Origination

In just the first few weeks of the year at least 10 transactions have taken place.

Servicing was strong relative to some analysts' estimates, but thin margins and higher-than-expected expenses in originations reduced earnings for the fiscal period.

Industry headwinds led numbers at the software and data provider downward at the end of the year, but company leaders said the unit is positioned well for a market snapback.

Since breaking above 7% in November, the 30-year fixed is now down nearly a full percentage point, Freddie Mac said.

The private mortgage insurer is purchasing Agents National and Boston National from Incenter, which itself is a unit of Finance of America.

The group, led by Senate Banking Chairman Sen. Sherrod Brown, said nonperforming loans sold to single family housing rental businesses or private equity firms results in the displacement of homeowners.

Various affiliated companies participated in the creation of the transaction, including its publicly traded REIT, which owned a significant portion of the mortgages.

The Federal Reserve slowed its drive to rein in inflation and said further interest-rate hikes are in store as officials debate when to end their most aggressive tightening of credit in four decades.

Despite lower interest rates, both purchases and refinances declined after recent surges, while average loan amounts have gradually crept up to start the year.

The latest quarterly numbers from TransUnion show both closed end products and HELOCs rose over the course of the past year as mortgage originations fell.