National banks are continuing to ease their underwriting standards on home loans when they should be tightening, according to Comptroller of the Currency John Dugan.With the red-hot housing market cooling, "we would normally expect" lenders to tighten their underwriting standards and require borrowers to provide more equity, Mr. Dugan told the American Bankers Association annual convention. However, examiners from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency are finding that bankers, giving in to competitive pressures, are easing underwriting standards. The comptroller reported that the OCC's 2006 underwriting survey, which is due to be released soon, shows a significant easing in residential mortgage standards. "We saw more of what we observed the previous year: longer interest-only periods, more piggybank loans to avoid mortgage insurance requirements, higher allowable debt-to-income and loan-to-value ratios, and greater volumes of loans with reduced documentation requirements," he said. The OCC can be found on the Web at http://www.occ.treas.gov.
-
The lender recorded a $59 million net loss in the fourth quarter, an 83% improvement from its third quarter performance.
3h ago -
Initial analyses of Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data show UWM ahead in 2023 loan numbers and dollar volume, but Rocket's market share still looks competitive.
4h ago -
Last year, the Raleigh, N.C.-based Integrated called off a deal to sell itself to MVB Financial after bank stocks took a hit in the aftermath of the regional bank failures. Capital hopes to expand its government-guaranteed lending with the transaction.
4h ago -
The pending end of the program comes as over half of U.S. states have already ceased accepting new applicants for federal aid aimed to help struggling households with mortgage payments.
4h ago -
But the 30-year fixed rate mortgage is still near 7%, and that remains the overhang on the housing market, Freddie Mac said.
5h ago -
Mortgage payments rose 10% year-over-year to an all-time high for March, Redfin said.
6h ago