Ginnie Revises Buyout Policy

Ginnie Mae has announced a new policy for repurchasing delinquent loans from Ginnie Mae mortgage pools, allowing buyouts only when no payments have been made for three consecutive months.The new policy will take effect with loans placed in pools with an issue date of Jan. 1, 2003, according to the Bear Stearns Prepayment Commentary. Previously, Ginnie Mae allowed rolling 30-day delinquent repurchases (loans with at least one delinquent payment over four consecutive months), which the publication said probably represent "the bulk of the buyout product." The Bear Stearns analysts termed the change "long overdue" and predicted that it will substantially reduce the amount of new Ginnie Mae securities that are susceptible to servicer buyouts. Ginnie Mae can be found online at http://www.ginniemae.gov.