank of America in a mortgage-bond lawsuit by the Securities and Exchange Commission was signed by a federal judge, helping clear the way for the lender to complete a $16.7 billion global settlement of claims it misled investors about risk.

Banks could originate 300,000 more home loans per quarter and face only a slightly higher risk of default, according to a new report. But lenders are unlikely to loosen lending standards until they are sure that Fannie, Freddie and the FHA have eased up on buyback requests.

Fannie Mae has partnered with the Detroit Land Bank Authority to stabilize distressed neighborhoods.