What future is there for the Mortgage Partnership Finance program if the examination of the bank(s) promotingit is weak? It's an interesting question. Although the MPF program is not mentioned by name, a draft copy of aGeneral Accounting Office report raises questions about the Federal Housing Finance Board and itsability to examine the 12 FHLBs it regulates. Critics of the MPF and FHFB also might read into the report thatcurrent FHFB chairman John Korsmo has politics in mind (not that there's anything wrong with that) whenit comes to FHLB public interest directors. The percentage of public interest director appointees who made politicaldonations prior to their initial appointments now stands at 75% (under current FHFB chair Korsmo) compared to 56%for former chair Bruce Morrison. The American Banker reported on Friday that two FHFB boardmembers plan to introduce an amendment to agency rules that would weaken chairman Korsmo's authority. Stay tuned...
Also on Monday: legislation will be introduced in Georgia by state Sen. Casey Cagle to alleviate (tosome degree) funder/investor concerns about predatory lending laws there. Elected officials are working closelywith Standard & Poor's to draft a bill. If all things go well (and they very well could not go well),the bill could become law in two weeks. See National Mortgage News on Monday. (If you don't subscribeto NMN you can call: (800-221-1809)...
National Mortgage News is still crunching the numbers on its fourth-quarter loan survey, but the waythings look, the industry produced anywhere from $800 billion to $875 billion in loans in the fourth quarter andmaybe $2.6 trillion for the year, records both. Final results will be ready in early February...
Meanwhile, on Friday the yield on the 10-year Treasury (which mortgages are pegged to) fell back to 3.9%. Andyes, the stock market got crushed...
The mortgage brokerage and mortgage banking sectors now employ about 408,400 full-time workers, according tothe Bureau of Labor Statistics...
Sick of hearing about a potential U.S. housing bubble? Apparently, over in Europe they're talking about a Europeanhousing bubble. This from Mortgage Strategy magazine (the National Mortgage News of the U.K.):"From city economists to taxi drivers, pundits everywhere are getting fired up for a painful housing marketcorrection ... the shapers of monetary policy are concerned"...
According to the Homeownership Alliance, a Fannie Mae (& others) funded counterbalance toFM Watch, the resale housing market in Broward County saw sales volume increase 25% last year, a recordpace for a year that saw real estate prices climb at a similar breakneck pace across South Florida...
Philadelphia-based mortgage lender Sovereign Bancorp, a $40 billion shop with 525 branches, has signeda six-year outsourcing deal with Alltel of Jacksonville, Fla. Sovereign will use more than a dozen differentAlltel products, including mortgage origination and servicing systems...
In MI earnings news: Radian Group earned $427 million in 2002, while General Electric's unit earned$460 million...
MORTGAGE PEOPLE: Homestar Mortgage Services of New Jersey has hired former Bear Stearns seniormanaging director Dale Kurland as an advisor. Ms. Kurland is the president of DK Advisory Servicesin New York. Fannie Mae chairman Franklin Raines will make two speeches this week, one at a Salomon SmithBarney conference on Wednesday, and one to Women in Housing and Finance on Friday...
CORRECTION: In my 'Mortgage Scene' column in the February issue of Mortgage Servicing NewsI once again erred and mentioned that Washington Mutual was the buyer of CalFed/First Nationwide Mortgage.The buyer, of course, was Citigroup. This is the second time I've confused WaMu for Citi. I apologize, onceagain, for the error.
